Multilateralism, the Eu and the Evolving Global Governance of the Internet

Whilst the global governance architecture for the Internet has evolved at pace in the last ten years the EU's role and influence in its formation and development has been relatively understudied. This paper contributes to closing this gap in the literature through an investigation of how the EU has sought to shape the emerging environment for Internet governance in the context of its quest for 'effective multilateralism'. The empirical focus is related to two international governance bodies for the Internet, each at different stages of institutionalisation: the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers and the Internet Governance Forum. The emphasis in the paper is, first, to identify the type of multilateral governance that the EU has sought to project for the Internet globally and, second, to analyse how the EU has sought to project its preferred type of multilateral governance through its interaction with ICANN and the IGF. In pursuing these lines of enquiry we provide evidence of contradictions and constraints existing alongside opportunities for the EU in its efforts to develop and sustain its multilateral ambitions in two significant global fora for Internet governance. Beyond this, the paper contributes to knowledge of the role the EU can play in relatively new and emerging global governance institutions.