By ANDREA RENDA Mayan prophecy predicts that the world will end
on Dec. 21, 2012, but Internet users should be more worried
about what will happen just a few weeks before. The World
Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) meets in
Dubai Dec. 3-14 to consider proposals that would grant authority
for Internet governance to the United Nations and impose new
regulations on Web traffic. If adopted, these proposals could
upend the Web as we know it, undermining it as an engine for
growth and dynamism for the world. Since 1988, the Internet has
been governed by private bodies. Icann, which manages domain
names under the rather benevolent oversight of the U.S., is
fully devoted to multiple-stakeholder participation. Government
representatives only sit on an "advisory committee," while
business and civil society shape the rules. However, recent
events (such as the controversial creation of a dedicated .xxx
domain for adult content and Icann's plan to expand top-level
domains) have created concerns among