LAW OF THE INTERNET

The creation of client-server networks developed within a single company, academic

institution or public organization can be seen as a mini model of

the Internet.

Such client-servers networks are prototypes of the Internet which can be defined as the universal system of client-server networks, with one important distinction that t

here is no single root server.

The Internet was born in the period of the Cold War between the Western democracies and

the Communist block headed by the USSR.

It was based on the idea of a decentralized computer network which can survive nuclear attack.

The first network was installed in 1969

The particularity of the Internet is that it is a decentralized network. It cannot be controlled from one

center.

The fact that the Internet was invented and developed first in

the USA is very significant.

the nature of the Internet lies in striving for decentralization.

the most important innovation was the communication standard

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol

(TCP/IP).

The TCP/IP protocols enable any user to connect to the Internet.

until the introduction of the www (the Web) in 1992 the use of the Internet required a considerable degree of technical knowledge.

The Web was invented by a British scientist Tim Berners-Lee

The advantage of the web consists in using hypertext – the system which allows a user to

move to the other documents by a mere ‘click’.

There are also other technical innovations which contributed

greatly to the spread of the Internet’s usage, such as Internet

browsers

Every computer linked to the Internet is allocated an IP

number which is necessary for its identification.

The problem with IP numbers was the difficulty in memorizing them and eventually the system

of domain names came into effect.

Domain names are used to find the appropriate IP number.

The need to enforce uniqueness, that is, to prevent two people

from attempting to use the exact same domain name, creates a need for some sort of body to monitor or allocate naming.

The definitive tables of names and numbers are maintained on

so called root servers run by mainly private sectors

companies.

The supply of IP numbers is virtually inexhaustible, but the words used for domain names are in rat

her shorter supply.

There are two initial categories of top level domain name based on

generic and country code.

The first is referred to as generic top level domain names

(gTLDNs).

Another type is so called ccTLD or country code top level

domains. They are normally identified with a particular

country. For example, Thailand has .th as its ccTLD.

The Internet is very different from other forms of communications not only from the technical point of view, but also in the way it is

controlled according to law.

Before the arrival of the Internet all forms of mass communication were subject to a strict system of

licensing by national states.

In the beginning of the wide use of the Internet, most of the web

sites were situated in the US, and therefore law of the USA with

certain common values of American society determined the form of regulation of the Internet.

control mechanisms developed at the time of American dominance

in the Internet experience a pressure to be changed in order to suit better other political and

social cultures

Since the dramatic development of the Internet there is no single organization which controls it.

From 1992 the key root server was maintained by Network Solutions which made the

position of this company very important.

It managed the most of generic names on the basis of contract with the US National Science Foundation made in 1993.

From that time until 1999 the company registered 5 million

Internet addresses with generic top level domain names

(gTLDNs).

The list of generic names, however, was limited to very few such as .com; .net; and .org. In 2002 the list, however, has be

extended..

The major change took place in 2008 when the decision

was made to allow almost any word to be used as gTLD under certain limitations

Name.Space case

One of the companies, called Name.Space sought to set up alternative domain structures.

The main problem that the company faced was the refusal of

the keepers of Internet root servers to include details of its

users on their machines.

The Network Solutions was accused by Name.Space in

monopolization of the system of domain names since it prevented

other companies to set up alternative domain structures by a mere refusal to include details of their users on the root servers’

machines.

The plaintiff claimed that the defendants were in breach of US

anti-trust law and were in violation of the US constitutional

guarantee of free speech.

The courts generally agreed that there was monopolization, but

they held that Network Solutions was entitled to antitrust immunity for its actions, because it had no authority to register other generic

TLDs.

This authority lay with the National Science Foundation

(NSF), a governmental agency.

According to antitrust law, governmental agencies and officials are exempt from any liability for alleged antitrust

violations.

the U.S. government continues to exercise a significant control over the management of the Internet

such technical issue as registering new gTDNs can

cause a serious political controversy and litigation in

courts.

the owners of trademarks are afraid that the expansion of the gTDNs will make it more difficult

to monitor and protect their intellectual property rights.

the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) was established in the end of 1998 which still functions

until now.

ICANN took over the main function of Network Solutions in

managing domain name system.

Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is

a non-profit, private sector corporation under the law of California formed by a broad

coalition of the Internet’s business, technical, and academic communities.

Its authority is based on the U.S. Government’s mandate to

coordinate four key functions of the Internet: the management of

the domain name system, the allocation of IP address space,

the assignment of protocol parameters, and the

management of the root server system

At this moment many organizations have been

accredited to act as registries for domain names. Specific rules for accreditation process are set in order to qualify as a registrar.

The critics of ICANN argue that ICANN lacks much of the

accountability normally found in corporations and in nonprofit

organizations.

The fact that it derives its authority from the US

Government is, perhaps, the main object of criticism

considering the international character of the Internet.

Question: should Internet be a common domain belonging to

no state?

ICANN has been accused of bullying many of the

organizations who run ccTLDs into accepting new ways of

working, and threatening those who do not pay large fees and sign up to new contracts with

restrictions to the way they can do business.