[discuss] Questions regarding business sector participation

[Milton L Mueller]

Gregory:
One of the most revolutionary things about the internet protocols and internetworking, and the liberalization of telecoms that preceded it, was that it blurred the line between providers and users. Self-production of networks (private networks) became the norm rather than the exception. Of course, there are very few global physical infrastructure providers but most organizations have their internal private networks and IT departments. Likewise, "brand" TLDs herald an era in which self-provision of DNS services may become more common. Thus I would have trouble accepting any division of the world based on an older, pre-liberalization hard distinction between a communications provider and communications users. Even households run (small) networks now. 

-----Original Message-----
From: discuss-bounces at 1net.org [mailto:discuss-bounces at 1net.org] On Behalf Of Shatan, Gregory S.
Sent: Monday, December 23, 2013 4:47 PM
To: 'Avri Doria'; discuss at 1net.org
Subject: Re: [discuss] Questions regarding business sector participation

I think there are fundamental differences between infrastructure providers (e.g., registries (ccTLDs and gTLDs), registrars, DNS providers and ISPs) and the general business community.  The vast majority of businesses are "users" -- they plug into the internet and take it as they find it.  They will use it to allow the rest of the world to find their website, and to conduct business and payments, and to send and receive emails, but the Internet itself is more or less a "black box."  Infrastructure providers have a fundamentally different relationship to the internet as builders and maintainers of the Internet and sellers of internet services of various types (domain names, connectivity, etc.), in addition to their "business user" relationship.  The question is how and where does those infrastructure issues, interests and concerns find representation?  These concerns are irrelevant to the rest of business (except to the extent that business, like civil society, individuals  a!
 nd every other user depends on the "black box" to work).  Furthermore their approach and desired outcomes to IG issues, interests and concerns may be significantly different from (or even diametrically opposed to) those of business users.  For these reasons, shoehorning them into "business" is an uncomfortable fit.

Of course, anytime you try to divide a complex ecosystem into 4 parts, you will have a range of views within each of those parts.  But I think this "fit" issue is a fundamentally different one, because infrastructure providers have a direct and unique relationship to the Internet that is fundamentally different from those of business users (or any other users).  While the business stakeholders can represent infrastructure providers' generic concerns as "business users" of the Internet "black box," whether and how they should represent their concerns as infrastructure providers inside the "black box" is entirely a different matter.

Greg Shatan

-----Original Message-----
From: discuss-bounces at 1net.org [mailto:discuss-bounces at 1net.org] On Behalf Of Avri Doria
Sent: Monday, December 23, 2013 9:06 AM
To: discuss at 1net.org
Subject: Re: [discuss] Questions regarding business sector participation



On 20-Dec-13 11:16, Neuman, Jeff wrote:
> Sometimes technical is also including.  But many of the infrastructure providers, including registries (ccTLDs and gTLDs), registrars, DNS providers and ISPs are left out of the mix.


For the most part, in the larger scheme of things, aren't they, for the most part, businesses.  I would think that at the scope of 1net, business would include all of these as sub-groupings and would need to deal internally with that diversity.

This is the same way that CS is now grappling with the problem of trying to be inclusive of all perspectives and grouping of organized civil society.  Etc.

avri

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