A previously obscure nonprofit corporation that essentially governs the Internet – the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) – has featured prominently in recent news stories due to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s plan to relinquish its key oversight role. Details of this transition will be high on the agenda as ICANN stakeholders meet in Los Angeles this week. Many observers fear that ICANN could soon be subject to the heavy-handed influences of governments that do not share the values that have led to the innovation, flexibility and openness that has hitherto characterized the Internet.
Miscellaneous
ICANN Chair Responds to TPI’s ICANN Accountability Concerns
Point-by-point response by ICANN Chair Steve Crocker to “Internet governance in transition: What’s the destination?” published in The Hill. The opinion piece was authored TPI President Thomas Lenard and Larry White, Professor of Economics at NYU’s Stern School of Business.
TPI Aspen Forum Kicks Off Next Weekend
The 2014 Technology Policy Institute Aspen Forum begins next Sunday, August 17 and runs through August 19. Congressman Scott Tipton (CO-3) will give opening remarks at this year’s Forum and is expected to discuss the government’s role in furthering progress in the technology sector. Prominent economist Tim Bresnahan from Stanford University will give a keynote address on entrepreneurship and economic growth and the featured Monday night dinner speaker will be David Cohen, Executive Vice President at Comcast. The event will also feature a special luncheon conversation with the authors of the landmark book “Information Rules,” Carl Shapiro of the University of California, Berkeley and Hal Varian, Chief Economist of Google.
Aspen Breakout Sessions Address Key Policy Issues
The Technology Policy Institute has confirmed presenters for the 2014 Aspen Forum breakout sessions. The three informal, off-the-record breakout sessions will cover the pertinent topics of net neutrality, innovation and patents, and spectrum sharing. The Aspen Forum is scheduled for August 17 – 19 and registration can still be performed online.
Aspen Panel – Data and Trade
Digital goods and services represent an increasingly large part of the U.S. and global economies and are only just beginning to be considered in the context of international trade. While digital trade can be an important component of economic growth, a thriving future is not guaranteed. Policies like data localization laws, internet governance rules that affect how data flows around the globe, and potential mistrust created by intrusive government surveillance, to name a few, can all act as digital trade barriers. The panel “Data and Trade” at this year’s TPI Aspen Forum assembles a group of experts on trade and data flows to explore these issues and the future of digital trade.
Welcome to the Roadkill Cafe
Notwithstanding Texas politician Jim Hightower’s observation (courtesy of Commissioner Ajit Pai of the Federal Communications Commission) that “there is nothing in the middle of the road but yellow stripes and dead armadillos,” it is a time-honored government tradition to frame an issue so that the preferred option is the one in the middle. This appears to be what Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler has in mind as he navigates the open Internet minefield. However, the middle ground is not as safe as it might seem.