Jonathan Liebenau participated at a high-level workshop in Rome on 8 March hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Alleanza per Internet. Read Jonathan Liebenau‘s reflections on the workshop and his own contributions to the debate

Liebenau, Jonathan

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27/06/2017 The Internet Post-Dubai | LSE Network Economy Forumhttp://blogs.lse.ac.uk/nef/2013/03/18/internet-post-dubai/ 1/2Mar 18 2013The Internet Post-DubaiBlog EditorJonathan Liebenau participated at a high-level workshop in Rome on 8 March hosted by the Ministry ofForeign Affairs and Alleanza per Internet. Read Jonathan Liebenau‘s reflections on the workshop and his owncontributions to the debate. On March 8 2013, around 130 dignitaries from various stakeholders in the digital economy gathered to hearInternational Telecommunications Union Secretary General Hamadoun Touré reflect on the theme: “Beyond Dubai: A NewGlobal Agenda for the Internet” and to respond with their views on the agenda ahead. This was the first public appearance ofSecretary General Touré following the World Conference on International Telecommunications [WCIT-12] in Dubai lastDecember and he used the occasion to express his views on the achievements in drafting the InternationalTelecommunications Regulations [ITRs] and the problems experienced by the ITU and various negotiators in working towardsthe production of a new treaty.Secretary General Touré expressed his exasperation at the difficulties in revising the existing 1988 treaty and emphasized theneed and seemingly uncontroversial appropriateness of most of the ITRs such as those concerning emergency number calling,accessibility and unsolicited bulk electronic communications.  He excoriated the inappropriateness of tactics to radicallypoliticize the treaty process and restated his oft-voiced claim that the ITU has no intention of regulating the internet.  Toemphasize this point he summarized the treaty text and expressed his hope that more countries will eventually join the existing89 signatories to the treaty.  He also expressed his desire to improve the consultation and advisory process for the ITU and,separately, for internet governance, and explicitly invited participation from academics, naming the LSE as an exemplarycontributor to underlying evidence gathering and analysis.The opening and welcome speeches were followed by a position statement from ETNO Executive Board Chair, LuigiGambardella who emphasized the significance of the WCIT in bringing to the fore discussions of international internetgovernance and the role that the ITU can have in telecommunications and internet policy debates.I then presented the keynote speech in which I explained research showing that the change in business practices associatedwith the digital economy could be seen through analyses of network traffic characteristics.  These changes hold specificimplications for European network economy businesses and policy, and I pointed out how changes in architecture andcompetition should lead to realignments among regulators, businesses and European industrial policy.  I also spoke about therealities of regional differences in the internet and the importance of abandoning the fiction of a “global, flat and neutral”internet. These are all themes addressed in recent blogs on this site (see here and here).The meeting then heard contributions from numerous stakeholders, including from operators, ICANN, Facebook, Skype,Verizon, and specialist institutes of internet studies.  Following these contributions, Prof. Eli Noam of Columbia Universityappeared, via a Skype video connection, and offered his views.  He was blunt in stating that a “new cold war” had arrived,contrary to the claims of Secretary General Touré, and that this was inevitable.  Prof. Noam spoke about the ways we cancome to terms with the fragmentation and differing priorities of countries and regions and outlined how we might find commonpurpose nonetheless.Meetings of this sort are rare in the telecommunications and internet community although they do echo both the mix andcontributions that characterize the events of the LSE Network Economy Forum.  Despite Eli Noam’s use of cold war rhetoric,the prevailing mood is one of optimism where executives of network operators, internet multi-stakeholder organizations, digitaleconomy companies such as Microsoft and Facebook, national and international policy makers and regulators can engage inconstructive dialogue.  This article gives the views of the author and not the position of the London School of Economics.See also:http://www.alleanzaperinternet.it27/06/2017 The Internet Post-Dubai | LSE Network Economy Forumhttp://blogs.lse.ac.uk/nef/2013/03/18/internet-post-dubai/ 2/2http://www.key4biz.itWe welcome your comments! Please take a look at our comments policy _________________________________About the authorJonathan Liebenau – LSE Management Department Dr Jonathan Liebenau is a Reader in Technology Management, LSE. He Specializes in fundamental conceptsof information, and the problems and prospects of ICT in economic development. Previously worked inacademic administration, technology policy, and the economic history of science-based industry, all positions inwhich he has emphasised the use of information in organizations.  He is the author or editor of a dozen booksand over 70 other major publications. He has provided consultancy services to leading companies and strategicgovernment agencies, including Dell, BT, IBM, Microsoft, TCS, Nortel, EDS, Lloyd Thompson, and in the UK Government, theOffice of Science and Innovation, the Department of Trade and Industry and the Home Office.  This entry was posted in broadband, convergence, digital economy, Europe, ICT, internet, internet economics, Jonathan Liebenau, LSE Tech, policy, Telecoms,Workshop briefing and tagged Italy, ITU, WCIT-12. Bookmark the permalink.

The Internet post-Dubai

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