[DNS] domain name, WSIS & governance news - 22 November

[DNS] domain name, WSIS & governance news - 22 November

From: David Goldstein <goldstein_david§yahoo.com.au>
Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2005 22:47:39 +1100 (EST)
Check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/dn-news for
the latest domain news. By close of business Melbourne
time on 24 November, a more recent edition of the news
should be posted to the auDA web site.

The domain name news is supported by auDA.

****************
DOMAIN NAMES
****************
Study Shows Australians May Pay Too Much for Domain
Names (news release)
A new study reveals that some Australian registrars
charge three times more than others for a single
domain name registration. The study not only compares
costs but also covers how people choose their
registrars.
 http://prweb.com/releases/2005/11/prweb312596.htm
 http://domainnamestudy.com/

eu: Study by Names &#167; Work Reveals Small European
Trademark Holders could Pose Problem for Major U.S.
Brands in .EU (news release)
The Sunrise Period for .EU could leave U.S. brands
disappointed. Excel.eu could go to a penile prosthesis
manufacturer, Powerpoint.eu to a fishing hook
manufacturer. Cybersquatters aren?t the problem for a
change.
 http://prweb.com/releases/2005/11/prweb311766.htm

World businesses and Internet users seeking
non-English domain names
Had the Internet been invented in China, you'd need
some fluency in Chinese to type Web addresses. But as
a U.S. invention, the Internet's lingua franca is
English.

http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051119/BUSINESS/511190334/

Implementation of Internationalized Top Level Domains
As previously announced, IDN workshop will be held
during the ICANN Vancouver meeting. Accordingly, ICANN
is posting the candidate papers received in response
to its earlier call for papers. The papers will be
vetted for presentation by a technical panel being
appointed by ICANN.

http://icann.org/announcements/announcement-17nov05.htm

us: Domain names are on the bubble
Housing bubbles are a hot topic these days. Some
pundits say South Florida is experiencing a bubble
that's about to burst, while others remain bullish.
Now the debate has reached cyberspace. Last week, an
industrious eBay seller listed two domain names he had
purchased to capitalize on the bubble craze:
HousingBubble.com and HousingBubble.net.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/realestate/sfl-0620bubble,0,3536909.story

Verisign on verge of agreement with ICANN
ICANN is on the verge of reaching agreement in its
long-standing discussion with Verisign. A draft
agreement has been reached and exposed for public
comment on the parties? websites.

http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/UNID/F00A43E98B858F25CC2570BC007AC971

us: AIT's .org Domains Go Missing
Dozens of .org domains deleted and placed in
redemption; AIT requests PIR to immediately restore
service to affected customers, while ICANN
investigates.

http://www.webhosting.info/news/1/aits-.org-domains-go-missing_1117059088.htm

Domain registry scammer sent to prison
An internet fraudster who ran a series of domain name
scams was sentenced to six years in prison by
Peterborough Crown Court yesterday after being found
guilty of fraudulent trading, attempted blackmail and
making threats to kill.
 http://www.out-law.com/page-6352

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/79927/british-domain-scammer-jailed-for-six-years.html

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/11/17/spammer_jailed/

http://www.nominet.org.uk/News/PressReleases/2005PressReleases/InternetScammerPeter...evenOutOfNineCharges.html

Canadians carve out their own domain
Even though the dot-com boom went bust in 2000, the
.com suffix still dominates the Web in Canada -- at
least for now. Data from the Whois Source (whois.sc)
reports that as of yesterday, nearly 45 million domain
names currently active around the world use the .com
suffix or "top level domain," while about seven
million use .net, and four million use .org. Dot-com
remains the heavyweight champion in Canada, too, with
more than 1.3 million registrations from this country
to date.

http://www.globetechnology.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20051117.gtdomainnov17/BNStory/Technology/

auDA signs new Registry Licence Agreement with
AusRegistry
Future profits from org.au and asn.au sales to fund
Australian Internet user organisations
 http://auda.org.au/news.php?newsid=51

UK "Most Wanted" Domain Name Nicked
It's something that should have been done years ago -
a Most Wanted website for UK criminals on the run. But
the people behind this bold new idea didn't counter on
two things.

http://www.boostmarketing.com/UK-&quot;Most-Wanted&quot;-Domain-Name-Nicked_s1156.html

*********************
WSIS & GOVERNANCE
*********************
Essential test for UN net summit
Building a global information society that is fair,
equitable, and accessible to everyone is a daunting
challenge that is going to take years to achieve.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4451950.stm

Controversy blights UN net summit
A crucial UN summit on expanding net access around the
world has ended in Tunis marred by controversy over
censorship and who runs the internet.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4450474.stm

http://globetechnology.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20051118.gtnetnov18/BNStory/Technology/

UN net summit diary: Day three
Indian journalist Amit Jain is in Tunis for the World
Summit on the Information Society and is writing about
his experiences for the BBC News website. Based in
Singapore, he is a correspondent for The Straits
Times.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4449082.stm

Five More Years! There Was No "Deal" and WSIS Resolved
Nothing by Milton Mueller
The basic problem posed by WSIS was the role of
national governments and national sovereignty in
global Internet governance. That conflict remains
completely unresolved by the WSIS document.

http://www.circleid.com/posts/no_deal_wsis_resolved_nothing/

The WSIS Deal by Michael Geist
There is considerable coverage last week on the last
minute WSIS deal struck. The gist of the coverage
rightly reports that the U.S. emerged with the
compromise they were looking for as the delegates
agreed to retain ICANN and the ultimate U.S. control
that comes with it (note that there is a lot in the
WSIS statement that may ultimately prove important but
that is outside the Internet governance issue
including the attention paid to cybercrime, spam, data
protection, and e-commerce). This outcome begs the
questions ? what happened? And, given the obvious
global split leading up to Tunis, what changed to
facilitate this deal?

http://michaelgeist.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1010

The WSIS Stocktaking Report Launched
The WSIS Stocktaking Report has been officially
launched during WSIS. The report has been prepared on
the basis of activities entered to the WSIS
Stocktaking Database that by November 2005 contained
more then 2500 entries.

http://www.itu.int/osg/spu/newslog/The+WSIS+Stocktaking+Report+Launched+.aspx

InternetNZ cautiously welcomes WSIS outcome (news
release)
?In the end, this is an outcome which New Zealand
Internet users should be comfortable with - but the
devil is in the detail,? said InternetNZ president
Colin Jackson today, responding to news of a deal
agreed by governments at the World Summit on the
Information Society, currently being held in Tunisia.

http://internetnz.net.nz/news/2005-11-17-wsis-outcome.htm

EU Pleased With Internet Agreement
A world information society summit ended largely the
way it began -- with the EU unable to loosen America's
grip on the domain-name system that guides internet
traffic.

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1781769,00.html

EU brokers deal on progressive internationalisation of
Internet governance at Tunis World Summit
A worldwide political agreement providing for further
internationalisation of Internet governance, and
enhanced intergovernmental cooperation to this end,
was brokered at the World Summit on the Information
Society in Tunis last night. The compromise text
agreed was based largely on EU proposals presented in
the discussions since June. As a first important
element of the agreement, a new international Internet
Governance Forum (IGF) will be created to deliberate
among governments, the private sector and civil
society at large in a multi-stakeholder policy
dialogue related to Internet Governance. A first
meeting of this Forum will be convened by the
Secretary-General of the United Nations by the second
quarter of 2006 and take place in Greece. The texts
agreed in Tunis also include language that will allow
for enhanced cooperation among governments, on an
equal footing, on public policy issues. Such
cooperation should include the development of globally
applicable principles on public policy issues
associated with the coordination and management of
critical Internet resources. This cooperation will
make use of relevant international organisations.
There was also a consensus in Tunis yesterday that
countries should not be involved in decisions
regarding another country?s Top Level Domain, thus
meeting requests made, in particular, by the EU in the
negotiations.

http://europa.eu.int/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/05/1433

CENTR on WSIS (news release)
CENTR fully shares the view expressed by UN Secteray
General Kofi Annan that "Day to day management of the
Internet must be left to technical institutions" which
should be "shielded from the heat of politics".

http://www.centr.org/docs/2005/11/WSISpressreleases.pdf

Technology Summit Wraps Up in Tunisia
A crucial summit on expanding Internet access around
the world ended Friday with a firm promise to narrow
the digital divide _ but little in government funding
to make it happen.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/18/AR2005111800212.html

Keep the Internet Free
Delegates from around the world will gather next week
in Tunisia for what is known as WSIS. Few people are
aware of WSIS's existence, its mission or the purpose
of this conference. That is unfortunate, since the
principal agenda item calls for a wholesale change in
governance of the Internet that could lead to a
significant setback for global freedom of information.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/11/AR2005111101408.html

US fighting to remain master of its domains
WASHINGTON has emerged as the winner in a bitter
international struggle for control of the global
internet, at least for now. The tense final scenes in
the latest round of the two-year web war were played
out this week at the World Summit on the Information
Society in the Tunisian capital Tunis, a UN talkfest
attended by more than 50 heads of government and as
many as 15,000 officials.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17289174%255E28737,00.html

The bust-up in Tunisia
A civil liberties watchdog made headlines three years
ago when it named Tunisian President Zine el-Abidine
Ben Ali a "predator of press freedom."

http://news.com.com/The+bust-up+in+Tunisia/2008-1028_3-5961545.html

Another U.N. Internet rift develops
A brief cessation of hostilities between the United
States and its critics on Internet management is
raising a new question: Who's in charge next?

http://news.com.com/Another+U.N.+Internet+rift+develops/2100-1038_3-5958623.html

FAQ: Tunisia summit and Internet governance
Thousands of representatives of national governments,
corporations and nonprofit organizations began meeting
here Wednesday for a summit that was expected to
decide the future of Internet management.

http://news.com.com/FAQ+Tunisia+summit+and+Internet+governance/2100-1028_3-5956561.html

Our man at ICANN keeps internet civil war at bay
What if the internet broke down? Imagine if one
morning you turned on your computer and the whole
thing just didn't work any more - what would happen to
companies, stocks, indeed entire industries that have
been created in the past decade (including my world of
online journalism)?

http://theage.com.au/articles/2005/11/19/1132017020359.html

Expression Under Repression at WSIS
Rebecca MacKinnon and Ethan Zuckerman hosted
"Expression Under Repression," a workshop at the World
Summit on the Information Society in Tunis (for more
on that, please check out these blog posts).  Rebecca
and Ethan are co-founders of Global Voices, a blog
that features citizen journalists from around the
world.  They also maintain a wiki-based index of
bridge-bloggers, people who speak and write from one
culture for another, and they develop tools,
techniques, and teaching materials to help journalists
and activists around the world to express themselves
through the medium of blogs.

http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/home/home?wid=10&func=viewSubmission&sid=855

Open Net Initiative reports on filtering in Tunisia
The Open Net Initiative (ONI) has released its report
on filtering by the Tunisian government. The report
finds that the Tunisian government uses American
software to filter political speech it disagrees with,
and to limit access to proxies and anonymizers which
might allow Tunisian citizens to access political
speech or other blocked information. This approach
directly conflicts with the supposed goals of the
Tunisian government, and with the supposed goals of
WSIS.

http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/home/home?wid=10&func=viewSubmission&sid=854

WSIS Reinforces the Regional Internet Registries
The Number Resource Organization (NRO) is satisfied
with the result of the WSIS. It is a positive result
that the role of governments inside the area of
Internet governance has been clearly defined,and that
there is a clear decision for governments not to
become involved in the daily operational and technical
matters of the Internet.This result,while recognising
the importance of full involvement of all
stakeholders, allows for the continued successful
operation of the Internet and is a successful outcome
for the Internet community as a whole.

http://nro.net/archive/press-releases/wsis-20051117.html

Global Cooperation is Key to the Stability of the
Internet, Say Internet Community Organisations at WSIS
Many of the Internet community organisations that
enable the processes for the development and
administration of the Internet will host the ?Internet
Pavilion? (stand 1323) at the ?ICT 4 all? exhibition
at WSIS.

http://nro.net/archive/press-releases/wsis-20051114.html

US reaches Net detente with UN
The Bush administration and its critics at a United
Nations summit in Tunisia have inked a broad agreement
on global Internet management that will preclude any
dramatic showdown this week.

http://zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/US_reaches_Net_detente_with_UN/0,2000061791,39222977,00.htm

Agreement on web crime-fighting forum
Negotiators have agreed to set up a global forum to
discuss online crime, but appeared unlikely to resolve
a dispute about control of the Internet ahead of a UN
technology summit.
 http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/411419/627653

Internet Repression Casts Pall on Web Summit (news
release)
As WSIS opens today in Tunis, Tunisia continues to
jail individuals for expressing their opinions on the
Internet and suppress Web sites critical of the
government. The government has detained critical
online writers and has blocked Web sites that publish
reports of human rights abuses in the country.
 http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/11/15/mena12011.htm

Tunisia: Government repression ?making a mockery? of
WSIS (news release)
The Tunisian government?s continuing clampdown on
human rights defenders and its intolerance of domestic
critics threatens to make a mockery of a major
UN-sponsored international summit being held in Tunis
this week, according to Amnesty International.
 http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGMDE300232005

Hollow words on human rights at UN Information Society
Summit
The information revolution, spurred by unprecedented
new advances in information and communication
technologies, has transformed the way we think, work,
socialize and communicate.
 http://web.amnesty.org/pages/393-141105-feature-eng

The 15 enemies of the Internet and other countries to
watch
Reporters Without Borders marks the WSIS by presenting
15 countries that are ?enemies of the Internet? and
pointing to a dozen others whose attitude to it is
worrying.
 http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=15613

ICANN Controversy Is Just the Beginning
Opinion: There is a tug of war being waged for control
of the Internet, and this week's international
skirmish over domain naming is just a sign of the
times.
 http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1888417,00.asp

http://www.optusnet.com.au/news/story/abc/20051120/10/tech/1510450.inp

World Summit blog: Buses, toilets and fear
WSIS Tunis Was there ever a more evil form of
transport than a bus? They are so convincing. You can
carry a lot of people and they can go wherever you
want. Trains and trams are on tracks, cars are too
small and cramped.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/11/17/wsis_blog_four/

WSIS: Secret police, hunger and booze
Secret policemen: you miss 'em when they're gone. It
seems most people shipped out of Tunis soon after the
closing ceremony ended around 7pm. When I got back to
my hotel around 10pm, there was only one secret
policeman standing guard and he didn't even bother to
inspect my badge.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/11/20/wsis_blog_five/

Who Should Control the Internet? Just You and I:
Matthew Lynn
Last week, government delegates at a summit in Tunisia
gathered to ponder Internet regulation. Right now, a
lot of people think the Web is controlled by the U.S.
The European Union would like a slice of that action.
So, too, would the United Nations.

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000039&refer=columnist_lynn&sid=aU5tmmLkiJpY

World Summit on the Information Society Hailed as
Resounding Success (news release)

http://www.itu.int/wsis/newsroom/press_releases/wsis/2005/18nov.html

World Summit on the Information Society Opens in Tunis
(news release)

http://www.itu.int/wsis/newsroom/press_releases/wsis/2005/16nov.html

Agreement brokered at the World Summit on the
Information Society (news release)

http://www.itu.int/wsis/newsroom/press_releases/wsis/2005/16novpc3.html

Civil Society groups reflect on WSIS process
As the WSIS summit draws to a close, civil society
groups are reflecting on the past but also looking at
the road ahead. In a gathering organised by the CRIS
Campaign on Friday afternoon, key participants of the
civil society processes of the past 4 years proposed
ways of keeping up the pressure and making sure that
the visions that were developed around the WSIS
process will be implemented. The event highlighted a
wide variety of projects that will keep civil society
actors busy during the upcoming months and years.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/835.htm

The panel I never attended
As the summit had reached its final hours, I intended
to select carefully which event I should attend at
this afternoon?s last time slot for parallel events.
My choice was the panel "IS & sustainable development"
which was announced to take place in the room "Sidi
Bou Said" at 15:00.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/837.htm

The WSIS "High Level Panel"
The High Level Panel on ICT for Development turned out
to be not so "high level" after all. A closer look on
the less pretentious parallel events sometimes can be
much more worthwhile than just striving for the big
titles. An event by the Swedish Development
Cooperation Agency (SIDA) focused on the same issues
and certainly gave more answers.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/834.htm

"Art and Free Knowledge" event in Tunis
When Richard Stallman and Gilberto Gil sing a
duet...then we are probably not at the WSIS government
plenary but at a summit side-event. "The Third
Paradise" is a series of events on art and free
knowledge, taking place at an impressive traditional
building in the old town of Tunis. On Thursday
evening, free software hero Richard Stallman and the
Brazilian singer and Minister of Culture Gilberto Gil
met each other for a memorable encounter.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/833.htm

One long month of hunger strike for three basic
democratic objectives
Freedom of speech and press, Freedom of Association,
Freeing political prisoners. This is not asked for
much, it is a minimum standard for a working
democracy. Is it? Apparently it is too much to ask for
in a regime such as Tunisia. What we experience these
days is just the tip of the ice berg: Eight opposition
leaders were so desperate in their situation to start
a hunger strike on 18 October - that?s about 30 days
ago - to call for help and international support and
attention. The situation is serious. One of the
strikers fainted and was brought to hospital last
Monday at the very hour, when some German civil
society representatives had a chance to visit the
scene and speak to the people.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/831.htm

The citizens summit is dead ? long live the citizens
summit!
The Tunisian authorities have done all they can to
prevent civil society events outside the Kram
exhibition centre. But on Wednesday and Thursday,
civil society activists finally succeeded in getting
the upper hand against state repression. A press
conference to announce the cancellation of the
Citizens Summit (CSIS) transformed into a major human
rights event and was followed on the next day by a
rally by oppositional groups.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/830.htm

Summit Agenda switching to ?ICT and development?
With the final Tunis documents surprisingly being
adopted in Tuesday night?s session, the so far
dominant summit agenda of Internet Governance now
suddenly seems to switch again to the development
aspects of ICT. As countries make their final
statements to the 2-year process, the development
agenda regains its urgency.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/829.htm

"Visions in Process II" released at World Summit
A new book brings together assessments by women from
around the world who have been involved in various
civil society constituencies created during the WSIS
process. Their contributions reflect on controversies
within the discourses of governments and civil society
on issues that lie at the core of the summit?s
declared vision of a people-centred,
development-oriented, and inclusive Information
Society: human rights, development and participation.
The publication was released today at the parallel
event "Towards a sustainable and inclusive Knowledge
Society. How to get there from WSIS?", organized by
the Heinrich B?ll Foundation.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/828.htm

Second WSIS summit officially opened
The second WSIS has started. On Wednesday, UN
Secretary General Kofi Annan and Tunisian President
Ben Ali opened what has been named the "summit of
solutions". Swiss President Samuel Schmid and civil
society representative Shirin Ebadi openly criticized
the Tunsian authorities for their repressive acts
against local and international civil society.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/827.htm

Negotiations finished - Summit opened
The governmental negotiations have - to the surprise
of many observers - now already been finished last
night, twelve hours before the summit was opened.
Civil society groups have started preparing their own
summit statement, which will be presented on Friday.

http://www.itu.int/wsis/documents/doc_multi.asp?lang=en&id=2266|0

http://www.itu.int/wsis/documents/doc_multi.asp?lang=en&id=2267|0

Negotiations closer to agreement
Consensus on Internet Governance Forum and - almost -
ICANN oversight
15 November 2005. The PrepCom negotiations today have
led to important steps forward an agreement. While
governments are still struggling about the question of
who gets political oversight over the technical core
of the Internet, there is consensus now on the
establishment of an ?Internet Governance Forum?.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/825.htm

?Abnormal Circumstances?" Civil Society Organisations
cancel events, protesting human rights violations in
Tunisia
In reaction to the human rights violations yesterday
in Tunis, many civil society organisations decided to
cancel their long-prepared panels at WSIS today in
solidarity with the Tunisian civil society. Yesterday,
two private civil society meetings in Tunis have been
prevented or hindered by the police. Human rights
activists and journalists have been harassed, and
websites, including the one of the Citizens Summit on
the Information Society (CSIS), have been blocked
inside of Tunisia. Statement by the CSIS organizing
group:
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/822.htm

Broadcast Media in the Information Society?
One day before the start of the WSIS summit, the World
Electronic Media Forum has opened its doors. The
Forum, which takes place within the summit compound
and as an official parallel event, is a two-day
conference to highlight the important role of
traditional media in the information society. Critical
voices, however, will be rare at this mainstream media
event.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/823.htm

Meeting Tunisian civil society ? and Tunisian secret
police
Participants of a workshop organized by the Heinrich
Boell Foundation and the Tunisian Association of
Democratic Women have experienced the everyday reality
of social-political activism under an authoritarian
repressive regime. At least 40-50 plain-clothes police
and security agents blocked the entrance of the
building where the meeting was to take place, pushed
away by-standers, and generated an atmosphere of
intimidation. Meanwhile, seven human rights activists
are still on hunger strike.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/820.htm

Tunisian authorities escalate conflict with civil
society
As the WSIS summit draws closer, the Tunisian
authorities are continuing to prevent any civil
society events taking place outside the summit
compound. This morning, Tunisian police blocked the
Goethe Institut where a preparation meeting for the
Citizens Summit was to take place. Even the head of
the German government delegation was not allowed to
access the building. The delegations of the European
Union are showing active support to the Citizens
Summit.
 http://worldsummit2005.de/en/web/819.htm

US retains control of domain name system
The United States will maintain control of the domain
name system that guides traffic around the Internet
under an agreement adopted at a United Nations
technology summit. 
 http://abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200511/s1508523.htm

http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=10300504

http://theage.com.au/news/National/Internet-remains-in-independent-hands/2005/11/19/1132017012970.html
 http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3481952a6026,00.html
 http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3481952a28,00.html
 http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1887748,00.asp

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051120/BUSINESS/511200329/
 http://www.localtechwire.com/article.cfm?u=12755

http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/BusinessNF.asp?ArticleID=193059

http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=31&art_id=qw1132142972628B232

http://www.arnnet.com.au/index.php/id;479844609;fp;2;fpid;1

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1548474,00020020.htm
 http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1888230,00.asp

http://www.dailybreeze.com/business/articles/1993197.html
 http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,175717,00.html
 http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=1326664

UN summit examines Internet governance, Global reach
WSIS sponsored by the United Nations for expanding
Internet access around the world held in Tunisia
between 16 to 18 November 2005 ended Friday with
resolutions to narrow the digital divide and to
increase access to children in the third world. Few
committed funding for this ambitious vision. Questions
related to continued control of the Internet by
US-based private sector non-profit entity ICANN
dominated the pre-conference discussions.
 http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=79&artid=16375

Digital divide a focus at close of Net summit
A U.N. summit this week made progress in narrowing the
technology gap between rich and poor countries,
participants said, despite rich nations' reluctance to
contribute to a development fund pushed by African
states.

http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=10335761

Internet still all about U.S. and English
But for how long? Delegates to a summit take steps
toward letting an international body have more of a
say
 http://www.sltrib.com/ci_3234739

Preserving the essence of the net
Technology commentator Bill Thompson wonders whether
the choice of Tunisia to host the UN net summit was
designed to make a wider point. 
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4448564.stm

The internet and political will by Bill Thompson
I?ve been at WSIS for the past four days, but with no
time to write anything much, though I did do eight
separate interviews for bits of the BBC and made two
programmes with the Go Digital team, so I wasn?t just
sitting around. Others - like Kieren and Alastair
helped make it all bearable, and Jo was a complete
star, filing vast amounts of copy under deadline.
 http://p2pnet.net/story/7049

Cuba, Iran lash out at Internet freedom
Cuba, Iran and African governments lashed out at the
U.S. government this week, charging that the Internet
permits too much free speech and that the way it is
managed must be reformed immediately.

http://news.com.com/Cuba,+Iran+lash+out+at+Internet+freedom/2100-1028_3-5960298.html

The spoilers and the web
"The situation can certainly be criticised but the
proposed remedies seem much worse," said the
Paris-based Reporters Sans Frontieres, not exactly the
first organisation that you would expect to rally to
the US government's position. "If there was ever a
time to invoke the maxim If it ain't broke, don't fix
it, this is it," said Joseph A Morris, a Chicago-based
lawyer who watched Internet law evolve from a ringside
seat as a senior official at the US Justice
Department. Both were alarmed by the changes that are
being considered in Tunis.

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl/article_opinion?id=117354031

Three Issues Hotly Debated To Bridge Digital Divide
The just-concluded second phase of WSIS that brought
together political, business and NGOs, saw three main
issues hotly debated to bridge the digital divide
between the rich and poor countries.

http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v3/news_lite.php?id=166113

WSIS Ends On Mixed Note
WSIS concluded Friday night with claims of success by
the United Nations, governments and the private
sector, but civil society refused to wholeheartedly
embrace its outcome.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511200112.html

Negotiations At Summit Eases Internet Tension
Negotiators at the just-concluded second phase of the
World Summit on the Information Society in Tunisia
defused a confrontation between the United States and
countries, which accuse the super power of controlling
the Internet.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511200143.html

PanAfrica: Activists Give a Crash Course in Overcoming
Electronic Hurdles
Domestic concerns of political stability, societal
values and national security provided the core debate
at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)
that concluded in Tunis Friday. The debate over who
would govern the Internet pitted countries fighting
for preserving "communal morals" against those
attempting to protect "freedom of expression". That
debate goes on, but it has become ...
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511200113.html

Civil Society Joins in Celebrations, After All
Though failing to get its alternative Citizen's Summit
off the ground, and being disappointed by certain
decisions at the World Summit on the Information
Society and at repression by the Tunisian government,
civil society groups joined officials and businessmen
Friday in celebrating the outcome of the meeting,
perhaps the last United Nations Summit for years to
come.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511200111.html

WSIS 'Missing Gender'
The gender caucus has observed with disappointment
that WSIS documents do not pay enough attention to
gender issues.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511180169.html

WSIS Delegates Recount ICT Success Stories
Several African delegations at WSIS in Tunis, have
been outlining steps taken toward using Information
and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for development
in their respective countries.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511180168.html

WSIS Should Bring Hope to Rural Areas, Says Obasanjo
President Olusegun Obasanjo says the WSIS should usher
in hope to rural communities.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511180058.html

30 Ugandans to Attend Wsis Summit
In Kampala, 30 Ugandans among them government
officials, business people from the private sector,
civil society organisations and the academia will be
going to the Tunisian capital for the summit.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511180708.html

Big Business Shine At Information Society Summit
Heads of state issue eloquent policy statements at the
gold-domed compound of the 176-nation summit. Vocal
civil society groups and the best of academia are
engaged in debates. They have the words, but the real
action lies at a glittering pavilion, where the latest
goods, gadget and systems are exhibited by the likes
of Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, Nokia and many others.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511180041.html

'Internet Must Be a Public Facility'
Civil society will now have a formal role to play in
Internet governance through the newly set up Internet
Governance Forum, even if the views of the forum will
not be binding.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511180586.html

More Internet, Less Poverty?
Building a bridge across the digital divide might not
be the smooth path to poverty reduction that many
people believe. As many as 17,000 people from around
the world are attending this United Nations conference
targeted at closing the now famous divide, the gap in
access to the Internet and other information age tools
(and skills) between rich and poor countries, and even
within nations.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170732.html

'Western States Abuse Internet'
ZIMBABWE is concerned that information communication
technology (ICT) continues to be used negatively -
mainly by developed countries - to undermine national
sovereignty, social and cultural values, President
Mugabe said here yesterday.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170735.html

Governments Sidelined By Civil Society At WSIS?
World leaders and high-level government
representatives are taking a backseat to business
leaders and civil society representatives at the World
Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) which will
wrap up here Friday.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170733.html

tn: Country's Human Rights Record On the Spotlight
Again
With a solidarity visit to a group of Tunisian hunger
strikers, non governmental organisations Thursday
continued their efforts to highlight Tunisia's human
rights record.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170731.html

No New Oversight for Internet Management, Summit
Agrees
The United States and 170 other countries reached
agreement on future management of the Internet on the
eve of the United Nations-sponsored WSIS in Tunis,
Tunisia, November 16-18.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170118.html

US Maintains Role in Internet Governance
Following a summit agreement inviting the United
Nations Secretary General to convene a new forum to
foster multi-stakeholder policy dialogue on internet
governance, the United States government yesterday
insisted it had not given up its role in the
governance of the internet.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170838.html

No Winners, No Losers - ICANN Boss
If anyone thought they had come out victorious in a
debate on internet governance, it was not the
President and Chief Executive Officer for the ICANN,
Paul Twomey.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170836.html

South Africa: Decisions Should Be Inclusive, Says
Mbeki
President Thabo Mbeki says decisions to be taken at
the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)
must be inclusive and reflect earlier resolutions to
build a people-centred, inclusive and
development-oriented information society.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170622.html

Diogo Wants Concrete Results On Information
Technologies
Mozambican Prime Minister Luisa Diogo said in Tunis on
Wednesday, at the opening of the World Summit on the
Information Society, that the meeting and its
participants should commit themselves seriously to
helping developing countries, such as Mozambique, to
have more access to the information necessary for
their development.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170615.html

NGOs Disappointed With Declaration on Internet
Governance
Civil society groups have reacted with disappointment
at the decision to leave control of the Internet in
the hands of the United States.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170550.html

A Little Could Go a Long Way for Technological
Education
Two African leaders launched a public appeal Wednesday
for support to a global fund for community-based
communication projects.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170544.html

Kagame Back From Tunis
President Paul Kagame has returned from the Second
WSIS in the Tunisian Capital, Tunis.On his return
Kagame said that government had distributed computers
to most schools in the country and extended fibre
optic connections to all provinces. He also disclosed
that Rwanda was focusing
http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170774.html

Internet Organisations Welcome Internet Governance
Forum
Seven global internet organizations exhibiting their
work at the Kram Palexpo Tunis, as part of WSIS have
welcomed the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) proposed
at the Summit.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511180707.html

WSIS By Numbers
The figure includes delegations attending plenary and
parallel events as well as various exhibitors at the
ICT 4 all Exhibition.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511180585.html

Tunisia: Free Expression Protest
Tunisia, which is currently hosting the WSIS, is one
of the most advanced African countries in provision of
information infrastructure. But it also systematically
represses internal dissent and blocks access to
websites critical of the government. As the summit
opened this week, Tunisian human rights activists were
on hunger strike and international activists were
protesting the government's refusal to allow freedom
of expression.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511180869.html

Bibliotheca Alexandrina and Development Gateway Launch
Arabic Language Portal on Development (news release)
Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA) and the Development
Gateway Foundation today unveiled plans for a new
Arabic language web portal on development. The portal,
a preview of which was presented at the World Summit
on the Information Society, aims to address the
existing shortage of development information for the
Arab World.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170703.html

Media Enemies to Share UN Spotlight
At least two enemies of media freedom will share the
spotlight at this week's United Nations meeting
dedicated to making the information age accessible to
all the world's people.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170549.html

UN Summit to Serve the People?
Now that the world's powers have agreed to stop
squabbling over control of the Internet (for now),
will the more than 10,000 people here for this week's
United Nations forum focus on creating an information
society for all people?
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170548.html

Divisions Open Up Ahead of WSIS Summit
Last-minute negotiations are seeking to narrow the
wide divisions that have emerged on governance of the
Internet and the 'digital divide' between nations.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170547.html

Civil Society Finds Poor Welcome at WSIS Summit in
Tunis
A day ahead of the official opening of WSIS here,
civil society representatives are said to be "stressed
and frightened" by an escalation of intimidation by
the Tunisian authorities.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170546.html

Summit Starts in Tunisia, Controversial Consensus
Maintains Internet Status Quo
WSIS kicked off Wednesday with a compromise document
approved unanimously after several months of fruitless
negotiations.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170545.html

Civil Society Vows to Make Best of Consolation Prize
It was not what they had set out to accomplish, but
civil society groups gathered here to discuss Internet
governance and development, are vowing to make the
best of the deal that was struck.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170543.html

U.S. Fights to Remain the Ultimate Webmaster
International efforts to break down the digital
barriers facing the world's poor will backfire if
governments fail to work out their differences on the
issue of internet governance, diplomatic observers
here say.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170542.html

The NCA & National Development
The frequency spectrum is a "natural resource" like
gold ore, crude oil, uranium ore and other unrefined
resources found in the wild - including wild animals.
The frequency spectrum ranges from the infra red
frequencies through radio frequencies to high energy
ones like x-rays or gamma rays.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170335.html

Head of State Calls for Rise, Consolidation of New
Knowledge Society
Angolan head of State Jos? Eduardo dos Santos on
Wednesday in Tunis appealed to his fellow countrymen
to "dare and be determined" to create in the country
the conditions leading to the emergence and
consolidation of a new era of the Society of
Knowledge.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170282.html

Last Chance at WSIS to Bridge Digital Divide
Opportunity now beckons on Nigeria and Africa, a
continent leaving at the outskirt of digital
revolution to change it fortunes.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170231.html

World Summit Agrees On Status Quo for Internet
Governance
WSIS has reached an agreement on future governance of
the Internet, turning back proposals to establish some
form of international body to oversee and regulate the
Internet.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170115.html

Tunisia Urged to End to Human Rights Violations - WSIS
Women's organisations, individuals and networks
gathered in Tunis for Phase II of WSIS denounce
blatant violations of human rights, freedom of
expression, access to information and freedom of
assembly by the Tunisian government.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170839.html

UN debut for $100 laptop for poor
A $100 laptop for children across the world makes its
debut at the UN internet summit in Tunis.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4445060.stm

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,69615,00.html
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200511170454.html

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Sources include Quicklinks <http://qlinks.net/> and
BNA Internet Law News <http://www.bna.com/ilaw/>.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(c) David Goldstein 2005

David Goldstein
 address: 4/3 Abbott Street
             COOGEE NSW 2034
             AUSTRALIA
 email: Goldstein_David &#167;yahoo.com.au
 phone: +61 418 228 605 - mobile; +61 2 9665 5773 - home


		
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