On 9-10 June 2016, the annual Pan-European dialogue on Internet governance (EuroDIG) was held in Brussels, Belgium. EuroDIG is “an open platform for informal and inclusive discussions on public policy issues related to Internet Governance (IG)”. This year’s edition was hosted by EURid, the registry for .eu.
Brussels provided for a perfect meeting spot for two usually quite separate bubbles: the EU-crowd and the Internet Governance multistakeholders. Bringing EuroDIG to the heart of the EU had a two-way effect: on one hand, it raised awareness on the global Internet governance debate among (often too EU-focused) stakeholders. On the other hand, it led to the “politicisation” of the overall event. This may have been to the liking of some, but not to all attendees.
The plenary sessions had high-calibre speakers, who sometimes seemed a bit surprised at, overwhelmed by, or at a loss with the EuroDIG’s rather non-formal, egalitarian format, the type of interventions and the composition of “the crowd”. Some, and especially Emily Taylor (who did an incredible job as facilitator), probably remember vividly when she confused one of the panellists with the ambassador who still sat in the audience waiting. Rather than being perceived as a “breach of protocol”, however, this “incident” magnificently illustrated the very nature of EuroDIG, where everyone has equal saying and no one is more important than the other. This all-open, all-inclusive approach also opened the door to a silent protest against geo-blocking during Commissioner Günther Oettinger’s address, highlighting the controversy surrounding the Commission’s ambitious Digital Single Market strategy.
As it could have been expected, the sessions varied in relevancy and quality. Among the hot topics covered, the Internet of Things (IoT) session had panellists discuss the immense potential of IoT, its perceived inevitability and (privacy) risks involved. The zero rating session generated intense debate among panellists and participants, since zero rating is considered purely as a business model or commercial offer by some, while others fear for the unfair advantage it creates for certain companies and the loss of competition dangers for consumers.
One word of regret at this stage concerns some missed opportunities to highlight and fuel on the different points of views among all panellists, to dig deeper and to explore what could be done about certain “shortcomings” within the Internet ecosystem. An excellent debate along these lines, for instance, happened at the end of day 1, when a Commission representative contradicted the points of view of a digital rights representative on the true intentions of the Commission with regards to “controlling content”. Let’s have more of this!
The next EuroDIG will be held in the very Internet-savvy Estonia, as participants witnessed the passing of the EuroDIG flag at a 70s-themed party on the Thursday evening. Expect a different flavour next year, but just as worth the detour!
