[Chapter-delegates] Internet Society at WTSA-20 in Geneva 1-9 March 2022

[Elizabeth Oluoch]

Dear Chapter-Leaders

The ITU World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly originally scheduled for 2020 (WTSA-20) kicks off next week as an in-person meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. WTSA-20 sets the work program for the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T) for the next four years (2020-2024). As a sector member of ITU-T, the Internet Society will have a delegation presence in Geneva as well as online. (See, ISOC 's background paper on WTSA-20<https://www.internetsociety.org/resources/doc/2020/itu-wtsa-2020-background-paper/>)

What are the Internet Society's goals at WTSA-20?
Our participation at WTSA is to ensure that the outcomes support an open, globally connected, secure, and trustworthy Internet. To put it simply, the ITU's standards development activities should consider the open Internet.

We want to speak out in support for the following:


1.         ITU-T processes should be more open, transparent, and inclusive. We support increasing the engagement of academia and private sector in ITU-T which is a positive step. We oppose the establishment of regional standards which may result in a fragmented standards environment.

2.         Cooperation and coordination with other Standards Development Organizations (SDOs), particularly the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), must be strengthened. It is critical to implement collaborative mechanisms to minimize duplication between SDOs. This is key to ensure interoperability.

3.         Internet technical standards should be developed in the appropriate SDOs. Because they are vital to the Internet's operations, Internet standards should be developed based on technical competence and through processes that allow for the broadest possible participation. Proposals to update Internet technical standards should be communicated to the IETF using the collaboration guidelines established by the IETF and ITU-T.

4.         To protect the open Internet and its underlying critical properties<https://www.internetsociety.org/issues/internet-way-of-networking/>. The existing multistakeholder mechanisms for managing critical Internet resources should be strengthened, not diminished. Member States delegates should assess how proposed standards, regulations, and technical measures would affect global Internet connectivity, the security of its infrastructure, and the multistakeholder governance mechanisms.

The Internet Society's Priority Issues

  1.  Internet Evolution (New IP). The set of proposals originally from Huawei to start standardization of a New IP system to replace the Internet were not accepted for the next study period. However some recent ITU-T proposals have used similar terms/references in those proposals. Given the iterative nature of ITU resolutions close attention should be paid to these references. [See ISOC's paper: Huawei's New IP Proposals FAQ<http://Hello%20All,%20%20%20Hope%20you%20are%20keeping%20well%20and%20safe.%20%20%20Please%20book%20this%20date%20and%20time%20for%20the%20upcoming%20Tech%20Series%20#12%20session.%20%20%20Date:%20Nov.%2018th,%20%20Time:%2012noon%20EST%20(1700%20UTC).%20%20%20%20%20%20Looking%20forward%20to%20your%20kind%20participation.%20%20%20Thank%20you%20and%20kind%20regards,%20Hosein.>]
  2.  Internet Related issues (Critical Internet Resources). There are several WTSA resolutions that deal with Naming and Addressing (IPv6), as well as resolutions on emerging technologies (e.g. IoT) where these issues emerge. Any proposed modifications should adhere to the current multistakeholder mechanisms for the management of critical Internet resources.
  3.  Cybersecurity, Spam. These issue are a priority for many at WTSA. Given the complexities of cybersecurity, a collaborative security approach is recommended. There are many private sector and technical communities' initiatives aimed at strengthening Internet security as well as the security of technologies/devices that rely on the Internet. We caution against efforts that would degrade network infrastructure security, undermine trust online and impose prescriptive policy or technical measures that may harm the critical properties of the Internet.
  4.  Consumer Protection. Data privacy and protection, cross border data flows and local data retention topics will be discussed. While important, they fall beyond the scope of ITU-T's security focus, which is on the protection of Personal Identifiable Information. Privacy is national jurisdictional matter and discussions should include a diverse range of stakeholders.
  5.  Over the Top Communications (OTTs): During the last study group period, ITU-T studied the economic aspects of OTTs.  Proposals at WTSA-20 attempt to accommodate Internet services within the telecoms finance paradigm. We are wary of applying this tax model to Internet services because it threatens the Internet's openness and accessibility for users and service providers.
Our Matrix of WTSA-20<https://www.internetsociety.org/events/un/wtsa-2020/resources/> proposals reflect Internet related proposals and provides commentary on potential implications to the Internet. We evaluate these proposals on the basis of our objectives. Kindly spread the word about our WTSA-20 <https://www.internetsociety.org/events/un/wtsa-2020/isoc-at-wtsa/> page<https://www.internetsociety.org/events/un/wtsa-2020/isoc-at-wtsa/> <https://www.internetsociety.org/events/un/wtsa-2020/isoc-at-wtsa/> and the Matrix to anyone who supports an open Internet.

How to support our objectives?
WTSA proceedings will not be publicly accessibly. However you can join us to support our efforts in a number of ways.

  1.  Are you participating? If so, let us know so we can connect with you in Geneva (please reach out to either/all at: bellagamba at isoc.org, oluoch at isoc.org, gahnberg at isoc.org, and, or badran at isoc.org).
  2.  Share the Internet Society's priorities to support the open Internet at WTSA-20  with your national government contacts as well as civil society organizations.
  3.  Share the Internet Society's informational resources on what we are doing together as a community to expand and strengthen the Internet.
ITU Global Standards Symposium (GSS-20).
The GSS-20 will be held on February 28 and will be live webcast. Lars Eggert, Chair of the IETF, will be a panelist on Session 2: High Level Dialogue on Unlocking the full potential of digital transformation for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)with international standards, from 10:00 - 11:00 AM Geneva Time. See: https://gss.itu.int<https://gss.itu.int/>

We plan to provide updates on the progress of our engagement and developments at WTSA-20. Stay tuned.

Best regards,

ISOC's WTSA20-Team



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