Last week, a little known international organization called the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) met in Dubai to draw up new rules to regulate the Internet, a process that is generating Hurricane Sandy-sized controversies among netheads. This ITU guys are up to endorsing some of the most worrisome proposals, that could bring about the beginning of the end of the era of Internet freedom.
In that Dubai conference (a UN’s International Telecommunication Union gathering), a total of 89 countries endorsed the global treaty on telecom regulations, but the United States and dozens of others refused to sign, saying it opened the door to regulating the Internet. The talks collapsed when US, UK, Canada and Australia walked out.
This leaves plenty of unanswered questions concerning the future of the web [:-O], where the freewheeling, unregulated Internet had earlier seemed to survive a push for new rules.
The US has furiously protested about internet control and regulations, after the UN approved this treaty, opposing any efforts to give the United Nations new authority to regulate the Internet. Variety of Internet activists and US firms, led by Google, have also warned against new regulations. Google is obviously supporting those nations rejecting this treaty and wants free and open web for all.
ITU was established in 1865 to manage the first international telegraph networks, the International Telecommunication Union became part of the United Nations in 1947. Since then, it has operated as an intergovernmental public-private partnership to create standards to promote international telecommunications services.
The era of Internet freedom doesn’t really have to come to an end.