The role of transnational corporations in global Internet governance: Google and Facebook in the discussions on network neutrality and data policy (2013-2018)

Author(s)

Jaqueline Trevisan Pigatto

• Document type: Master's Dissertation
• Press: São Paulo. 2020-03-04.
• Institution: Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp). Instituto de Políticas Públicas e Relações Internacionais. São Paulo
• Defense date: 2020-02-18
• Advisor: Marcelo Passini Mariano

Abstract

The global Internet governance aims to consolidate itself through the multistakeholder model, where state and non-state actors share interests, goals and actions on the digital space, which can deeply affect societies. Whether economic, cultural or political, the digital platforms play a fundamental part on the Internet users lives, reaching also the state sphere. Therefore, the Internet’s original characteristics, such as freedom and universality, are stressed by these private actors. Issues as the indiscriminate use of personal data by large transnational corporations and varied available content by the private sector in different countries are some of the procedures that have evolved in discussions and regulations over the last years. In 2013, the Edward Snowden’s disclosures on the U.S. espionage have created a stronger questioning regarding the Internet’s centrality in that country, with other state actors such as Brazil and the European Union projecting themselves dominantly on global governance, at the same time that large companies such as Google and Facebook hold resources of considerable power, starting from the data collect and processing from billions of people all around the world. The private self-regulation that became stronger after the Snowden case has been facing a setback since 2018, with attempts of state regulations by the European Union, in view of the Cambridge Analytica case, where electoral procedures were influenced by the inappropriate use of personal data. Thereby, it is on the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) that such actors have space for dialogues and knowledge exchange to implement policies and activities, following the multistakeholder nature. The private actions ended up guiding several of these discussions, while bilateral meetings between governmental and private entities were being prioritized, leading to a decrease in the multistakeholder model, once that the state became more affected by the functioning of these platforms. Although the state regulations have occupied more space during the analyzed period of time, the big private corporations still hold a preponderance and a certain freedom of self-regulation among the multistakeholder governance, since they hold resources of technological power and relevant influence on the Western societies. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 18/02378-4 - The role of transnational corporations in global Internet governance: Google and Facebook in the discussions on network neutrality and data policy (2013-2018)
• Grantee: Jaqueline Trevisan Pigatto
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master