Internet Governance: In the Footsteps of Global Administrative Law

The document examines the challenges of governing the Internet, specifically the lack of legitimacy and accountability in bodies like ICANN and the W3C. It argues that traditional international legal instruments, such as framework conventions, are too slow and centralized for the Internet's dynamic nature. Instead, it proposes adopting Global Administrative Law (GAL), a decentralized approach that emphasizes transparency, procedural participation, and reasoned decision-making. The author illustrates the potential of GAL by analyzing the anti-doping regime of the Olympic movement and the decentralized decision-making processes of the OECD.

• Internet governance is characterized by a lack of legitimacy and accountability, particularly regarding the influence of the United States government over the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).
• The Internet functions as a global public good because it is non-rivalrous and non-excludable, meaning its use by one individual does not reduce its availability to others and restricting access would incur high social and political costs.
• A framework convention is deemed unsuitable for Internet governance because it is too slow to develop relative to the speed of technological evolution and risks centralizing control in a way that contradicts the Internet's decentralized, end-to-end architectural principles.
• Global Administrative Law (GAL) is proposed as a solution to the accountability deficit in transnational governance, focusing on transparency, participation, reasoned decisions, and the right to review.
• ICANN exhibits significant accountability problems, including a nominating committee that is not accountable to its appointing constituencies and a perceived susceptibility to US government pressure, such as in the decision against the .xxx domain.
• The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) improved its legitimacy through a participatory process regarding its Patent Policy, moving from a proposed 'Reasonable and Non-Discriminatory' (RAND) basis to a 'Royalty-Free' (RF) policy after incorporating non-member input.
• The anti-doping regime of the Olympic movement serves as a model for GAL by utilizing a mix of non-governmental bodies (like WADA) and national laws to ensure due process and transparency in a highly international field.
• The OECD demonstrates how a decentralized structure can use a network approach to solve transnational problems, though it historically struggled with civil society engagement until it adopted more transparent techniques.

APA

Andjelkovic, M. (2006). Internet Governance: In the Footsteps of Global Administrative Law. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/infosoc_int_gov_law.pdf

Chicago

Andjelkovic, Maja. Internet Governance: In the Footsteps of Global Administrative Law. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2006. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/infosoc_int_gov_law.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Andjelkovic |first1=Maja |title=Internet Governance: In the Footsteps of Global Administrative Law |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=September 2006 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/infosoc_int_gov_law.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{andjelkovic2006internet, author = {Andjelkovic, Maja}, title = {{Internet Governance: In the Footsteps of Global Administrative Law}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2006}, month = sep, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/infosoc_int_gov_law.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }