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Telefónica participated in the third Global Conference of the Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network, which took place in Berlin. This meeting brought together representatives from governments, Internet companies, technical operators, civil society, academia and international organizations.
The Conference marked an important milestone towards addressing key cross-border legal challenges of the digital 21st century. Stakeholders worked around three Programs of the I&J Network: Data, Content and Domains.
Those programs led to a thorough debate on the following issues:
- Managing legal interdependence
We believe it is important to highlight the rapid evolution of the jurisdictional environment due to the changes brought by digitalization. Although numerous initiatives have been presented by public and private actors, there is a general lack of coordination because of the pressures to give a fast answer to these challenges and this must be addressed to create long-lasting solutions.
Growing economic and social interdependence in our connected societies increases legal interdependence, as decisions adopted in one country to regulate online activities or address abuses increasingly have extraterritorial impacts. This new reality demands a systemic approach, by bringing all actors developing specific solutions to thoroughly assess their impact. International cooperation is more necessary than ever, led by the principles of mutual respect and responsible behavior.
- Building the global digital society
Defining what is the digital society that we want to build, which values are sufficiently shared to work for all humanity and how norms should be set, implanted and enforced is nothing short of a challenge of our time. Stakeholders in the conference stressed the value of a balanced and scalable approach that would provide an answer to this challenge, based on interoperability.
Legal interoperability can reconcile the need for collective solutions with the recognition of the autonomy of actors, as well as the diversity of their cultural references and normative authority. In order to properly address these challenges stakeholders must develop normative responses, including national laws or international agreements for public actors, and refined terms of service for private actors. Ensuring interoperability calls for interoperability between actors and between the different applicable norms.
The key findings of the conference point out the commitment of a growing number of key stakeholders to achieve the objectives of addressing abuses, protecting human rights and enabling the development of the digital economy. In Telefónica, with actions such as our Manifesto for a New Digital Deal, we have been calling for further cooperation between the public and private sector, to ensure a human-centric digitalization.
During the Conference it was agreed the Berlin Roadmap consisting in a detailed Work Plans for the three thematic I&J Programs: Data & Jurisdiction, Content & Jurisdiction and Domains & Jurisdiction. To complement the policy development process it was also launched the Internet & Jurisdiction Global Status Report, a compendium of global trends, actors, and initiatives of this policy ecosystem in which Telefónica also has participated.
The Report will enhance evidence-based policy innovation, build capacities, and contribute to creating policy coherence. Stakeholders from around the world will be invited to contribute to the collective data gathering process through this procedure from July-September 2019.
The resulting full version of the first Internet & Jurisdiction Global Status Report will be launched on the occasion of the United Nations Internet Governance Forum in November 2019. On its basis, a first Internet & Jurisdiction Regional Status Report will be produced in partnership with United Nations ECLAC in Latin America and the Carribeans and launched in 2020.
The 2nd edition of the Internet & Jurisdiction Global Status Report will be launched in 2021 on the occasion of the 4th Global Conference of the Internet & Jurisdiction Policy Network.
Watch the videos of the sessions here.
