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Cybersecurity & Standards

Economic Impact of the ITRs

Revisions to the International Telecommunications Regulations (ITRs) could threaten the Internet’s role in economic development around the globe.  In December 2012, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will meet in Dubai at its World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) to revise the ITRs, a treaty dating from 1988 that established a framework for the interoperability and interconnection of international telecommunications traffic.

The Member States (governments) of the ITU are currently drafting revisions to the ITRs, many of which could negatively impact the functioning of the Internet and therefore limit the key role it is having in driving global growth.  CDT believes that these revisions could slow economic development, particularly in the developing world, widen rather than shrink the digital divide, and undermine burgeoning and innovative businesses and markets around the globe.