Information paper on organizations involved in technical coordination of the Internet

ICC encourages business leaders to continue to inform themselves about the key decision-making institutions on technical coordination of the Internet, and to make sure that business continues to lead the way.The Internet is made up of three layers. “At the bottom is a ‘physical’ layer, across which communication travels. This is the computer, or wires, that link computers on the Internet. In the middle is a ‘logical’ or ‘code’ layer – the code that makes the hardware run. Here we might include the protocols that define the Internet and the software upon which those protocols run.

At the top is a ‘content’ layer – the actual stuff that gets transmitted across the wires.” This document describes how that middle layer of the Internet, the ‘code’ layer, is run, by whom, and how business can stay involved. It also looks to the future, and issues such as VoIP2, ENUM3 and Instant Messaging – technologies which straddle the ‘code’ layer and the ‘physical’ layer. Many organizations are involved in this space, for example, traditional telecoms regulators and the new, selfregulatory coordination bodies of the Internet. Business needs to better understand how these organizations and technologies interact in order to ensure the Internet continues to be a vibrant medium for commerce.