Summarized -- The Internets, Not Just Bush's Word, His Fault

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Endangered Domain
In Threat to Internet's Clout,
Some Are Starting Alternatives
Rise of Developing Nations,
Anti-U.S. Views Play Role;
Pioneer Sounds the Alarm
A 'Root' Grows in Germany

By CHRISTOPHER RHOADS
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
January 19, 2006; Page A1
More than a decade after the Internet became available for commercial
use, other countries and organizations are erecting rivals to it --
raising fears that global interconnectivity will be diminished.

Summarized:

China has created three suffixes in Chinese characters substituting  
for .com and the like, resulting in Web sites and email addresses  
inaccessible to users outside of China.

..."You've had some breakaway factions over the years, but they've  
had no relevance," says Rodney Joffe, the chairman of UltraDNS, a  
Brisbane, Calif., company that provides Internet equipment and  
services for companies.

...A single root helps ensure that when people type in a Web address  
such as www.amazon.com, they all end up at the site of the Internet  
retailer no matter where in the world they are or which Internet  
service provider they use.

...As the Internet's role grows around the world, some are uneasy  
with the notion that a U.S.-based body overseen by the U.S.  
government has sole power over what domain names are used and who  
controls each name.

...Concern about U.S. oversight increased last summer when the  
Commerce Department persuaded Icann to postpone the approval of a new  
domain-name suffix to be used for pornographic Web sites, .xxx.

...The matter of control came to a head last November at a United  
Nations summit in Tunis, where the U.S. delegation fought off demands  
from more than 170 countries to give up unilateral oversight of Icann.

...U.S. officials counter that the Internet is too valuable to tinker  
with or place under an international body like the U.N. "What's at  
risk is the bureaucratization of the Internet and innovation," says  
Michael Gallagher, the Department of Commerce official who  
administers the government's tie to Icann.

...Governments already control what their citizens see on the  
Internet by blocking some sites, making surfing a less-than-universal  
experience, notes Paul Mockapetris, who invented the Internet's  
domain-name system in the early 1980s.

...Powerful servers inside a locked, metal cage translate Internet  
domain names into a series of numbers, called Internet protocol  
addresses, helping users find Web sites and send and receive email.

...Mr. Vixie says he has no interest in making political statements  
but he agreed last September to work with Mr. Grundmann by operating  
one of ORSN's 13 mirrors.

...The company has established its own root and signed up Amsterdam's  
Schiphol Airport, among other companies, according to Erik Seeboldt,  
UnifiedRoot's managing director.

...China has created three domain names in Chinese characters  
-- .zhongguo, .gongsi and .wangluo -- and made them available for  
public and commercial use inside China only.

Similarly, Arab countries have in the past 18 months experimented  
with country code domain names in Arabic, distinct from the Icann  
system, says Khaled Fattal of Surrey, England.

...Paul Twomey, the chief executive officer of Icann, says the  
divisions reflect cultural differences between nations that operate  
under a strong government hand and those, including the U.S., that  
put more trust in the private sector.



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