The purpose of this article is to broaden our understanding of internet governance policy options by reviewing and assessing proposals for reforming the institutional mechanisms…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to broaden our understanding of internet governance policy options by reviewing and assessing proposals for reforming the institutional mechanisms used to allocate and assign IPv6 addresses.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper begins by identifying the two main economic and technical constraints on IP addressing: route aggregation and address conservation. It then reviews the reform proposals that have been made and assesses the debates that have occurred around those proposals, bearing in mind the key issues of aggregation and conservation. In particular, it attempts to explore whether competition in IP addressing between authorities with diverse policies would be feasible and beneficial.
Findings
The debate over addressing policy is in its early stages and has a long way to go. A review of the debate so far suggests that the introduction of economic incentives in addressing might improve route aggregation rather than worsen it. With respect to conservation and aggregation incentives, policy diversity might help internet service providers find a more optimal trade‐off between the needs of users and the needs of the suppliers of connectivity.
Originality/value
The policy alternatives discussed here could have a major impact on the future of the internet, as address allocation and assignment directly affect the way the internet functions and the distribution of costs and benefits between users and suppliers.
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The Bureau of Economics in the Federal Trade Commission has a three-part role in the Agency and the strength of its functions changed over time depending on the preferences and…
Abstract
The Bureau of Economics in the Federal Trade Commission has a three-part role in the Agency and the strength of its functions changed over time depending on the preferences and ideology of the FTC’s leaders, developments in the field of economics, and the tenor of the times. The over-riding current role is to provide well considered, unbiased economic advice regarding antitrust and consumer protection law enforcement cases to the legal staff and the Commission. The second role, which long ago was primary, is to provide reports on investigations of various industries to the public and public officials. This role was more recently called research or “policy R&D”. A third role is to advocate for competition and markets both domestically and internationally. As a practical matter, the provision of economic advice to the FTC and to the legal staff has required that the economists wear “two hats,” helping the legal staff investigate cases and provide evidence to support law enforcement cases while also providing advice to the legal bureaus and to the Commission on which cases to pursue (thus providing “a second set of eyes” to evaluate cases). There is sometimes a tension in those functions because building a case is not the same as evaluating a case. Economists and the Bureau of Economics have provided such services to the FTC for over 100 years proving that a sub-organization can survive while playing roles that sometimes conflict. Such a life is not, however, always easy or fun.
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This chapter deals with the development of banking in the Crown of Aragon from the end of the thirteenth century through the establishment of money changers, which followed…
Abstract
This chapter deals with the development of banking in the Crown of Aragon from the end of the thirteenth century through the establishment of money changers, which followed similar patterns as in other Western European territories. It starts with a review of existing literature and follows with an explanation on the different banking services provided by money changers and the specific legal framework that supported such activities. It then examines the geographical distribution of private banks in cities and towns within the domains of the kings of Aragon, as well as their evolution throughout the fourteenth century. After that, it offers an analysis of the most common professional profiles among these bankers and financers. Finally, drawing on a heterogeneous pool of unpublished data, it seeks to shed light on the diversity of investors and clients of these establishments, a crucial proof of their role in integrated financial markets.
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Brenden Kuerbis and Milton Mueller
The data communications protocol supporting the internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) is almost 40 years old, and its 32-bit address space is too small for the internet. A…
Abstract
Purpose
The data communications protocol supporting the internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) is almost 40 years old, and its 32-bit address space is too small for the internet. A “next-generation” internet protocol version 6 (IPv6), has a much larger, 128-bit address space. However, IPv6 is not backward compatible with the existing internet. For 20 years, the internet technical community has attempted to migrate the entire internet to the new standard. This study aims to address important but overlooked questions about the internet’s technical evolution: will the world converge on IPv6? Will IPv6 die out? or will we live in a mixed world for the foreseeable future?
Design/methodology/approach
The research offers an economically-grounded study of IPv6’s progress and prospects. Many promoters of IPv6 sincerely believe that the new standard must succeed if the internet is to grow, and assume that the transition is inevitable because of the presumed depletion of the IPv4 address resources. However, by examining the associated network effects, developing the economic parameters for transition, and modeling the underlying economic forces, which impact network operator decisions, the study paints a more complex, nuanced picture.
Findings
The report concludes that legacy IPv4 will coexist with IPv6 indefinitely. IPv6 is unlikely to become an orphan. For some network operators that need to grow, particularly mobile networks where the software and hardware ecosystem is mostly converted, IPv6 deployment can make economic sense. However, the lack of backward compatibility with non-deployers eliminates many network effects that would create pressure to convert to IPv6. A variety of conversion technologies, and more efficient use of IPv4 addresses using network address translation, will support a “mixed world” of the two standards for the foreseeable future.
Originality/value
The authors’ conceptualization and observations provide a clearer understanding of the economic factors affecting the transition to IPv6.
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The purpose of this paper is to clarify the relationship between cybersecurity governance and internet governance and to explore the effects of the current tendency for…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to clarify the relationship between cybersecurity governance and internet governance and to explore the effects of the current tendency for cybersecurity-related discourse to dominate and change the way we approach the established problems of internet governance.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper demonstrates the centrality of internet connectivity to any definition of cyberspace and to cybersecurity, which clarifies the way internet governance and cybersecurity governance are interdependent. Drawing on classic notions of a security dilemma, the paper also argues for distinguishing between national cybersecurity and societal cybersecurity.
Findings
Major structural features of the governance problem in cybersecurity and internet governance are analogous. Joint production of internet services and cybersecurity makes them heavily interdependent. This means that cybersecurity governance and internet governance models need to be compatible, and the approach we take to one will influence how we approach the other.
Originality/value
The interdependence of cybersecurity governance and internet governance has not been carefully examined before, and the relationship is not well understood. These two strands of thinking about cyberspace governance have not been properly connected. This paper bridges the gap and makes policymakers more aware of the potential tensions between a cybersecurity perspective and an internet governance perspective.
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Milton Mueller and Karl Grindal
This paper aims to analyze the direction and balance of transnational information flows and look at how nonpriced digital information exchanges related to international trade in…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to analyze the direction and balance of transnational information flows and look at how nonpriced digital information exchanges related to international trade in goods and services.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors obtained quantitative data about Web-related data flows between countries and regions using Telegeography data on “Server Location as a Percentage of Top Websites.” They then explore how those flows are correlated to trade in goods.
Findings
Web traffic is highly transnational. More than half of the top 100 websites in 9 of the world’s 13 sub-regions are hosted in the USA. More than 15 per cent of the top 100 websites in 9 of the 13 subregions are hosted in Western Europe. East Asia has the largest negative balance in the relationship between incoming and outgoing Web requests. The authors found a very strong negative correlation (−0.878) between Web traffic balances and the balance of trade in goods across all subregions. A similarly strong positive correlation was found with services trade; however, the incompleteness of the data does not allow for strong conclusions yet.
Research limitations/implications
Further research is needed to correlate Web traffic flows with capital flows. The authors also do not have a well-developed theory to explain the strong negative correlation between information flows and goods trade.
Practical implications
The data and analysis have useful implications for digital economy policy. It indicates that digital protectionism of the sort practice by China may succeed in increasing domestic producers’ share of Web requests, but does not make them globally competitive. The strong negative correlation between the balance of unpriced Web information and the balance of trade in goods indicates interdependence rather than domination, challenging narratives that information flow imbalances are caused by market power of the big platforms.
Social implications
The paper demonstrates the degree to which unpriced digital exchanges are transnational and how various countries are more or less globally competitive in the supply of information that the rest of the world finds attractive.
Originality/value
No other published papers have used the data on website traffic data, and previous research has not explored empirically the correlation between information flows and goods trade.
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Milton Mueller, Brenden Kuerbis and Hadi Asghari
This article aims to quantify the emerging transfer market for internet protocol (IPv4) numbers and provides an initial assessment of factors and policies impacting those…
Abstract
Purpose
This article aims to quantify the emerging transfer market for internet protocol (IPv4) numbers and provides an initial assessment of factors and policies impacting those transactions.
Design/methodology/approach
The research draws on Regional Internet Registry records and conducts basic analysis of stocks, flows and proportions to assess the nature of this emerging market for IP number blocks and explore some of its implications for internet governance.
Findings
There is a thriving and growing market for IPv4 number blocks. The market is improving the efficiency of IPv4 address allocation by moving numbers from unused or under-utilized holders to organizations that need them more. Buyers willingly pay for number blocks they could get for free in order to benefit from more liberal needs assessments and stronger property rights.
Research limitations/implications
Information about prices is not available and some transfers may take place through leasing arrangements, which are not covered by this paper. Future research should continue to investigate the transfer market, including activity skirting or occurring outside the current RIR policy environment.
Practical implications
RIRs should liberalize needs assessments and remove other sources of friction to the transfer market.
Originality/value
No known prior assessment of the transfer market has been conducted. The research has value for policymakers and industry decision makers.