September 4, 1999

French Regulator Seeks Internet Watchdog

By REUTERS

UALA LUMPUR -- Bucking Washington's liberal stand, the head of France's broadcasting watchdog is proposing that public authorities and private operators join hands in regulating the Internet.

Herve Bourges, chairman of the Conseil Superieur de l'Audiovisuel (CSA), said support for joint public-private regulation of the Internet has emerged ahead of a major international conference later this year.

Bourges said the question of how to regulate the largely free-wheeling Internet will figure prominently at the two-day World Summit of Regulators on the Internet in Paris starting on November 30.

``I am for joint regulation,'' Bourges told Reuters in an interview on Friday during a visit to the Malaysian capital.

While attending a conference in Kuala Lumpur, Bourges presented a summary of contributions by more than 60 countries ahead of the Paris summit, which will be sponsored by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

He said there was no consensus backing either self-regulation or state regulation of the Internet.

Instead, he said, a large number of independent communication regulators favoured a hybrid framework combining Internet service providers and state authorities.

``The strongest idea could be a new concept, that of joint regulation,'' he said.

Under the plan, regulatory authorities would define principles which would be applied by private operators. The service providers would propose technical solutions for safeguarding the principles, and regulators would monitor.

Bourges said joint regulation would allow a compromise between excessive control by the state and excessive permissiveness.

Regulators in Germany and Switzerland, as well as a number of Asia-Pacific countries, favoured joint public-private regulation.

``Co-regulation seems to be the most suitable solution,'' he said. ``It's a question of balancing freedom of expression, individuals' rights and law.''

But the United States, which has by far the most Internet users, has shown an unwillingess to regulate the medium, diplomats said. The Federal Communications Commission has said it will participate in the Paris summit.

Bourges said there was already a measure of control over the Internet, citing the ability of authorities to identify Internet users without them knowing it.

``It's not a question of whether one can control the Internet but rather who should control the Internet,'' he said.

But in preparatory documents ahead of the Paris summit, countries indicated that they did not consider regulation to be an urgent matter as the Internet abuses are already covered by common law in most countries.

What is more, it will be several years before the Internet is present in a significant number of homes in Europe, Africa and Latin America, according to the summit's preparatory note.

Summit delegates will also discuss ways to ensure that the Internet eventually reaches the poor to avoid ``technological apartheid,'' Bourges said.