Twenty Years after the Birth of the Modern Internet, US Policies Continue to Help the Internet Grow and Thrive

[Commentary] These are six key policies that I believe have contributed to the strength of the US digital economy and provide a model for developing countries, such as those that participated in the United State Telecommunications Training Institute course, to consider as they seek to grow their economies.

1. Trusting the Private Sector: This is particularly powerful as we are celebrate the 20th anniversary of the US decision to take a network it had originated and trust it to the private sector to innovate and take the Internet to the next level.
2. Connecting Users: The US government has invested heavily in supporting broadband access and penetration with a range of programs aimed at supporting the deployment of broadband. NTIA’s BroadbandUSA is an initiative to support community broadband projects and to promote broadband deployment and adoption.
3. Empowering Users: US policies have empowered users to access knowledge, communicate, express their opinions and launch small businesses to reach global audiences.
4. Protecting Platforms: US law provides strong protections for online platforms from undue interference and regulation. A critical example of US law is “Section 230” of the Communications Act as amended in 1996, which protects online platforms against claims arising from hosting information posted by users and other third parties.
5. Strong and Balanced Intellectual Property Regime: The United States is dedicated to the protection of intellectual property to foster and protect creativity. The United States supports a balanced approach to intellectual property that includes an emphasis on enforcement and protection but also recognizes limitations and “fair use.”
6. Reliance on Multistakeholder Policy Approaches: Throughout all of our work, we have looked to multistakeholder consensus-based processes to keep the Internet and its innovation moving forward. NTIA, working with other parts of the Department of Commerce through the Internet Policy Task Force, has supported multistakeholder efforts focused on the domain name system, privacy, intellectual property and cybersecurity.

[John B. Morris, Jr., is Associate Administrator and Director of Internet Policy, Office of Policy Analysis and Development]