Topic: Net Neutrality
Country: China
Delegate Name: Marshall Klein
School: Kalamazoo Central High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All China position papers GLIMUN 2016 committees
The expansive computer network known as the Internet has been around, in one form or another, since the mid-1960s. However, notwithstanding early use as a military communications system or academic research tool, the Internet in its modern sense truly coalesced in the early 1990’s with the mass integration of commercial enterprise networks and the expansion of access to everyday people. While it is no coincidence that this expansion of access came at a time when home computing was rapidly transitioning from an obscure hobby to a practical necessity, it is also true that the spread of so-called “information technology” was actively promoted in its own right. This level of interconnectedness is unprecedented in human history, and has the potential to place virtually all of human knowledge literally at the fingertips of all who make use of it. Yet for all of this, the modern Internet is a relatively new development, and is consequently still rapidly evolving.
The Internet, however, is not a monolithic entity. Significant infrastructure underlies even the most basic web connection, and access to Internet connectivity is or can be controlled by a variety of entities. Any given user’s data can be intercepted at myriad points within this system, which gives rise to the question: should it be? Net neutrality is the principle that all data should be treated equally, neither interfered with nor advantaged in any way. But is this always practical? Surely governments should be able to search internet traffic in order to prevent attacks by hostile forces, copyright holders should be given the ability to shut down unauthorized transmission of their content, and parents should be able to see what their children are doing online? There is also the issue of cost. Infrastructure is expensive, and the number of Internet users has been increasing rapidly for years. Service providers argue that the heaviest users of network resources should pay commensurate costs, and that in order to better manage network load, providers themselves should be able to prioritize certain transmissions over others.
The Internet is a powerful tool for mass communication, and as a forum for the free exchange of ideas it is unsurpassed. There is significant danger that by allowing service providers to give priority to certain traffic over others, users with greater ability to buy priority treatment will come to dominate the network. It is impossible to allow government access to read or even block certain “dangerous” forms of expression online without opening the door to regulation and repression of other expressions, even by other entities. Yet for all the principled arguments in favor of net neutrality, security concerns and infrastructure-development costs still exist. It is SCITECH’s task to examine the issue in all of its facets, to address all concerns as thoroughly as possible, and to determine, if need be, what principles will be sacrificed in order to realize the committee’s vision of what must be done.
CHINA on the issue: Since its founding in 1949, the People's Republic of China (PRC) has exerted great effort in manipulating the flow of information and prohibiting the dissemination of viewpoints that criticize the government or stray from the official Communist party view. The introduction of Internet technology in the mid-1990s presented a challenge to government control over news sources, and by extension, over public opinion. While the Internet has developed rapidly, broadened access to news, and facilitated mass communications in China, many forms of expression online, as in other mass media, are still significantly stifled. Empirical studies have found that China has one of the most sophisticated content-filtering Internet regimes in the world. The Chinese government employs increasingly sophisticated methods to limit content online, including a combination of legal regulation, surveillance, and punishment to promote self-censorship, as well as technical controls.
Private Sector Access to Outer Space:
Much is often made of the remarkably short span of years between the dawn of powered human flight in 1903 and the current high-water mark of manned space exploration with the Moon landing of 1969: only 66 years, in most cases less than a human lifetime. Military needs drove much of aviation’s early development, as governments sought to exploit the advantages of the airplane as a machine of war, but commercial airlines soon brought aviation to the masses in the years between World War I and World War II. Yet spaceflight, with only very recent exceptions, has long been the exclusive province of governments. Thus, while the benefits of space technology such as global telecommunications and weather monitoring have certainly been realized, it has only been possible at great expense and an incredible amount of labor.However, recent policy shifts have permitted a relaxation of formerly strict controls on space launch technology. With the rise of private entities capable of designing, building, and launching their own technology into Earth orbit, it is now possible for genuine competition to drive development. Practically speaking, this should result in lower costs, higher safety, and more widely available service—a trend also seen with the rise of commercial aviation. Greater access at lower cost, in particular, would mean that the benefits of satellite technology could be much more widely distributed. Advances in telecommunications have resulted in the 21st Century being called the “Information Age”, yet phone and Internet access in rural and less-developed areas continues to lag behind the rest of the world. Weather and environmental monitoring is an invaluable tool for emergency preparedness, resource management, and global stewardship. Eliminating, or even mitigating, cost as a barrier to entry will be a long step towards eliminating global technological and developmental disparities. And while it is something of a pipe-dream at present, the time may come when so-called “space tourism,” the entry into outer space by private citizens, is no longer the preserve of the ultra-rich. Governments, commercial entities, and even private citizens all have an interest in enhancing access to space technology. By expanding the pool of options from limited government-controlled space launch capacity to include a growing number of commercial options, this goal may realistically be achieved—for developing states and private entities alike. Yet there is a danger in allowing a too-rapid spread of access. As with consumer-level and commercial unmanned aviation, issues of safety and poorly-regulated traffic raise valid concerns, which must consequently be addressed before access can be more widely granted. SCITECH must strike a balance between ensuring safety, security, and compliance with existing treaties on the use of outer space on the one hand, and achieving the desired increase in technological, educational, and economic development on the other.
China: In the US, much of the recent media attention to space travel is centered on the activities of flamboyant billionaires and private companies. Left out, though, is the fact that, like in much of the rest of global business, a new generation of Chinese commercial and tourist space endeavors are looking to compete as well. One of the more intriguing of China's emerging commercial space launch companies is Expace. Founded in February, the firm will be the lead tenant of China's first commercial space industrial park in Wuhan, China. It has already signed up over 10 launches for its solid fueled Kuaizhou Rockets. Zhang Di, Expace's chairman, is also a Deputy Director of the Fourth Academy of the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC), which makes the Kuaizhou rockets. China is not the enemy of private space flight, but an ally; and a competitor.
