Firstly, this post will attempt to focus on the issue. Even though it, by its very subject, is wrapped around a public policy and political frame. So let’s set the stage.
The United States …
- Developed and implemented the mass manufacturing concept.
- Was the first to produce automobiles.
- Invented electricity, electric light, movies and the telephone.
- Was the first to develop and mass produce air craft.
- Was, for the most part, the early inventor and mass producer of computer technology.
- Pioneered space exploration and research.
- Developed and “mass produced software development, database and software concepts.
How many of these products/services does the U.S. remain as a world leader?
So let’s move the time machine back to the early-1960s. The United States, through the Department of Defense, developed the Internet to help distribute procurement data for defense contractors. Look up DARPA and ARPANET for some historical perspective. Then it “bubbled” into what we know today as the Internet and World Wide Web. Internet browser software was also pioneered in the United States by the University of Minnesota (Gopher), Netscape (yes, remember them?) and Microsoft. And now a plethora of others have joined into this market (Chrome, Opera, Silk, Firefox).
Now, what do we find? We are about to “give up” our control of ICAAN; Internet Corporate for Assigned Names and Numbers. Ultimately, the organization that the United States has controlled since its inception which controls, monitors and develops operating regulations over domain names and top-level domain assignment. The COM, EDU, NET were the major top-level domains that were reserved and controlled by (for) the United States as the inventor of the Internet.
The decision of the Administration will be implemented by allowing the contract between the Commerce Department and ICANN.
And now we are giving up control?! In the age of cyber-security, terrorism, denial of service attacks, fake websites, censorship and intellectual property issues … what are we thinking? From the list above, which ones is the United States (who invented or were at the pioneering lead) are we now a forgotten step-child in the “success list”.
Are we this “comfy”? Have we lost our competitive “thirst”? Or is there some other frontier to conquer that we can “afford” to give up another invention? If someone knows what that new frontier is, please let me know.
Will we be placing the control of what we paid to develop? What we defined and developed for the World to use and prosper? Will we be giving up control to enemies which will then hold the Internet “hostage” in terms of our economic and operational commerce activities?
Now some countries, with their leaders and political ideology, who censor/control the distribution and content of free speech, commerce and ideas … will now control the “highway” that is the single-largest channel of uncensored (for good and bad) information and business commerce.
Sorry … I do not get it. It is my hope that we will NEVER regret the decision that our leaders apparently have already made. The jury is out I guess. However, as I tell my students, once the horse is out of the barn, it is hard to get it back.
So I ask … Do we need to give away everything?