Governing Global Electronic Networks: International Perspectives on Policy and Power (Information Revolution and Global Politics) - Hardcover

"Global electronic networks are now absolutely central to economic, social and political processes the world over. They are the connective tissue that binds together the world community. This volume provides provocative and insightful assessments of key issues and institutions involved in their governance at the global level. I recommend it highly."--Nitin Desai, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General for Internet Governance and former Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, the United Nations "This valuable compendium provides real insight into the array of debates and issues that the Communications Revolution creates for global politics. Ernie Wilson's summary and analysis of the diverse materials provides a useful framework. For some readers, this will be a useful entry point to the discussion; for others, it will add sophistication to the debates." John Zysman , Professor, Political Science, and Co-director, Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy University of California, Berkeley

Experts analyze the global governance of electronic networks, emphasizing international power dynamics and the concerns of nondominant actors. The burgeoning use and transformative impact of global electronic networks are widely recognized to be defining features of contemporary world affairs. Less often noted has been the increasing importance of global governance arrangements in managing the many issues raised in such networks. This volume helps fill the gap by assessing some of the key international institutions pertaining to global telecommunications regulation and standardization, radio frequency spectrum, satellite systems, trade in services, electronic commerce, intellectual property, traditional mass media and Internet content, Internet names and numbers, cybercrime, privacy protection, and development. Eschewing technocratic approaches, the contributors offer empirically rich studies of the international power dynamics shaping these institutions. They devote particular attention to the roles and concerns of nondominant stakeholders, such as developing countries and civil society, and find that global governance often reinforces wider power disparities between and within nation-states. But at the same time, the contributors note, governance arrangements often provide nondominant stakeholders with the policy space needed to advance their interests more effectively. Each chapter concludes with a set of policy recommendations for the promotion of an open, dynamic, and more equitable networld order. Contributors Peng Hwa Ang, Jonathan D. Aronson, Byung-il Choi, Tracy Cohen, Peter F. Cowhey, William J. Drake, Henry Farrell, Rob Frieden, Alison Gillwald, Boutheina Guermazi, Cees J. Hamelink, Ian Hosein, Wolfgang Kleinwaechter, Don MacLean, Christopher May, Milton Mueller, John Richards, David Souter, Ernest Wilson III, Jisuk Woo