"Who runs the Internet?" seems like a simple question, but the answer reveals one of the Internet's most remarkable characteristics: no single entity controls it. Unlike traditional telecommunications systems governed by treaties and national regulators, the Internet operates through a complex web of organizations, agreements, and stakeholder communities.

Understanding Internet governance isn't optional for network professionals. It explains how IP addresses get allocated, how domain names work, why protocols evolve the way they do, and where policy debates happen. Whether you're designing network architecture, defending against attacks, or making business decisions about Internet services, these governance structures shape your operating environment.

Internet governance operates through multi-stakeholder processes—meaning governments, private sector, civil society, technical community, and academia all participate in decision-making. No single category of stakeholder holds ultimate authority.

Why Multi-Stakeholder?

The Internet's technical origins shaped its governance. Academic and technical communities built the early Internet with minimal government involvement. By the time governments recognized its importance, governance structures already existed—and they worked.

Key principles of multi-stakeholder Internet governance:

The Governance Landscape:

Internet governance involves multiple overlapping organizations:

1. Technical coordination — Managing the technical resources that make the Internet work (addresses, names, protocols)
2. Standards development — Creating the protocols and formats that enable interoperability
3. Operational security — Responding to threats and maintaining stability
4. Policy development — Addressing issues like privacy, access, and content

No single entity handles all these functions. Instead, specialized organizations handle specific domains, coordinating through overlapping membership and liaison relationships.

ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) and IANA (Internet Assigned Numbers Authority) manage the Internet's critical unique identifiers—the resources that must be globally coordinated for the Internet to function.

IANA Functions:

The IANA functions predate ICANN and continue under its umbrella:

1. IP Address Allocation — Allocating IP address blocks to Regional Internet Registries (RIRs)
2. Domain Name Coordination — Managing the DNS root zone and delegating top-level domains
3. Protocol Parameters — Maintaining registries of protocol values (port numbers, protocol numbers, etc.)

Jon Postel individually performed IANA functions from the 1970s until his death in 1998, when the role was formalized under ICANN.

ICANN Structure:

ICANN is a California nonprofit corporation, but its community governance is global:

• Board of Directors — Sets policy and oversees operations; includes community-selected and independent directors
• Supporting Organizations (SOs) — Develop policy for specific areas:
  • GNSO (Generic Names SO) — gTLD policy (.com, .org, .net, etc.)
  • ccNSO (Country Code Names SO) — ccTLD coordination (.us, .uk, .jp, etc.)
  • ASO (Address SO) — IP address policy coordination
• Advisory Committees (ACs) — Provide advice to the Board:
  • GAC (Governmental Advisory Committee) — Government input
  • ALAC (At-Large AC) — End-user interests
  • SSAC (Security and Stability AC) — Technical security advice
  • RSSAC (Root Server System AC) — Root server operations

The IANA Stewardship Transition:

Until 2016, the US government (via NTIA) maintained oversight of the IANA functions through a contract with ICANN. In 2016, this contract expired and was not renewed—transferring stewardship to the global multi-stakeholder community.

This transition was contentious. Supporters viewed it as appropriate internationalization of a global resource. Critics worried about losing US protection against authoritarian capture. The compromise created new accountability mechanisms within ICANN, including community powers to reject Board decisions and remove directors.

Regional Internet Registries (RIRs) manage IP address allocation within their geographic regions. They receive large address blocks from IANA and allocate them to ISPs, enterprises, and other organizations needing Internet number resources.

The Five RIRs:

RIR Functions:

RIRs handle critical Internet resource management:

IP Address Allocation:

• Receive IPv4 and IPv6 blocks from IANA
• Allocate to ISPs (who further assign to customers)
• Directly assign to end-user organizations qualifying for their own space
• Maintain registries documenting who holds which addresses

ASN Allocation:

• Assign Autonomous System Numbers to organizations running BGP
• Maintain ASN registries

Routing Registry:

• Operate regional Internet Routing Registries (IRRs)
• Document routing policies and prefix ownership
• Enable route origin validation

Policy Development:

RIRs develop allocation policies through open community processes:

1. Anyone can propose — Policy proposals come from the community
2. Mailing list discussion — Proposals are debated publicly
3. Public meetings — Discussed at regional meetings (ARIN meetings, RIPE meetings, etc.)
4. Consensus evaluation — Chairs assess community consensus
5. Board ratification — RIR boards approve policies achieving consensus

This bottom-up process means the organizations receiving IP addresses set the policies for how those addresses are allocated.

Internet protocols are developed through open standards processes. The primary organization is the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), but other bodies contribute essential standards.

IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force):

The IETF develops the protocols that make the Internet work—TCP, IP, HTTP, DNS, TLS, BGP, and hundreds more. Its motto: "We reject kings, presidents, and voting. We believe in rough consensus and running code."

IETF Characteristics:

• Individual participation — People participate as individuals, not representing employers
• Open meetings — Anyone can attend; no membership required
• Mailing lists — Primary work happens on public mailing lists
• Rough consensus — Decisions seek broad agreement, not unanimity or voting
• Running code — Working implementations validate specifications
• Area Directors — Technical experts guide work areas but don't command

The RFC Process:

IETF standards become RFCs (Requests for Comments)—the Internet's standard documentation format:

1. Internet-Draft — Working document, expires after 6 months, subject to change
2. Working Group Adoption — WG accepts draft for development
3. WG Consensus — Working group agrees draft is ready
4. IETF Last Call — Broader community review
5. IESG Review — Area Directors evaluate for publication
6. RFC Publication — Becomes permanent, numbered document

RFC Categories:

• Standards Track — Proposed Standard, Internet Standard (the highest status)
• Informational — Useful information not intended as a standard
• Experimental — Research and experimental protocols
• Best Current Practice (BCP) — Operational guidance and process documents
• Historic — Obsoleted or deprecated specifications

The Domain Name System (DNS) translates human-readable names to IP addresses. Its governance involves multiple layers:

Root Zone Management:

The DNS root zone contains delegations for all top-level domains. Its management involves:

• IANA (ICANN) — Coordinates root zone content changes
• Verisign — Operates the root zone (edits and publishes the file) under contract
• Root Server Operators — 12 organizations operate 13 root server clusters (with anycast providing 1,700+ actual instances)
• RSSAC — Advises on root server system architecture and operations

The root zone is extraordinarily stable—changes are carefully reviewed and relatively rare. Adding a new TLD or updating a delegation triggers a multi-step verification process.

Top-Level Domain Governance:

Generic TLDs (gTLDs):

• Legacy gTLDs (.com, .net, .org, .edu, .gov, .mil, .int) — Established before ICANN
• Sponsored gTLDs (.aero, .coop, .museum) — Operated by sponsoring organizations for specific communities
• New gTLDs — 1,200+ TLDs added since 2012 (.xyz, .app, .blog, brand TLDs)

gTLD registries operate under contracts with ICANN specifying technical and policy requirements.

Country-Code TLDs (ccTLDs):

ccTLDs (.us, .uk, .jp, .cn, etc.) are delegated to organizations in each country. ICANN's role is limited—ccTLDs often follow national policies rather than ICANN rules. Some ccTLDs (like .tk for Tokelau) operate as de facto gTLDs with open registration.

Domain Disputes:

Conflicts over domain names are resolved through:

• UDRP (Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy) — ICANN-mandated arbitration for trademark disputes
• URS (Uniform Rapid Suspension) — Faster, cheaper process for clear trademark violations
• Court litigation — Traditional legal remedies in relevant jurisdictions

UDRP applies to gTLDs; ccTLDs may have their own dispute processes.

Beyond governance of resources and standards, various organizations coordinate Internet operations and security:

Network Operator Groups:

Regional and topic-specific operator groups facilitate coordination among network engineers:

• NANOG (North American Network Operators Group) — One of the most influential; focus on routing and backbone operations
• RIPE — European network operators (combines with RIR function)
• APRICOT/APNIC — Asia-Pacific operators
• Many others — MENOG, AfNOG, regional NOGs, topic-specific groups

These groups share operational experiences, discuss routing issues, and coordinate responses to incidents. They're informal but crucial—many significant security responses are coordinated through operator group mailing lists.

CERTs and Incident Response:

Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) or Computer Security Incident Response Teams (CSIRTs) respond to security incidents:

• National CERTs — Government-sponsored teams for national coordination (US-CERT, CERT-UK, JPCERT)
• Sector CERTs — Industry-specific teams (financial, healthcare, energy)
• Organizational CERTs — Internal security teams at large organizations
• Vendor CERTs — Coordinate vulnerability disclosure (Microsoft, Apple, etc.)

FIRST (Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams) connects these teams globally, enabling cross-border coordination during major incidents.

Routing Security Initiatives:

MANRS (Mutually Agreed Norms for Routing Security) promotes routing security best practices:

• Filtering — Prevent propagation of incorrect routing information
• Anti-spoofing — Implement BCP38 to prevent source address spoofing
• Coordination — Maintain accurate contact information for incident response
• Global validation — Encourage RPKI deployment for route origin validation

RPKI (Resource Public Key Infrastructure) provides cryptographic proof of IP address and AS number holdings, enabling Route Origin Validation (ROV) to reject hijacked routes.

Internet governance faces ongoing challenges as the Internet's importance grows and stakeholder interests diverge:

Fragmentation Pressures:

The unified global Internet faces fragmentation pressures:

• National sovereignty — Some governments want control over "their" portion of the Internet
• Data localization — Requirements to keep data within national borders
• Content control — Blocking and filtering create national differences in Internet experience
• Alternative DNS roots — Some propose national DNS systems independent of ICANN
• Protocol politics — Disputes over protocol development can reflect geopolitical tensions

Emerging Governance Areas:

New technologies create new governance needs:

Artificial Intelligence:

• AI governance intersects with Internet governance as AI systems increasingly operate over networks
• Questions about AI-generated content, deepfakes, and automated decision-making

Internet of Things:

• Billions of poorly-secured devices create security challenges
• Device lifecycle management (updates, end-of-life) lacks governance frameworks

Encryption vs. Access:

• Strong encryption protects privacy but frustrates law enforcement
• Debates over "exceptional access" and key escrow continue

Platform Power:

• Major platforms control communication infrastructure without traditional common carrier obligations
• Content moderation decisions affect billions without clear accountability

We've explored the complex ecosystem of organizations that coordinate Internet operation—from technical resource management to standards development to security coordination. Let's consolidate the key governance concepts:

What's Next:

Now that we understand the Internet's governance structure, the final page examines Internet evolution—how the Internet has changed and continues to change, including IPv6 adoption, cloud computing, edge networks, and future directions that will shape the next generation of Internet infrastructure.