Nations squabble over internet management

October 2005

Delegates at a meeting in Geneva on Monday failed to reach an agreement on who should control the internet's addressing system. The meeting, which is being held in preparation of the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunis next month, degenerated into a farce when delegates argued over the right of the US to control the internet's addressing system.

Countries of the world lined up either for or against the US retaining control over the management of the net, which is currently the responsibility of ICANN under the authority of the US Department of Commerce. Standing firmly against the US is the European Union, which is joined by countries such as Russia, Iran and China.

For its part, the EU is supporting countries like Iran, which said that it was concerned that the US could effectively cut it off from the internet if it chose to at any time. The EU has called for internet governance to be handed over to the UN's International Telecommunications Union.