Sovereignty and Cyberspace: Institutions and Internet Governance

Abstract

"There is now a growing trend to think that the problems of Internet governance justify a turn towards sovereignty in cyberspace. The lecture challenges the viability of sovereignty in cyberspace on both practical and normative grounds. Three arguments against it are advanced: 1) that there are domains where sovereignty doesn’t belong; 2) that the Internet protocols create a global commons and a non-territorial virtual space; 3) there is no monopoly on the legitimate use of force in cyberspace."