WSIS: US stands firm on status quo

The most important people have now spoken at the first resumed discussion of Internet governance – and it looks as though a big fight is brewing.

The US has, unsurprisingly, stood firm and demanded the status quo be maintained. Having finally got the microphone working – something that added a somewhat testy edge to the statement, the US representative went on:

“If the Internet is to reach its full potential as a medium it is vital that it is free from burdensome inter-governmental control.” The strength of the Internet is in its decentralisation and the suggested changes to this existing mechanisms and organisations would be an “obstacle to globalisation”.

He ended by calling on “all our colleagues to work with us”.

The colleagues that the US is referring to are most clearly represented by the UK/EU – which caused the current controversy by shifting away from the US position and suggesting an inter-governmental oversight body for ICANN and an public policy forum.

The EU made an intriguing statement however, saying only that it had “looked carefully at all positions, including our own” – but failed to say what conclusions it had come to. Instead, it put all the weight in the chairman, Ambassador Khan, saying that it hoped he would be able to steer the five sessions that remain to a successful conclusion.

Who would want that job at the moment?

China called for the UN to take over the Internet – and exclaimed – rather too loudly – that it could not understand what everyone's problem with this solution was.

So, in broad summary, not a thing has changed since the end of PrepCom3. But there is a real sense that people recognise they will have to come to agreement – and very, very soon.

There is very little time, alot of ground to cover and it looks as though this may get heated.