Governing the Internet

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Represented -- more than a 190 countries are gonna come together next week for huge conference in the Middle East their job is to make decisions on how to oversee the Internet.

There is a lot of unease amid critics who say they're worried those decisions could ultimately result in the United Nations.

Taking control of the Internet.

The fact that these people are discussing this kind of stuff even entertaining these ideas.

That's really cause for concern the International Telecommunication Union or icu is -- form of the U and it's conference in Dubai will be the first such meeting on Internet oversight since 1988 the internet's become a major telecommunications.

Force it's how we communicate today.

-- back in 1988 it was just the thing that some governments and educational facilities use.

Observers say some of the proposals countries are now discussing could end the open Internet as we know it.

There's a European plan that would force web sites to pay a fee to appear in other countries and another proposal could shake up the basic infrastructure of the web.

You see your computer connects to an Internet service provider highest peak which links it to servers hosting web sites all over the world.

Those server send information back to your computer.

In order for the device is to find each other they all have their own Internet protocol or IP address.

But no one wants to memorize those long strings of numbers so we link them to unique names like google.com.

Currently a private company based in the United States coordinates the address system for web sites around the world.

But a proposal by Russia would allow each country to manage its own system and tech observers say that could fracture of the Internet.

If you go to Russia and there isn't anything that says.

Google.com equals 190 don't want -- say that to no one.

Suddenly you can't get to Google in Russia.

All the sudden the Internet looks dramatically different in a different country than it does here in the US critics warn it would also encourage censorship.

Google is leading a campaign against those proposals it posted an online statement saying the ITU is the wrong place to make decisions about the future of the Internet.

Different and large -- notion -- something.

Which it's good -- temperature need to clarify it.

The IT representatives spoke with -- us over the phone.

He insisted the organization does not want to become the regulator of the web and that countries are discussing all options at the meeting.

Really give our -- spreading the dangers of the Internet around the world there although I'm not in regulation -- Well the conference in -- scheduled to start on Monday to continue for more than a week.

Former Telecom executive Terry Kramer.

Is representing United States as an ambassador there he's vowed to oppose any efforts to block the free flow of information.

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Governing the Internet

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