|
North American Network Operators Group Date Prev | Date Next | Date Index | Thread Index | Author Index | Historical Re: Paul Wilson and Geoff Huston of APNIC on IP address allocationITU v/s ICANN
--On 28 April 2005 07:06 -0400 Scott W Brim <[email protected]> wrote: I think Bill is actually correct. ITU is a treaty organization. Only members of the UN (i.e. countries). ITU-T (and ITU-R, ITU-D) are sector organizations that telcos can join (AIUI the difference having arisen when a meaningful difference arose between telco and state monopoly). However, given the entire organization is run by the ITU, it's fair to say it is essentially a governmental organization run with some private sector involvement. Whereas ...An ITU publication says the majority of ITU members, including member states and sector members, are now vendors. Members yes, if you count sector members. But as far as I can tell, the ITU is ultimately controlled by its council, which are state representatives elected by a plenipotentiary committee of states. Here's the ITU's own take, which seems to agree with me: http://www.itu.int/aboutitu/overview/council.html Note the remit of the Council: The role of the Council is to consider, in the interval between plenipotentiary conferences, broad telecommunication policy issues to ensure that the Union’s activities, policies and strategies fully respond to today’s dynamic, rapidly changing telecommunication environment. It also prepares the ITU strategic plan. In addition, the Council is responsible for ensuring the smooth day-to-day running of the Union, coordinating work programmes, approving budgets and controlling finances and expenditure. Finally, the Council takes all steps to facilitate the implementation of the provisions of the ITU Constitution, the ITU Convention, the Administrative Regulations (International Telecommunication Regulations and Radio Regulations), the decisions of plenipotentiary conferences and, where appropriate, the decisions of other conferences and meetings of the Union Just like any organization (and this is without criticism of the ITU), when talking to a given audience, it tries to make itself appear most attractive to that audience. Thus it emphasizes private sector involvement when talking to the private sector. I am quite sure that when talking to African nations, it also emphasizes that there are more Region D (African) states on the council than their are either Region A (Americas) or region B (Western Europe). That's politics. I'm am trying to provide objective information here rather than opinion. It's not as if ICANN is beyond criticism: it could equally be argued that ICANN has *no* members (of the corporation) as such, and that the way its board is elected is at least non-trivial to understand. However, characterizing the ITU as a private sector dominated organization (let alone an organization dominated by private sector players relevant to the internet) is not accurate (at least not today - I understand they are making overtures towards internet companies - see WGIG/WSIS side meetings). Alex
|