<nettime> DNS Forum/Internet Users Conference at Cooper Union

[Michael Sondow <msondow@iciiu.net>]

                           INTERNET PRIVATIZATION:
                   OPEN COMPETITION OR MONOPOLY CONTROL?

                                 Featuring:
                       MILTON MUELLER, Syracuse Univ
                       LAWRENCE LESSIG, Harvard Univ
                (and a panel of distinguished representatives of
                        public interest on the Internet)

    Will Users have a voice in determining the future of the Internet?

           Forum on Domain Names and Internet Governance, September
           Sept. 23, 7 - 10 PM, at Cooper Union for the Advancement
           of Science and Art in N.Y. (and on the Net Sept. 21 - 23)

    =============================================================

                    INTERNET USERS CONFERENCE

     The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, in
collaboration with the International Congress of Independent Internet
Users, is hosting an Internet Users Conference.  The main topic of the
conference will be: "Internet Privatization: Open Competition or
Monopoly Control?".
     The key event will be a forum on the evening of September 23rd,
7 - 10pm, in the Great Hall, 7th Street & 3rd Ave in Manhattan, with
Milton Mueller (Syracuse U. School of Information Studies), Larry Lessig

Harvard Law School, Berkman Center for Internet and Society), Marcy
Gordon (Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility), Paul Garrin
(PGMedia, Inc.) and others.
     The forum will be videotaped by NYU-TV and netcast by Cooper Union
and will include teleconferencing with major Internet personalities
worldwide as well as the debut of a new online conferencing program
developed by the Cyber Law Institute.

        Sponsors include:
New York Free Media Alliance
International Congress of Independent Internet Users
Cooper Union
NYU-TV
Cyber Law Institute

TAKING BACK THE NET: FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND FREEDOM OF CHOICE ON-LINE

Come to an Open Forum and Panel Discussion on Domain Names and Internet
Governance on Wednesday, September 23, 1998, from 7:00 to 10:00pm in the

Great Hall of the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in

New York City. The Great Hall is located in the college's Foundation
Building, 7th Street at Third Avenue, Manhattan.

*****
.net, .org, .art, .com, .media, .gov, .law, .edu

These are Top Level Domains (TLDs), the critical part of your Internet
Domain Name or Web address. They help define your identity on the
Internet, and they tell people how to access your content.

A single U.S. corporation has a monopoly over them. It decides which
are valid. Now this domain name system may be further privatized. Find
out how this relates to the issues of free speech, public access, and
freedom of choice, all of which are at serious risk on the Net due to
the closed discussion between corporate and government interests.

IF INDEPENDENT INTERNET USERS MOBILIZE QUICKLY,
THEY CAN BE PART OF THIS HISTORIC DEBATE

Some questions that will be addressed at the Cooper Union forum:

* What do monopolies have to do with the Internet? How will this
affectusers?

* Who wants to privatize the Internet? How is it being done? Why should
we care?

* How are free speech and freedom of choice on the Internet being
jeopardized? What can we do about it?

* What is public opinion about the future of the Internet, Top Level
Domain monopoly control, and user representation on the governing board
of the new central Internet authority? How can we affect the coming
changes?

WHAT YOU CAN DO: THE DNS.FORUM

You can get involved right now by joining DNS.FORUM, where you can help
shape the policies that will govern domain name registration and the
future of the Internet.

* Join the on-line mailing list: send a message to
majordomo@lists.xs2.net, with the words "subscribe dns.forum" (without
the quotation marks) in the message body. After you've joined, you can
ask questions, get answers and talk things over with other users by
sending email to  dns.forum@lists.xs2.net  (the list address). You'll
be in the online conference right away.

* Starting September 21, a special new software, "Deliberation.Space",
developed by the Cyber Law Institute, will host a revolutionary
asynchronous conference space where users can debate the issues Web.

* The DNS.FORUM will culminate in a live panel discussion at the Cooper
Union for the Advancement of Science and Art on Wednesday, September 23,

1998, from 7:00pm to 10:00pm, with panelists who specialize in the
Internet, telecommunications, free speech, public access and privacy.
The live audience will be invited to submit comments, questions, and
criticism to the panel.

The goal of the three-pronged Forum is to educate the public about the
current Internet DNS situation and create a constituency of independent
Internet users who will have a say in the future governance and
management of the Internet.

This is your chance to get involved in shaping the future of global
communications before it is decided by the corporate interests that seek

control of publicly-funded assets at the expense of your free speech,
privacy and public access!

***** Contact:

The New York Free Media Alliance (Jessica Glass: (212) 650-2767;
email:godbox@ix.netcom.com; voicemail: (212) 969-TOFM)

The International Congress of Independent Internet Users (MichaelSondow:

(718) 846-7482; email:msondow@iciiu.net)

Cooper Union (Steve Cantrell: (212) 353-4197)

Visit the International Congress of Independent Internet Users Web site
at http://www.iciiu.net for further background on DNS, information about
the Forum, and links to all Forum activities.


                                  ...
                                 .....
                                .......


DNS.FORUM  is intended to inform the public on the current processof
privatizing the administration and management of the Internet's DNS
(Domain Name System) and to form an organization of Internet Users
that will have a voice in setting policies of the new non-profitcorporation
proposed in the NTIA's "White Paper" that will assume theresponsibilities
over global domain names currently held by  Network Solutions,Inc., when
NSI's contract with the NSF expires on September 30, 1998.





---
#  distributed via nettime-l : no commercial use without permission
#  <nettime> is a closed moderated mailinglist for net criticism,
#  collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets
#  more info: majordomo@desk.nl and "info nettime-l" in the msg body
#  URL: http://www.desk.nl/~nettime/  contact: nettime-owner@desk.nl