Resolution 102 (Rev. Antalya, 2006)

ITU’s role with regard to international public policy issues pertaining
to the Internet and the management of Internet resources,
including domain names and addresses

The Plenipotentiary Conference of the International Telecommunication Union (Antalya, 2006),

considering

a)      that the purposes of the Union are, inter alia, to promote, at the international level, the adoption of a broad approach to the issues of telecommunications/information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the global information economy and society, to promote the extension of the benefits of new telecommunication technologies to all the world’s inhabitants and to harmonize the efforts of Member States and Sector Members in the attainment of those ends;

b)      that advances in the global information infrastructure, including the development of Internet Protocol (IP)-based networks and the Internet, taking into account the requirements, features and interoperability of next-generation networks (NGN), are of crucial importance as an important engine for growth in the world economy in the twenty-first century;

c)       that the development of the Internet is essentially market-led and driven by private and government initiatives;

d)      that the private sector is playing a very important role in the expansion and development of the Internet, for example through investments in infrastructures and services;

e)       that the management of the registration and allocation of Internet domain names and addresses must fully reflect the geographical nature of the Internet, taking into account an equitable balance of interests of all stakeholders;

f)       the role played by ITU in the successful organization of the two phases of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), and that the Geneva Declaration of Principles and the Geneva Plan of Action, adopted in 2003, and the Tunis Commitment and the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society, adopted in 2005, have been endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly;

g)      that the management of the Internet is a subject of valid international interest and must flow from full international and multistakeholder cooperation on the basis of the outcomes of the two phases of WSIS;

h)      that, as stated in the WSIS outcomes, all governments should have an equal role and responsibility for international Internet governance and for ensuring the stability, security and continuity of the Internet, and that the need for development of public policy by governments in consultation with all stakeholders is also recognized,

recognizing

a)      that ITU is dealing with technical and policy issues related to IP-based networks including the Internet and evolution to NGN;

b)      that ITU performs worldwide coordination of a number of radiocommunications- and telecommunications-related resource allocation systems and acts as a forum for policy discussion in this area;

c)       that significant effort has been put in by ITU on ENUM, “.int”, internationalized domain name (IDN), and country code top-level domain (ccTLD) issues through workshops and standardization activities;

d)      that ITU has published a comprehensive and useful Handbook on Internet Protocol (IP)-Based Networks and Related Topics and Issues;

e)       §§ 71 and 78a of the Tunis Agenda with regard to the establishment of enhanced cooperation on Internet governance and the establishment of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF);

f)       the relevant WSIS outcomes in §§ 29 to 82 of the Tunis Agenda concerning Internet governance;

g)      that Member States represent the interests of the population of the country or territory for which a ccTLD has been delegated;

h)      that countries should not be involved in decisions regarding another country’s ccTLD,

emphasizing

a)      that the management of the Internet encompasses both technical and public policy issues and should involve all stakeholders and relevant intergovernmental and international organizations in accordance with §§ 35 a) to e) of the Tunis Agenda;

b)      that the role of governments includes providing a clear, consistent and predictable legal framework, in order to promote a favourable environment in which global ICT networks are interoperable and widely accessible to all citizens and to ensure adequate protection of public interests in the management of Internet resources, including domain names and addresses;

c)       that WSIS recognized the need for enhanced cooperation in the future, to enable governments, on an equal footing, to carry out their roles and responsibilities, in international public policy issues pertaining to the Internet, but not in the day-to-day technical and operational matters, that do not impact on international public policy issues;

d)      that ITU should commence a process towards enhanced cooperation involving all stakeholders, proceeding as quickly as possible and responsive to innovation, as one of the relevant organizations referred to in § 71 of the Tunis Agenda;

e)       that ITU can play a positive role by offering all interested parties a platform for encouraging discussions and for the dissemination of information on the management of Internet domain names and addresses and other Internet resources within the mandate of ITU,

noting

the decision to convene the fourth World Telecommunication Policy Forum (Decision 9 (Antalya, 2006) of this conference),

resolves to instruct the Secretary General

1        to continue to take a significant role in international discussions and initiatives on the management of Internet domain names and addresses and other Internet resources within the mandate of ITU, taking into account future developments of the Internet, the purposes of the Union and the interests of its members as expressed in its instruments, resolutions and decisions;

2        to take the necessary steps for ITU to continue to play a facilitating role in the coordination of international public policy issues pertaining to the Internet, as expressed in § 35 d) of the Tunis Agenda, interacting as necessary with other intergovernmental organizations in these domains;

3        in line with § 78a of the Tunis Agenda, to continue to contribute as appropriate to the work of IGF;

4        to take the necessary steps for ITU to play an active and constructive role in the process towards enhanced cooperation as expressed in § 71 of the Tunis Agenda;

5        to take the necessary steps in ITU’s own internal process towards enhanced cooperation on international public policy issues pertaining to the Internet as expressed in § 71 of the Tunis Agenda, involving all stakeholders, in their respective roles and responsibilities;

6        as a concrete step, to organize consultations on these issues among the ITU membership and other relevant stakeholders, in order to prepare and submit proposals, based on those consultations and contributions from the ITU membership, to the 2007 session of the Council, through the Working Group on WSIS (WG-WSIS);

7        to report annually to the Council on the activities undertaken on these subjects and to submit proposals as appropriate,

instructs the Directors of the Bureaux

1        to contribute to the consultations under resolves to instruct to the Secretary-General 6 above;

2        to provide assistance, within the Union’s expertise, and within available resources, as appropriate, in cooperation with relevant organizations, to Member States, if so requested, in order to achieve their stated policy objectives with respect to the management of Internet domain names and addresses and other Internet resources within the mandate of ITU;

3        to liaise and to cooperate with the regional telecommunication organizations pursuant to this resolution,

instructs the Director of the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau

1        to ensure that the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T) performs its role in technical issues, and to continue to contribute ITU-T expertise and to liaise and cooperate with appropriate entities on issues related to the management of Internet domain names and addresses and other Internet resources within the mandate of ITU, such as IP version 6 (IPv6), ENUM and IDNs, as well as any other related technological developments and issues, including facilitating appropriate studies on these issues by relevant ITU-T study groups and other groups;

2        in accordance with ITU rules and procedures, and calling upon contributions from ITU members, to continue to play a facilitating role in coordination and assistance in the development of public policy issues pertaining to Internet domain names and addresses and other Internet resources within the mandate of ITU and their possible evolution;

3        to work with Member States and Sector Members, recognizing the activities of other appropriate entities, on issues concerning Member States’ ccTLDs and related experiences;

4        to facilitate the exchange of technical information in order to assist the ITU membership to participate in the consultations referenced under resolves to instruct the Secretary-General 6 above;

5        to report annually to the Council, and also to the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly, on the activities undertaken and achievements on these subjects, including proposals for further consideration as appropriate,

instructs the Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau

1        to organize international and regional forums and carry out necessary activities, in conjunction with appropriate entities, for the period 2006‑2010, to discuss policy, operational and technical issues on the Internet in general, and on the management of Internet domain names and addresses and other Internet resources within the mandate of ITU in particular, including with regard to multilingualism, for the benefit of Member States, especially for developing countries, least developed countries and small island developing states, and Sector Members;

2        to promote, through the ITU Telecommunication Development Sector programmes and study groups, the exchange of information, fostering debate and the development of best practices on Internet issues, and to continue to play a key role in outreach by contributing to capacity building, providing technical assistance and encouraging the involvement of developing countries, least developed countries and small island developing states in international Internet forums and issues;

3        to report annually to the Council and the Telecommunication Development Advisory Group, and also to the World Telecommunication Development Conference, on the activities undertaken and achievements on these subjects, including proposals for further consideration as appropriate,

invites the Council Working Group on WSIS

1        to consider and discuss the activities of the Secretary-General and Directors of the Bureaux in relation to the implementation of this resolution;

2        to prepare ITU inputs into the above-mentioned activities as appropriate,

instructs the Council

1        taking into account annual reports presented by the Secretary-General and the Directors of the Bureaux, to take appropriate measures in order to contribute actively to international discussions and initiatives related to issues on international management of Internet domain names and addresses and other Internet resources within the mandate of ITU;

2        to review the activities of WG-WSIS;

3        to report to the 2010 plenipotentiary conference on the activities undertaken and achievements on these subjects, including proposals for further consideration as appropriate,

invites Member States

1        to participate in the discussions on international management of Internet resources, including domain names and addresses, and in the process towards enhanced cooperation on Internet governance and international public policy issues pertaining to the Internet, so that worldwide representation in the debates can be ensured;

2        to continue to participate actively in the discussions and development of public policy issues related to Internet resources, including domain names and addresses, their possible evolution and the impact of new usages and applications, cooperating with the relevant organizations, and to contribute in ITU study groups on related matters,

invites Member States and Sector Members

to seek the appropriate means to contribute to enhanced cooperation on international public policy issues relating to the Internet, in their respective roles and responsibilities.

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