Backed by developing countries and “exemplars of democracy” such as China and Russia, the United Nations is looking into proposals to regulate and tax the Internet.
The International Telecommunication Union, the U.N. agency that traditionally coordinates radio spectrum and satellite orbits, is considering expanding its scope to include the Internet.
“While the ITU may not have the authority to impose controls over the Internet here or inside other resisting nations, those following the process fear the establishment of a separate, regulated Internet regime that would disrupt the global free flow of information and commerce, as well as the development of such cross border technologies as cloud computing,” reports Fortune.
In the U.S., the prospect of U.N. control over the Internet has united the political right, left and center in opposition. The White House Office of Science and Technology has argued that the U.N. plan would “put political dealmakers, rather than innovators and experts, in charge of the future of the Internet.”
However, the public and business community has not engaged with this threat and may need to do so.
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