WS #213 Hold On, We’re Going South: beyond GDC

Summary

This discussion focused on the future of digital governance and the challenges facing the Global South in the digital age. Experts from various fields shared insights on topics including linguistic diversity, business social networks, digital sovereignty, and the role of youth in shaping digital policies.

The Global Digital Compact (GDC) was a central theme, with speakers discussing its potential to address digital divides and promote inclusive development. However, concerns were raised about the influence of large tech companies and the need for more effective international collaboration. The importance of bridging language barriers and preserving linguistic diversity online was emphasized as crucial for global digital inclusion.

Speakers highlighted the need for affordable and universal connectivity, especially in underserved regions. The role of energy infrastructure in enabling digital access was discussed, with examples of nuclear power projects supporting connectivity in remote areas. The challenges of digital colonialism were addressed, with calls for empowering local digital ecosystems and promoting data sovereignty.

Legal and regulatory issues surrounding big tech companies were explored, including recent antitrust cases and the difficulties in holding global platforms accountable across jurisdictions. The importance of considering cultural and social norms when implementing digital policies was stressed.

Youth representation in digital governance was emphasized as critical, with speakers advocating for meaningful engagement of young people in decision-making processes. The discussion concluded with reflections on the need for a balanced approach to digital governance, combining multi-stakeholder engagement with appropriate government oversight to create a fair and inclusive digital future.

Keypoints

Major discussion points:

– The challenges of implementing the Global Digital Compact, including resistance from big tech companies and differing technological capabilities between countries

– The need to bridge digital divides and avoid digital neocolonialism, especially for the Global South

– The role of youth voices and multistakeholder engagement in digital governance

– Legal and regulatory challenges in holding big tech companies accountable across different jurisdictions

– Russia’s experiences developing domestic IT solutions and digital sovereignty in response to sanctions

Overall purpose:

The discussion aimed to examine the implications of the Global Digital Compact and explore ways to create a more equitable digital future, especially for developing countries, while considering perspectives from different stakeholders including youth, industry, and government.

Tone:

The tone was generally serious and analytical, with speakers providing expert perspectives on complex policy issues. There were moments of optimism about potential solutions, but also notes of skepticism about the challenges ahead. The youth perspective brought a more hopeful and forward-looking tone to the latter part of the discussion.

Speakers

– Vasily Zudin: Moderator, representative of the Center for Global IT Cooperation

– Olga Makarova: Director of the Department of Commercial Resource Management at MTS

– Semyon Tenyaev: Russian IT entrepreneur, investor, head of the BBC group of companies, founder of TenChat social network

– Milos Jovanovic: Representative of Open Link Group

– Roberto Zambrana: MAG member, experienced in multi-stakeholder engagements

– Pavel Zakharov: Member of the Internet Technological Association, experienced in combating disinformation and fact-checking

– Alim: Co-moderator for second part of discussion

– Bogdan Chernyshov: Head of the Rosatom Youth Council

– Alexandra Kozina: Lawyer in dispute resolution and mediation practice at Art Deluxe

– Saba Tiku Beyene: Member of IGF Multi-Stakeholder Advisory Group, youth representative

– Vadim Glushenko: Director of the Center for Global IT Cooperation

Additional speakers:

– AUDIENCE: Unidentified audience member who spoke

The discussion focused on the future of digital governance and the challenges facing the Global South in the digital age. Experts from various fields shared insights on topics including linguistic diversity, business social networks, digital sovereignty, and the role of youth in shaping digital policies.

Global Digital Compact and Digital Divides

The Global Digital Compact (GDC) emerged as a central theme, with speakers discussing its potential to address digital divides and promote inclusive development. Milos Jovanovic highlighted the GDC’s capacity to foster economic growth in developing countries. However, concerns were raised about the influence of large tech companies and the need for more effective international collaboration. Vadim Glushenko pointed out that GDC implementation faces resistance from tech giants and inequality between countries.

Saba Tiku Beyene emphasised the need to balance a multistakeholder approach with government participation in the GDC. This view contrasted somewhat with Glushenko’s emphasis on the challenges posed by tech giants’ resistance, suggesting that government involvement may face significant obstacles.

Linguistic Diversity and Digital Inclusion

The importance of bridging language barriers and preserving linguistic diversity online was emphasised as crucial for global digital inclusion. Olga Makarova provided an in-depth presentation on language barriers on the internet, highlighting how they hinder access to knowledge. She discussed the potential of machine translation technologies to address this aspect of the digital divide, while also noting the challenges in preserving linguistic diversity and cultural nuances in digital spaces.

Digital Sovereignty and Fragmentation

The challenges of digital colonialism were addressed, with calls for empowering local digital ecosystems and promoting data sovereignty. Olga Makarova expressed concerns about internet fragmentation risks due to geopolitical tensions and payment restrictions. Semyon Tenyaev presented on the TenChat social network, advocating for decentralized social networks to protect national data sovereignty while enabling global connectivity.

Structure and Operations of Big Tech Companies

Alexandra Kozina provided a detailed presentation on the structure and operations of big tech companies globally. She discussed recent antitrust cases and fines against major tech companies, particularly focusing on Google’s practices. Kozina emphasised that tech giants need to consider cultural differences and local laws when operating globally, highlighting the complexities of regulating these companies across different jurisdictions.

Combating Disinformation

Pavel Zakharov briefly touched on the topic of disinformation, arguing that current approaches to fighting it are often ineffective and risk censorship. He advocated for a focus on education and cooperation rather than restrictions, stating, “The best way to make your armor against disinformation is to know more.” Zakharov also mentioned the importance of fact-checking in combating misinformation.

Youth Engagement and Multistakeholder Approach

Youth representation in digital governance was emphasised as critical. Ms. Sabatikou stressed the importance of integrating youth voices, stating, “Young people are not just stakeholders in digital governance, but rather we are the agents of change.” She advocated for meaningful engagement of young people in decision-making processes related to digital policies.

Center for Global IT Cooperation Initiatives

Vadim Glushenko presented on the activities and initiatives of the Center for Global IT Cooperation. He discussed the organization’s efforts to promote international dialogue on digital governance issues and its work on various projects related to the Global Digital Compact.

Rosatom’s Digital Projects

Bogdan Chernyshov provided an overview of Rosatom’s various projects, highlighting the company’s involvement in digital initiatives beyond its core nuclear energy business. This presentation offered insights into how traditional industries are adapting to and contributing to the digital landscape.

Unresolved Issues and Future Challenges

The discussion highlighted several unresolved issues, including:

1. Effectively implementing the Global Digital Compact given resistance from tech giants and inequality between countries

2. Balancing multistakeholder approach with increased government participation in digital governance

3. Addressing payment restrictions that risk internet fragmentation

4. Effectively regulating big tech companies across different jurisdictions

5. Combating disinformation while preserving freedom of expression

The discussion concluded by emphasizing the need for a balanced approach to digital governance, combining multi-stakeholder engagement with appropriate government oversight. Speakers stressed the importance of international cooperation, youth involvement, and innovative solutions to address linguistic barriers and promote digital sovereignty. The complexity of the issues discussed underscores the need for continued dialogue and collaboration to create a fair, inclusive, and sustainable digital future for all.

Vasily Zudin: Yeah, I think that I check speakers, speakers online. I didn’t speak to anybody on the phone. Dear colleagues, do you hear me? Is it okay? Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Okay. Dear colleagues, members of the IGF community, it’s a pleasure for me to be here, to be with us. It’s a pleasure to be part of this company. Once again, the fourth time in my career. I would also like to thank the hosting country of Saudi Arabia for organizing the forum at such a magnificent venue. My name is Vasili Zudin. I represent the Center for Global IT Cooperation, a Moscow-based organization which aims to foster valuable ICT connections across continent for a brighter and more just digital future for all of us. We annually contribute to the activities of the IGF and also operate as an NRI actor, hosting Russia IGF and its youth version since 2021. Voice of expert community, representative of the government sector, private business and youth, therefore of great significance to us. It is our aim after all to build bridges of IT cooperation and to promote new approaches to internet governance. Today we have a list of highly experienced experts with us on the panel who hopefully share their versions of the digital technological world after the global digital compact and the future of ICT sector development in the global south. GDS is an ambiguous document that at the same time caused a wave of discussions and disputes. A great many still disagree with numerous points of the Compact, with the function that was granted to big tech companies, and the fact that the Compact is in fact a soft law document not affecting the real states of affairs. However, today we are not here to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the GDC. We have gathered to understand where our digital world is moving next and what problems we have yet to solve. I believe it is paramount to seek ways how we can bridge growing digital divides and avoid the new era of digital neocolonialism, where few control the resources and limited opportunities for the rest. Through engaging in meaningful discussion and most importantly technologies and right action we can strike a balance between private interests, government policies, and interests of users. With that focal point in mind, I would like to pass my word to our first speaker, Olga Makarova, Director of the Department of Commercial Resource Management at MTS. Olga is an active member of the IGF community who even proposed several years ago her own unique mathematical formula to calculate the level of internet fragmentation. Today she wants to offer us the solution for the language barriers on the web at the same time preserving linguistic diversity. Olga, the stage is yours and the mic is yours too.

Olga Makarova: Thank you. Just a moment. Hello. Let’s start with a quick introduction. My name is Olga Makarova. I am the Director of the Department of Commercial Resource Management at MTS. Hello. Let’s start with a quick introduction. Does anyone know how many languages there are in the world? According to the Ethnologue, there are about 7168 living languages. That’s awesome. Linguistic diversity provides the key to other cultures and makes the world a more vibrant place. However, linguistic diversity also has a downside. We can hardly find a person who speaks all languages. So we often have to use the dominant language to communicate. But people whose native language is not the dominant language in their community are often reluctant to speak publicly, for fear of being misunderstood. In the world of linguistic diversity, language barriers are inevitable. Today the dominant language in the world is English. Here are languages of the most famous authors. 67% of the works are written in English. The top 101 books were written by writers from Kenya and Nigeria. But the most famous books were written in English. In 1998, the Zimbabwe International Book Fair, Ali Mazri, launched the project 100 Best African Books of the 20th Century. The project aimed to compile a list of the 100 best books by African writers to draw the world’s attention to their works. The list was published in February 2002. And only five books from this list were translated into Russian language. All these books were English. Does anyone know how many Russian books have been translated into languages understandable to people living in Africa? All my attempts to find such figures have failed. So, English has been and remains the dominant language, including on the Internet. People with limited English proficiency face additional barriers to accessing it. knowledge. Another important area where language barriers need to be removed healthcare. Healthcare providers and their patients often speak different languages. Language barriers are a common problem in healthcare settings around the world. Misunderstanding or failure to communicate are the main cause of incorrect diagnosis and dramatic consequences of incorrect treatment. On the slide you can see some figures by country but what about qualified interpreters to communicate in such cases? This is not an option. The lack of legal framework qualified interpreters especially for rare languages and financial constraints do not allow this to be used. Machine translation where users write or speak sentences and they are instantly translated seems like a viable way to break down language barrier. The slide shows some statistics on machine translation accuracy by language groups. As you can see the accuracy of machine translation is significantly higher for European language groups. We still lack the data to proper translation in African groups. Some data from Goldman Sachs and Stanford University estimate that by 2025 investments in AI will reach 200 billion dollars. Stanford University’s artificial intelligence index report notes that the most significant AI machine learning systems released in 2022 the most common class of systems were language-based. Some historical facts. In early 2000s some IT companies used the meaning text model and explanatory combinatorial dictionary to create their own machine translation systems. The goal of such systems was a universal semantic hierarchy. which was a huge tree of concepts built from the general to the specific. Google Translate was launched in 2006. At first, it worked very poorly and generated memes rather than translation. But it was created with little or no input from linguists. Google Translate has used and continues to use a different approach, statistical. Complex language models were discarded and forgotten. Huge amounts of data became the basis. The price was scalability. In 2009, people from the Google team published a paper called The Unreasonable Effectiveness of Data. The title of the article echoes the title of the article The Unreasonable Effectiveness of Mathematics in the Nature of Sciences, written by physicist Eugene Wigner in 1960. The author knows that sciences involve people rather than elementary particles. They have proven more resilient to elegant mathematics. In the paper, they explain why in complex theory we will never succeed in processing language. They demonstrate that simple models and large amounts of data are much more effective than complex models with insufficient data. They would advise to follow the data and choose a representation that can use unsupervised learning or unlabeled data. In 2019, Canadian computer scientist Richard Sutton published a paper called A Bitter Lesson. He writes, we have to learn the bitter lessons that building in how the thing does not work in the long run. He concludes that only two methods can make scaling successful, searching, search and learning. To follow these guidelines, we need the single, open and unfragmented Internet capable of handling massive volumes of cross-border data flows. But the Internet always been and remains a set of structurally fragmented but interconnected autonomous systems. Only the Internet protocols and the ability of different stakeholders’ networks to interconnect make the Internet a single, open, and unfragmented public online environment. So our networks need to be able to connect and interconnect, but no one connects or interconnects without paying. Therefore, we need to be able to pay for services we need. But today we see a new type of stakeholders. These are banks. Banks have their own compliance procedures for assessing the legality and appropriateness of payment, which do not take into account the threats and consequences of Internet fragmentation. Many banks block many payments for communication, interconnection, and Internet services from Russia and some other areas without any explanation from their side. The risks of Internet fragmentation are not taken into account. But if one party fails to pay for services, this will result in the termination of agreements, termination of all services, and breaking down all connections. The Russian language segment of the Internet and other segments of the Internet connected to the global Internet through Russia may be separated. The result will be the technical level fragmentation. Banks don’t want to achieve anything in terms of Internet fragmentation. They just don’t think about it. It’s just not their business. Bank managers are confident that no one will blame them if the Internet fragments. But they are terrified that one wrong payment due to sanctions, or more precisely, due to the bank’s compliance manager’s understanding of sanction policy, will prove fatal to both their careers and their banking business. Alas, we are witnessing a perfect example of my slow inaction. Where I spend depends on where you sit. We don’t have a suitable solution today, the range of stakeholders turned out to be wider. You can see an example of the impact of such measures on the Internet. Today carriers and users from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and some other countries get the cheapest and fastest access to the European segment of the Internet only through Russia due to their geographical location. Their Internet business may also suffer. It would be advisable to provide for some certification procedures of carriers through the ITU, which would allow them to pay for telecommunication and Internet services without additional checks and assessment by banks. The geopolitical situation is changing dramatically. The problem with payment may affect different countries, not only Russia. Let’s try to work together. Let’s try to keep the Internet open and unpunctuated. Thank you.

Vasily Zudin: Olga, thank you very much for your highly informative input. I’m proud of the fact that we can share our own experience here on this stage. As you mentioned, Russia is actively developing its own linguistic segment of the Internet. We also have our own Cyrillic TLD. Speaking of all things Russian and Cyrillic, our next speaker is a newcomer to the IGS community, yet he has his own highly competitive digital product, which he looks forward to sharing with the world. Semyon Teneyev is a Russian IT entrepreneur, investor, head of the BBC group of companies and most importantly, founder of TenChat social network. Semyon, what makes your social network so different from other major players and how do you intend to promote it across the countries of global youth? The microphone is yours, please.

Semyon Teneyev: Yeah, thank you. Hello everyone, madame, monsieur, ladies and gentlemen. Okay, let’s discuss about future of business social network or maybe how I see, how can I see this goal so if we discuss about personal data, big data platform, social networks, it means that future all over the world will be not in one area, it will be many, many centers of information. Mostly it depends of structure of data, cause the main reason of all system is that the data is a new gold in all systems. What I mean, mostly countries use free source or absolutely free programs and don’t pay any money, but we need to understand that if you don’t pay nothing, you pay by information and all information cost money. So it’s in new age, on new century, I can, I want to repeat one more time, the data become the new gold. So what’s the main, What are the main global challenges we have now in this area? Firstly, as my colleague said before, it’s ensuring country sovereignty. Also, protection of personal data, development of own technology, and access to global B2B market and global human market. So, in our business social network, which become the biggest one on Russian market and some markets on Soviet Union countries’ border, we think that business social network can be much useful than original social network like Facebook and other one, because the main goal, which can connect people from many countries, it’s job, it’s trading, it’s deals, because everyone need to pay salary, to make money for their family. So, one of the way to structure such kind of application is global investments. So, we develop our application as super app with mostly effective way to make deals across the country. We include B2B marketplace. trading platform, tenders platform with government contracts, job vacancy, investment platform, and so it’s our new view how to make global social business network. Otherwise, we make the unique offer to other country. We go in by absolutely new way how to take new markets by TenChart. We give it by license to countries. So all over the world, we make the first decentralized global social network which each country have its own part in that territory. So it make a big opportunities because the personal data will stay on the country, investments stay in the country, people find the best job in their country. So it’s make every country more standard without a global leader. So it’s one of the little piece of our system. Thank you.

Vasily Zudin: Semyon, thank you very much for your informative input. May I ask you one more question? What features do you believe TenChart and Russian tech in general may offer to the developing world? Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Semyon Teneyev: One of the features we connect to the social network, to business social network, tender platform. What it means? We know that the most countries have a big part of government economy inside. For example, it means tenders, some kind of deals with government, and sometimes nobody knows about this and don’t have information. And we’re trying to connect people, business, and government in one app. Not only people and business. We connect all three sides. I repeat one more, business, people, and government in one application.

Vasily Zudin: Thank you very much. Thank you, Semyon, for your really interesting reports. It’s fantastic. Dear Milos, it is pleasant to see you in Riyadh, especially among our speakers, and you are also a major contributor to IJS processes. Open Link Group is quite active in Europe, Asia, and Africa. What is your view concerning the global digital combat, and most importantly, how may Global South, in your view, benefit from it?

Milos Jovanovic: So thank you very much, Vasily, for this introduction. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s truly an honor to be here in Riyadh among such distinguished experts and leaders. I would like to extend my gratitude to our hosts and organizers for facilitating this vital dialogue on the future of the digital world. No? How it works? Yeah, it’s okay? Okay. For the future of the digital world, when discussing the Global Digital Compact, I see it not just as a framework, but as a vision for shaping a more inclusive and equitable digital future. The Compact holds the promise of addressing some of the most pressing challenges we face today, particularly for the Global South. For many developing countries, like Serbia, where I came from, the Compact could become a catalyst for change, bridging the digital divide, reducing inequality and fostering economic growth. To achieve this, three key priorities stand out. First, we must ensure affordable and universal connectivity. There is a big problem, and we discuss always this topic. Speaking about Africa, for example, when we attended IGF in Addis Ababa, one of the key topics was connectivity of Africa, because we know that Africa is not a well-connected continent, speaking about some countries which don’t have universal access to internet, and that’s the big problem. So access to internet is no longer a luxury. It is a fundamental driver of education, healthcare and economic opportunity. And when we speak about healthcare, I personally participated in some projects in Balkans and Serbia, speaking about digitalization of healthcare industry, and it’s very important if you have opportunity to have a really good connection, I mean, speaking about digital technologies, with your doctor, speaking about electronic health records, about everything what modern healthcare industry could offer to you. So second, the compact should encourage investments in local digital ecosystems. And this is really important, speaking about fragmentation and digital fragmentation processes. We must empower entrepreneurs. nurture talent, and enable the creation of technologies that are tailored to the needs of local communities. And this is also important, speaking about current geopolitical moments, when we see different technological zones, and I always mention this, when you visit China, for example, you are not allowed to use Western services like American services, Microsoft, and all others. For example, when you are in the United States, in Western Europe, and generally Europe, we have huge discussion about Huawei equipments, Chinese equipments, and all other aspects of, they would say, non-secure hardware. And for example, as I know, because I spend a lot of time in Russia, they have really strict laws speaking about data, and about data of Russian citizens. They force Russian government, force that all data of Russian citizens should be stored in the territory of Russian Federation. This is really important, and I support this. So third, we must foster international collaboration to ensure that knowledge and technology flow freely, supporting growth rather than dependency. And when I was in Moscow a few weeks ago, actually a few days ago, we discussed how China and Russia made systems to test each other’s technology. So when we speak about technology transfer, it’s very important that other side, and the side which will receive technology, have opportunity to test and to make some test speaking about data, and who will control data. So this is really important. However, we can’t ignore the realities of digital colonialism. Much of the global South still finds itself in position where technology primarily serves the interests of tax giants rather than local populations. International organizations, governments, and private sectors must address this imbalance. This can be achieved by promoting open standards, and we discussed about it, supporting data sovereignty, developing localized infrastructure, and creating fairer regulatory frameworks. Let me be clear at the end, this is not a simple task. It requires a unified global effort to hold powerful actors accountable, while simultaneously empowering developing economies to shape their own digital futures. But generally, I remain optimistic, and we discussed about what we have to do in the upcoming years. With initiatives like the Global Digital Compact, we have a unique opportunity to redefine the rules of engagement in the digital space. In closing, let me emphasize this, the Compact will succeed if inclusivity, cooperation, and accountability remain at its core. Together, we have the chance to create a digital world where no one is left behind. Thank you very much.

Vasily Zudin: Thank you, Milos. Can I ask one more question for you? Do you accept that the international organizations have yet to do a lot of work to combat digital colonialism and keep tech giants at bay? Can we say like that?

Milos Jovanovic: Speaking about tech giants, when we speak about big companies everywhere in the West, in the East, in China, in Russia, it’s always about controlling the data. So I think this is a discussion. Who controls everything? Technology giants or, for example, legal frameworks, speaking about some national assemblies and so on and so on. I always make a conclusion that people who know technology have an advantage compared to people who know just legal aspects because they develop technologies. And speaking about big companies, I think international organizations are not in a position to control the data. to control them, actually, frankly speaking. So it’s up to local governments, and I will say to countries to control. So I will say in Riyadh as much as we do.

Vasily Zudin: It’s a pleasure to have you with us. To say that you are an active member of IJF community for many years is to say nothing. You were a MAC member and also had a lot of experience when it came to multi-stakeholder engagements. What does, in your opinion, the adoption of the Global Digital Compact mean for the international community?

AUDIENCE: Thank you very much, Vasily. And I want to say hello to my distinguished panelists as well. Well, I would like to move a little bit the answer maybe from what our colleagues said before, and I totally support regarding all the good things and opportunities, perhaps, that there’s the Global Digital Compact and some other processes as well, like the one that we had in NETMundial plus 10 recently. And if we read both of them, then we will identify several aspects that are very common, and I think everyone will be subscribing. And that’s why I think that’s the nice part of this process. But the other part, talking about Global South, is related with the current situation that we have. And I think that’s also something that we need to reflect on. We know that near three… or around three billion of population is not currently connected, but we need to remember that most of this population is in the global south. That’s the main problem, and it’s due to different barriers. Olga was mentioning the one with languages, for instance, but we also have barriers in gender, in many cultures, in many regions. Women are not usually used to work with computers, and worse, to have access to internet. We also have cultural barriers. We have regional barriers regarding the people that can access to these services in the rural areas, and the ones that live in urban areas, and of course, can enjoy all the good things that internet has. So for these people, for these regions, for this near three billion of the population in the world, actually the problems like fragmentations, like cyber crime, like all the other problems, or even the new emerging issues like artificial intelligence, are not in the discussion. I mean, they are thinking in just how we can connect to internet, and that’s why that matter is still an issue, and it’s going to be still an issue in the future, if as a community, as a global community, don’t think about the ways of reaching all these places, all these regions in the world. We know that despite the different efforts that the internet service providers, the telecommunications providers, have done during these last years, still it’s very difficult for them to actually reach these kind of communities, because of the difficult of return of the investment. That’s, of course, the reason, the major reason. So we need to contribute as well. It’s another important factor. First share approach, which is a recent topic that is emerging in different forums. Of course, I don’t support this approach about having in general or requiring in general to the digital content developers to actually pay any kind of fee or whatever, but at the same time, it’s important to realize that some of these big players, not all of the players, not all of the digital players, but some of these big players are actually able to, and actually they are doing many things. They are actually contributing with investment, contributing with deployment of infrastructure, but not, I will say, not in a most controlled way. I mean, yes, it’s their money, of course, but I think that there’s a room for coordinating with the governments specifically, just in this kind of processes, just in this kind of investment that are required in different countries, especially in the global south. So that’s something that we also need to think about and discuss. So this take us to another, and I’m just talking about, as I said before, not the fantastic stuff of the GDC, but the challenges, and one of those in the global south is how effective our regional and sub-regional, not multi-stakeholders, I will say, multilateral organizations can be. I mean, how effective they can be in order first to agree on common grounds, to agree in common regulations, to actually tackle all these challenges that we are facing in the near future, like the ones that I mentioned before regarding connectivity. I don’t know, but I always mentioned this as an example. The tradition that the Europeans have regarding this collaboration, very effective collaboration with common regulations, is something that in global south, especially in Latin America, that’s where I come from, we need to take as a good example. Actually, we are very caring in our region, in LAC, but at the same time, the problem is that each of the governments has their own agenda for this matter. So I think it’s important to agree in certain elements. One of those is connectivity. Maybe the others will be, of course, emerging. So being effective in this original area to provide this kind of inputs on those for the governments to actually act, to actually do, in a way. Because at the end, as you know, the governments are the ones that can be signing an agreement like the GDC, but they have to move from the agreement, from the shared principles, to the action. And those actions come in policies, and we are still so much delayed in issuing this kind of policies, so we can actually get this expected universal connection that we all want. So I will say that.

Vasily Zudin: Thank you very much, Roberto. And one more question, please. Is there a risk of minimising the role of the technical community in the digital maker paradigm? What do you think about this fact? Is there a risk of minimising the role of the technical community in the digital maker paradigm?

AUDIENCE: Well, I don’t think so, because of the nature of the ecosystem. There are key… communities with a very specific role. I would like to mention some of them like Internet Engineering Task Force or IEEE that will still be leading the technical area about the standards, about the technologies, about the proposals and there are newcomers as well and more than newcomers, new actors I will say regarding the technical arena. We’ve heard a lot of innovations, a lot of proposals, technical proposals from different, I’m not going to mention any but you may think which of them I am talking about and I think we can imagine that there might be very nice examples of new policies or new protocols etc but the processes themselves must be very transparent. If there are just a lot of key players working in these protocols and they come up with fantastic ideas but if those didn’t come back from a bottom-up process I think it could become an issue in the future. So because internet as it is now was actually a result of that kind of participative, inclusive and very transparent process all over these years.

Vasily Zudin: Thank you Roberta, thank you for your impressive speech and for your participating in our session. Our next speaker is Pavel Zakharov, a member of the Internet Technological Association. Pavel has a vast experience when it comes to combat disinformation and fact-checking and I must say that fact-checking is essential in the informational world we found ourselves in and it is a matter of national security, a matter of safety, often a question of human lives. And I would like to extend the floor to you, Mr. Zakharov.

Pavel Zakharov: Thank you for giving me the floor. As an active member of the Russian fact-checking community, I would like to share with you my opinion, my idea that can change our beliefs in fakes. But first of all, I want to say that it stayed on the official website of the Global Digital Compact, that its implementation requires a global effort. And one of the key commitments of GDI is building a digital space that is free, that is independent, that is open, fact-based. And it’s about disinformation, maybe. It’s maybe about combating disinformation. But nowadays, disinformation is portrayed in media as a main topic of concern to Internet users. It’s now seen as a weapon in a global informational war. But in my opinion, this escalation to the problem of military level looks unwise and maybe is completely dangerous. Because lies have always existed. And misinformation has always influenced people’s decisions, people’s behavior. Nothing new. The fight against disinformation today is becoming a convenient excuse for censorship, for reducing freedom of speech. And under the pretext of combating disinformation, digital platforms limit the promotion of materials which contain different points of views. Under this pretext, media released unwanted. And under this pretext, companies and organizations are being imposed sanctions. And the one thing is demand proof. The very principle of presumption of innocence is violated when it comes to coverting misinformation. One would think that such a stubborn struggle should lead to positive results. But let’s take a look at data. According to Ipsos study in 2024, at least a third of population of our planet believes fakes. And if we take a closer look, the situation is even worse in developing countries where up to 62% of population believes fakes. And those countries are active members of such famous international networks like IFCN, International Fact-Checking Network. So fact-checking doesn’t work. But it’s active. So it’s a good thing. And it’s a good thing to understand. Checking, checking, checking. It can be, to be processed this information. Even input, it’s used, it’s spread in certain platforms. So it’s possible to find all the fakes. This is pretty much easier to produce fakes than debunk. And the game changer here is AI. We need to change the approach. We need to abandon the principle of the limitation and punishment and start moving toward cooperation and resilience. The more restrictions are imposed to dissemination of information in the world, the less protected users will be against the disinformation. We need to communicate more. We need to interact more. We need to create informal communities. And that’s the key. As I said earlier, it’s time for us to move from confrontation to cooperation. And I want to remind you one thing. In the 1960s, Western countries and the Soviet Union moved from the open confrontation to the reducing level of aggression. That time, they resumed economic, scientific and cultural cooperation. And this period is now called the Tant, the relaxation of stagnant international relations. I’m sure that now is the best time for us to start to look at each other and to set the new rules of the game. It’s time for digital detente. And I think those who are really interested in creating open and secure digital space can agree to work together, regardless of differences in our views or benefits. That’s all we need now. Relax a bit. Thank you.

Vasily Zudin: Well, thank you very much for this useful information. And one more question. How to identify that this… information is fake, because sometimes it’s really difficult to see difference between fake and truth.

Pavel Zakharov: I think that there is no way to define every fake. Even me as an expert, I cannot see all the fakes. I’ve catched a lot of times I see fake and then after a few days I remember this and oh, that was fake. But one thing is important and it’s knowledge. If you know something, it’s really hard to change your opinion about the thing. So the best way to make your armor against disinformation is to know more. I think it’s that.

Vasily Zudin: Pavel, as you can see, we heard the opinions and elaborations of one generation and now I believe it’s time to hear the voices of youth representatives and I would like to thank our first row of presenters for their meaningful inputs and invite our second court team to join the discussions. Thank you. Thank you very much. Alim is co-moderator now of the second part of discussion.

Alim: Hello guys, hopefully you can hear me, the translation must also work. We have with us several esteemed speakers, yes, a moment. So we have with us several representatives of youth, who are also experts in IT sector and active IGF members. This is Bogdan Chernyshov, the head of the Rosatom Youth Council, Alexander Kozhin, representative of the lawyer representing Art Deluxe. And also we have with us an active IGF member from Ethiopia, who is a MAG member, Sabatikou. I saw her somewhere, she had to take a call, she’ll come back to us in several minutes, I hope. So our first speaker today, our first expert in this second round of workshop is Bogdan Chernyshov, and he represents essentially Rosatom. Rosatom is a world-renowned state nuclear energy corporation, which develops energy as well as a digital infrastructure all across the world, allowing entire nations to benefit from cheap, clear, and effective energy, power their houses, factories, schools, universities, and digital facilities. Bogdan, please, the floor is yours. What do you think about global, yes, clicker, here’s the clicker, please go ahead.

Bogdan Chernyshov: Okay, great. Good afternoon, dear colleagues. It’s a great honor to be here with you at IGF forum. And today I’d like to introduce you our company and… So, as you can see on the slide, Rosatom is a big company, which consists of more than 460 companies, which are working in very different scientific fields. So we have more… than four different businesses. And right now, Rosatom consists of not only companies, research universities, which are located in the Russian Federation. We’re also working with our international partners, and right now we are developing more than 60 different international projects. And right now, the portfolio of foreign orders of Rosatom has reached more than $200 billion last year. But today, I’m here to present you not only our company, also I’m heading… Great. Also, I’m heading the community of young scientists of Rosatom, and our two main goals is to provide connection between government universities and our real factories and research universities to create projects, which are based on the theoretical field of governance, university science, and our tasks of real industry. And the second one is to provide a community in which scientists can connect with each other and create different scientific projects, which are based on the intersection of their scientific interests and scientific directions. As you can see on the slide, we consist of more than 90 young scientists who are leading the key projects in the spheres like nuclear energy, hydrogen energy, wind energy. Also, we are working on the creation of new materials by application of the approach of digital material science. By application, of course, common material science. There are work on the healthcare sphere in the nuclear medicine production by creation of isotopes for curing the cancer and other diseases. Of course, there are personalized medicine by application of technologies of 3D printing. And there are other technologies. As you can see, electronic photonics, we have experts in plasma, laser technologies. our scientists created 50 qubits quantum computer and they’re working of course is in artificial intelligence with digital twins and a lot of, a lot of. So I’d like to go back to the main goal, to the main goal of Rosatom and of course it’s generation of energy. Of course all of us know that we can provide digital infrastructure transfer to this new technologies without energy. So Rosatom has a great experience in that field and our first nuclear power plants has celebrated its 70th jubilee this year. So since that time we upgraded our skills and right now the progress of the building of nuclear power plants you can see on the map of Russia. So our experience which we have got for this year, we are implementing into international projects and right now we are working with countries like China, Egypt, Hungary and other countries. But we use nuclear energy not only for production of nuclear power plants and provides an opportunity to our partners to get green energy sources. Also we are building ships, especially nuclear icebreakers which are working on the same principles and they require, the type of reactors requires less energy. So we use it for transfer of cargoes via northern sea route and the amounts of cargoes which we are transferring you can see on the slide. So to 230 that amount will reach 150 million tons. But that experience which we got of building smaller reactors, we are using to produce and make next step in creation of nuclear power plants, especially small NPPs. And as you can see on the slide, we will build in the condition of severe cold temperature a new nuclear power plant, small one, and it will be located in the Republic of Sakhaikutya, so you can see that on geotech. Also here we can see the strategy of building these small nuclear power plants. The main fact about that strategy is that these facilities will be built in the areas to which access is very hard. And especially in these locations are located huge mineral deposits. But the main feature also about this region is that we should provide connection of electricity to provide a digital connection of the people in these areas. But as I said on the second slide, we consist of a big amount of companies, more than 400. And I’m a research scientist of Gilded MedJoint Stock Company. I would like to tell you about projects on which we are working. And there is, you can see, different materials for spheres like electronic, photonics, we produce superconductors, we produce different monocrystals. And our production also consists of rare earth metals and different alloys. And we produce it in very different forms like alloys, powders. We can create details with simple form, for example, of sputtering targets for creation of different coatings of our electronic components. Of course, there are production in the complex, which has complex geometry, which we can make by application of additive technologies. But unfortunately, right now, I have not many time as a session. So I’d like you to invite to the session, which will be held on the last day of IGF. And we will talk about real scientific projects, which has impact on the design of North region. So thank you for your attention. The community of young scientists and Rosatom in general are always looking forward to future cooperation and experience exchange. Thank you.

Alim: Well done. I think this was very interesting. interesting because we were trying to bring something new to IGF format in a sense that we obviously, we discussed digital technologies, internet, but I think that energy, when it comes to energy, generation of electricity, when it comes to infrastructure or Saturn and the project which it does not only in Russia, but across the world in countries of global south, they are paramount, especially when we talk about bridging digital device. And our next speaker is Alexandra Kozina, lawyer in dispute resolution and mediation practice at Art Deluxe, a famous lawyer firm, which has been suing Google for many years and defending the interests of ordinary users in the face of large transnational corporations. Alexandra, what do you think? We talked a lot today about the so-called tech giants. What real threats do players like Google, Meta and others pose to the global south? Is it hard to fight the Goliath?

Alexandra Kozina: Oh, yes, it’s really hard to fight the Goliath. And I would like to start my presentation to tell you more about the recent cases the big tech had. And that will be, I hope, very interesting. And… Let’s wait for several minutes. I see the tech guys are on it. So this is it. Yes. So before I start and before any technical problems will be solved, I would like to thank you for participating in this section. I would like to thank IGF for this amazing opportunity to share ideas with my co-panelists and with the Central for Global Cooperation. I hope you will enjoy my presentation and we’ll have some questions. Okay. Questions. Okay. So speaking about the big tech, my allegation today is that the big tech needs to change because recently the big tech violated some laws in different countries. And we need to take very crucial attention on this point. I will concentrate your attention on four parts of my speech. Firstly, I will tell you about how the big tech companies operate globally, how they structure their business in different jurisdictions. Secondly, I will tell you more about what… should the global tech company pay attention to when they’re doing business globally. And this is very interesting and very important because not only written laws the big tech need to take into account, but as well social rules and cultural traits. Thirdly, we will talk about the recent cases in antitrust law and in civil law. I will give you a brief overview of these cases and I hope you will find it interesting. And finally we will maybe brainstorm some ideas how we can deal with this problem in the future. So this is a brief information about me. I work in dispute resolution and arbitration and deal with the telecommunication media and technology problems. And this is my photo. That is how I look when I’m hungry. Very serious. But in general, I’m very cheerful. So come talk to me after the session. Yeah. Okay. So long story short, then the big tech structured business globally, it has around three models it can face. So the first model is when the head company decides to open a separate entity on the territory of other jurisdictions. For example, Google on the territory of Russia had previously their separate entity. And the point is the separate entity has separate assets and is in general independent of the decision of the head company. But that that presumption can be overcome by the doctrine of withdrawing of corporate will. And simply saying this doctrine says that if the subsidiary acted on the behalf of the parent company or with the active knowledge of the parent company, you can you, the parent company, for any misconduct a subsidiary company do on the territory of the jurisdiction, and vice versa. And that is actually the best model for the consumers of the big tech. We will revert shortly to that question. Yeah. Model B. So if the big tech company do not want to open any separate entity with separate assets, it can open a representative. The thing is, the representative is not a separate entity in the terms of law. It has no assets. And if you face a misconduct from the head company, you cannot sue the representative. And the best example on the territory of Russia is Apple and Facebook. A couple of years ago, they had separate representatives on the territory of Russia. And the representative exists only for the public function. So to communicate with tax officers, antitrust managers, and so on. And you cannot, of course, sue the representative. But we have some advantages in that point. If we want to have a dispute on the territory of Russia, we can sue the head company. But we can sue a representative as well as a core defendant. And we can notify the head company through the representative. Of course, it’s easier than to file a claim abroad. And the last model. And the last model is the worst model for the consumers, for the business companies who deal with the big tech. Because big tech can decide not to open any separate structure or representative at all. And the best examples is Amazon or Meta in Russia. in Russia. They have never had any separate entities or representatives, but they actually sold and sell some services and digital products on the territory of Russia. And the disadvantages of that approach is that consumer or business have high costs of proceedings abroad because he needs to go directly to the head. Businesses have unequal bargaining power with the big tech because they cannot talk to them via email or so on. And actually in that business structure, the customers actually have a lack of remedies. Moving on to the second part of my speech about what’s the… Yes, one second. Next slide, please. Yeah, so as I said earlier, the big tech can choose free business structures to conduct business abroad, but what should they take into account when doing business globally? First of all, they need to understand informal institution of each of the country. And by informal institutions, I mean socially shared rules, traditions, cultural traits. It’s not a secret that, for example, Arab region countries or US or European Union differ a lot. And global digital company need to take into account these differences. And secondly, but not from the point of characterization, the global company need to take into account formal institution. And by formal institution, I mean written and unwritten laws. And the next slide will show you the non- exhaustive list… Oh, sorry. Sorry, sorry. Yeah. And the next time we’ll show you… the non-exhaustive list of laws which regulate digital business, for example, in Russia and I think as well as in any other country. And these laws the Big Tech should take into account very crucially. And the recent cases concerning the Big Tech show that the Big Tech ignores these laws. And let’s talk about that more. So I would like to present you the recent Russian judgments against Google. And that information is very interesting because on the territory of Russian Federation, last four years, around 20 separate judgments were published. And the judgments state that Google violated its own policies, then it blocked Russian media channels. And the thing with the judgments was that several claimants submitted claims on recognition and enforcement of such judgments on the territory of different countries. And I only choose some of them, like Turkey, Hungary, Algeria, South Africa, but actually the number of countries were up to 20, I guess. And the interesting thing is that on the territory of South Africa, South African High Court seized all Google assets, all Google subsidiary assets on the territory of South Africa because of the judgment existed. And I want to talk about more of the sum of fines. Actually, according to this judgment, for non-compliance with the judgment, Google was forced to pay a sum of money called judiciary fine or a strand in the territory of Russia. And the amount of fines, as per information of last month, which were written on BBC, The Guardian and Forbes. was 20 decillion USD. Decillion is a surprising number because it contains 36 zeros after the actual amount. And the global internet created a variety of jokes about that sum. And I wanna share with you my favorite joke because it’s actually very funny. Yeah. And of course, this situation which presented on the joke is, I guess, cannot in the future, but what is not funny? I wanna tell you about recent, yeah, very funny joke. Next slide, please. I wanna tell you about recent antitrust cases and the amount of fines presented on the slide is not joke at all. Because last decade showed that alphabet companies or Google companies, in particular, violated several laws on the territory of European Union. And that resulted. The amount of fines in amount of $8 billion. So I added QR. So if you are interested in information of their cases, you can just scan it and read in short articles. But Google is not the only company which is under investigation of antitrust officers. Actually, every big tech company, and by big tech, I mean, American big tech, is under investigations in several countries. So Apple in European Union, Qualcomm, Meta, its subsidiary, Facebook, and it’s. subsidiary meta-platforms. And the list is not exhaustive. And by representing these cases, I am not trying to say that the Big Tech is evil and we should all ban them, but I wanted to set a discussion on how the Big Tech is performing globally. Because it is very important for the Big Tech, with so many valuable resources, with all this knowledge and technology, to understand cultural traits and differences, to understand laws differences, because laws differ from country to country. And the last example of how the Big Tech violates law is how the alphabet violates its own financial laws. As you can see on the slide, I presented you the screenshots of last quarterly financial statement of Alphabet, so it’s 2024. And each of the financial statements has the part called legal matters. In that part, the Big Tech or any other company which has shares globally transmitted need to disclose the significant legal information about the cases. And as you can see on the slide, Alphabet disclosed the information about antitrust cases, which I presented on a few slides back, but it did not disclose any information about Russian court judgments. And this is what we need to talk about more, because why Alphabet disclosed antitrust cases with the financing amount 8 billion dollars and did not say anything in particular about Russian judgments, the amount of fines of which is 20 decillion dollars. So it’s 10 with 36 zeros. It’s amazing. And moreover, about this case, Alphabet did not communicate with the state officials, with journalists, with investors, with claimants on the resolving of this issue. And I think that this ignorance on the opinion of Russian media companies, of Russian government, of the government of any other country who has not so much bargaining power to set rules on the internet is what we need to concentrate about on this forum and in the future, because we need to somehow shift the market position of the big tech. Not to ban them, but to make some rules for them. Because if we do not make some rules for them, they will do anything and everything, and we will not have any opportunity to somehow stop them in the future. So, thank you for your attention. I hope you enjoyed my presentation, and I hope you will have some questions afterwards.

Alim: Thank you so much, Alexandra. It was very interesting to hear about the experience of fighting with Google, Alphabet, and other big tech giants in order to keep them at bay, to keep them in check and control, obviously. It’s necessary when we talk about digital divides and the security of the global South, the avoidance in order to avoid the new forms of digital neocolonialism. We have to ensure and enforce law and order. And speaking of global South, Ms. Sabatiko, you are an active member of youth community, and since recently, rather recently, a member of the IGF Multi-Stakeholder Advisory Group. I suppose it’s a great honor for us to have you partaking in this discussion. Moreover, you already were a MAG member when the Global Digital Compact was being accepted. Should, in your opinion, digital governance remain a domain of multi-stakeholder engagement? or it is in the interest of the world to increase government participation perhaps and the implementation of hard law practices? Where is the place of youth in all of this as well?

Ms. Sabatiko: Thank you very much, I hope you can hear me. And thank you so much for the kind introduction and it’s an honor to be part of this important discussion. So my intervention will be very short. Indeed the digital governance is at a critical juncture and for years the multi-stakeholder approach has been at the heart as well as the backbone of internet governance ecosystem bringing together diverse perspectives of different stakeholder groups such as private, civil society, the government and as well as the technical community. And so this model has been very effective as it reflects the very true nature of the internet which is decentralized, which is collaborative and global. However, as digital technologies are increasing shaping every aspect of our lives governments are becoming more involved and if we talk about for example issues such as cyber security, platform accountability data sovereignty and digital inequalities or the digital divide the attention of government is indeed needed. And so regulation in many cases is very important to ensure that public safety, fairness and equity is there. Yet too much government control or risk is that excluding key voices as well as the innovation. And so this is where the global digital compact or the GDC can really play a transformative role. First it offers a chance to redefine the rule of the game for digital governance by balancing these dynamics. And a truly effective GDC, it must uphold the principle of multistakeholderism, where every decisions are informed by the involvement of all actors, not just governments. But it should also provide a framework where governments can take responsibility in areas that require regulations, such as curbing online harms or ensuring data rights. Now, so when you talk about use, where does the voice of the young people fit into all of this? And I think for this, use are not just stakeholders in digital governance, but rather we are the agents of change. And young people are the largest groups of internet users, but we are also innovators, we are creators, and leaders of shaping the digital future. But in most of the discussions, young people are underrepresented when it comes to, let’s say, policymaking. And so, for example, in many discussions about the platform accountability or global standards, use voices are missing, even though these issues are very important for us. So the GDC can really play a very important role in this by integrating the voice of young people. And that might mean creating youth leadership, creating mentorship programs, or mentoring emerging voices, ensuring that youth-driven solutions are there. And beyond that, young people need to be meaningfully engaged in decision-making processes, not just as participants, but also as contributors to many key discussions as well. So in my view. I think we need both, which is multi-stakeholder approach that values collaboration and inclusivity, as well as government participation in order to address these global challenges. So, striking this balance is very important. And the GDC can pave the way for a more inclusive, as well as equitable and sustainable digital future where every voice matters, especially of those young people. Thank you.

Alim: Thank you very much for this interesting point of view, and especially your opinion on the GDC and the points which you mentioned about the youth. I wholeheartedly agree. Representing the Center for Global IT Cooperation, we also do a lot of work in terms of youth empowerment. And it is absolutely important not only to speak about the youth, not only to give youth a certain platform and make their voices heard. It’s important to engage youth, to make them integrally part of the process. So, in my view, we should fight all forms of discrimination, including ageism. And when it comes to youth, the perfect position of youth empowerment is when there is no division between youth and non-youth, when youth has become integral part of all policy-making processes. And speaking of youth especially, our center has a myriad of initiatives which are aimed at youth support. One of them is a youth digital forum, Youth Russian Internet Governance Forum. And that’s why I would like to present our next speaker, who is a director of the Center for Global IT Cooperation, Vadim Glushenko, who will elaborate on the activities we undertake, not only within the IGF format, but also in the broader expert community in Russia and globally. Vadim, please, the floor is yours.

Vadim Glushenko: Thank you. Can you hear me? Yeah, wonderful. Thank you very much, Alim, and hi, everyone. I hope my intervention is last but not least. Well, first, I would like to reflect on the GDC. As probably everyone here, we were full of hopes and enthusiastic. But the hopes are still the hopes. The Center for Global IT Cooperation, as Alim mentioned, has played its role. We collected a number of views and visions from the Russian expert community, like 40 of them, and sent a holistic, common position to the Office of the Tech Envoy. And since that time, we have been waiting. Well, that is why we are especially sensitive about the outcome. The very idea of the Global Digital Compact has a set of rules that outline the contours of the future Internet governance system, and set the vector of development of AI algorithms, which are based on the principles of security, equality, and non-discrimination, that is in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, is quite good. And, of course, it deserves attention. And definitely, this new Global Digital Compact will open a new era for both Internet governance and for digital governance. Well, still, as it often happens, the initial expectations from the GDC have been shattered by the real interests of the global digital platforms, large transnational businesses. The private sector is not at all interested in being under the tight control of governments or human rights NGOs or international oversight institutions. And today, we’ve heard an exciting story from Alexander about the fight against Google or fight with Google that proves this presumption. This is the first reason why the implementation of the GDC will meet objective difficulties. And the second reason lies in the different technological potential of the countries. It is difficult in the world of capitalist economy to call for equality between rich and poor, developed and technologically immature. Therefore, under the guise of the GDC provisions, I think we will see that the IT giants will be pushing their interests in countries and regions where they don’t have actually their own digital alternatives and opportunities to compete on equal grounds with those giants. In this regards, the real force that can counter digital neocolonialism is neither the GDC, nor the Pact for the Future. Nor any soft law acts, but I would say that the joint initiatives of the international expert community, as well as time-tested and proven effective digital solutions such as those we have heard about today. As we can see, the Russian IT industry has appeared to be strong and stress-resilient enough to survive unprecedented Western sanctions. At the end of the day, isn’t it cool not to depend on the global digital platforms? Russian IT solutions are not non-politicized and could be customized for any client individually. And CJITC is becoming an important player in the IT export sphere. Apart from our activities on the NRI track, on the IGF track, the Center is striving to assist IT companies in Russia and abroad to find each other and to establish partnerships so that trustworthy and reliable digital solutions are applied in the countries of the Global South to strengthen their digital sovereignty. And believe me, after years of harsh sanctions, we’ve learned something about digital sovereignty. For this purpose, we not just study global, regional and national IT markets to identify the demand and seek for potential partners, but also we’ve launched a dedicated tool, a marketplace of digital solutions. And it is not only about software. It’s about IT education and IT consulting. This portal also contains a detailed guide on how to launch an IT business in Russia for foreign citizens. You can learn more actually at our booth in the IJF village just behind this workshop room. To conclude, I’d like to share one idea that is literally in the air. I’ve heard it a number of times recently and even in the course of discussions at the IJF, both formal and informal. All of us are aware of how important the ESG principles are for business. And nothing and no one can stop digital transformation of… And the crucial… …cybersecurity in the ESG principles, making it a separate domain. At the end of the day, ESGC sounds not bad. Well, with this, I would like to ask you to stay tuned and let’s create a fair digital future together. Thank you.

Alim: Dear experts, listeners. Well, maybe we have some questions from the audience. In case there are some questions, I would like to ask you to raise your hand to our team speakers. General questions? No questions? Neither have I seen any in the chat. So, in that case, and I think our time is… Raining up dear experts listeners and contributors to the discussion. I wholeheartedly Thank you for this fruitful round of conversations and presentations we had I hope that our debates will Continue after the session and the ideas that were discussed here today will grow to become something bigger the future of the internet is in it in Inextricably linked to the future of humanity today the global south suffers the most from injustices famine wars ecological predicaments and inequality of access We can only create a fair digital order when we include all Stakeholders in internet governance and ensure a world order based upon the UN Charter and respect for human rights Thank you for your thoughts Inputs and your fairness. See you soon Thank you

Agreement Points

Challenges in implementing the Global Digital Compact

Milos Jovanovic

Saba Tiku Beyene

Vadim Glushenko

GDC can address digital divide and foster economic growth in developing countries

GDC must balance multistakeholder approach with government participation

GDC implementation faces resistance from tech giants and inequality between countries

The speakers agree that while the Global Digital Compact has potential benefits, its implementation faces significant challenges due to resistance from tech companies and the need to balance various stakeholder interests.

Importance of youth engagement in digital governance

Saba Tiku Beyene

Alim

Importance of integrating youth voices in decision-making processes

Youth-focused initiatives like Russian Internet Governance Forum

Both speakers emphasize the need to involve young people in digital governance processes and decision-making.

Similar Viewpoints

Both speakers express concerns about internet fragmentation and advocate for solutions that protect national interests and data sovereignty.

Olga Makarova

Semyon Tenyaev

Internet fragmentation risks due to geopolitical tensions and payment restrictions

Need for decentralized social networks to protect national data sovereignty

Both speakers highlight the challenges posed by large tech companies and the need for regulation or alternative solutions.

Alexandra Kozina

Vadim Glushenko

Recent antitrust cases and fines against major tech companies

GDC implementation faces resistance from tech giants and inequality between countries

Unexpected Consensus

Importance of local technological solutions

Semyon Tenyaev

Vadim Glushenko

Bogdan Chernyshov

Need for decentralized social networks to protect national data sovereignty

Russian IT industry has developed resilient solutions amid sanctions

Nuclear energy infrastructure enables digital connectivity in remote areas

Despite coming from different sectors, these speakers all emphasize the importance of developing local technological solutions to address specific needs and challenges, which is an unexpected area of consensus.

Overall Assessment

Summary

The main areas of agreement include the challenges in implementing the Global Digital Compact, the importance of youth engagement in digital governance, concerns about internet fragmentation and data sovereignty, and the need for local technological solutions.

Consensus level

There is a moderate level of consensus among the speakers on broad issues such as the challenges facing digital governance and the need for inclusive approaches. However, there are divergent views on specific solutions and approaches. This implies that while there is general agreement on the problems, finding universally accepted solutions remains a challenge in the field of internet governance.

Different Viewpoints

Approach to combating disinformation

Pavel Zakharov

Alexandra Kozina

Current approaches to fighting disinformation are ineffective and risk censorship

Recent antitrust cases and fines against major tech companies

Pavel Zakharov argues for a shift away from restrictions and punishments in combating disinformation, focusing instead on education and cooperation. In contrast, Alexandra Kozina highlights the need for stricter regulation and enforcement against tech companies, as evidenced by recent antitrust cases and fines.

Role of government in digital governance

Saba Tiku Beyene

Vadim Glushenko

GDC must balance multistakeholder approach with government participation

GDC implementation faces resistance from tech giants and inequality between countries

Saba Tiku Beyene advocates for a balance between multistakeholder approach and increased government participation in digital governance. Vadim Glushenko, however, emphasizes the challenges posed by tech giants’ resistance and inequality between countries, suggesting that government involvement may face significant obstacles.

Unexpected Differences

Approach to digital sovereignty

Semyon Tenyaev

Vadim Glushenko

Need for decentralized social networks to protect national data sovereignty

Russian IT industry has developed resilient solutions amid sanctions

While both speakers are from Russia, they present different approaches to digital sovereignty. Semyon Tenyaev advocates for a global, decentralized approach, while Vadim Glushenko emphasizes the development of national IT solutions in response to sanctions. This unexpected difference highlights the complexity of balancing national interests with global connectivity.

Overall Assessment

summary

The main areas of disagreement revolve around the approach to regulating tech companies, the role of government in digital governance, and strategies for achieving digital sovereignty and universal connectivity.

difference_level

The level of disagreement among speakers is moderate. While there are clear differences in approaches and priorities, there is also a shared recognition of the importance of addressing digital divides, ensuring data protection, and promoting inclusive digital governance. These disagreements reflect the complex and multifaceted nature of global digital challenges, highlighting the need for continued dialogue and collaboration to find effective solutions.

Partial Agreements

Both speakers agree on the importance of universal connectivity, but propose different solutions. Milos Jovanovic emphasizes affordable access, while Bogdan Chernyshov suggests using nuclear energy infrastructure to enable connectivity in remote areas.

Milos Jovanovic

Bogdan Chernyshov

Importance of affordable and universal connectivity

Nuclear energy infrastructure enables digital connectivity in remote areas

Both speakers agree on the need for localized approaches to digital services, but differ in their proposed solutions. Semyon Teneyev advocates for decentralized social networks, while Alexandra Kozina emphasizes the importance of tech giants adapting to local cultural and legal contexts.

Semyon Tenyaev

Alexandra Kozina

Need for decentralized social networks to protect national data sovereignty

Tech giants need to consider cultural differences and local laws when operating globally

Similar Viewpoints

Both speakers express concerns about internet fragmentation and advocate for solutions that protect national interests and data sovereignty.

Olga Makarova

Semyon Tenyaev

Internet fragmentation risks due to geopolitical tensions and payment restrictions

Need for decentralized social networks to protect national data sovereignty

Both speakers highlight the challenges posed by large tech companies and the need for regulation or alternative solutions.

Alexandra Kozina

Vadim Glushenko

Recent antitrust cases and fines against major tech companies

GDC implementation faces resistance from tech giants and inequality between countries

Key Takeaways

The Global Digital Compact (GDC) has potential to address digital divides and foster economic growth in developing countries, but faces challenges in implementation.

Digital sovereignty and internet fragmentation are growing concerns, especially for countries facing sanctions or geopolitical tensions.

Regulation of big tech companies is needed, but must balance innovation with government oversight and consider cultural/legal differences across countries.

Bridging the digital divide requires addressing issues like language barriers, connectivity, and infrastructure development.

Current approaches to combating disinformation may be ineffective and risk censorship; education and cooperation are suggested as alternatives.

Youth engagement is crucial in digital governance and policy-making processes.

Resolutions and Action Items

Develop certification procedures through ITU to allow carriers to pay for telecommunication and internet services without additional bank checks

Integrate youth voices more meaningfully in digital governance decision-making processes

Launch a marketplace of digital solutions to connect IT companies and strengthen digital sovereignty in Global South countries

Unresolved Issues

How to effectively implement the Global Digital Compact given resistance from tech giants and inequality between countries

How to balance multistakeholder approach with increased government participation in digital governance

How to address payment restrictions that risk internet fragmentation

How to effectively regulate big tech companies across different jurisdictions

How to combat disinformation without resorting to censorship

Suggested Compromises

Balance multistakeholder approach in internet governance with increased government participation where regulation is needed

Develop decentralized social networks that protect national data sovereignty while enabling global connectivity

Focus on education and cooperation to combat disinformation rather than imposing restrictions

We need to contribute as well. It’s another important factor. First share approach, which is a recent topic that is emerging in different forums. Of course, I don’t support this approach about having in general or requiring in general to the digital content developers to actually pay any kind of fee or whatever, but at the same time, it’s important to realize that some of these big players, not all of the players, not all of the digital players, but some of these big players are actually able to, and actually they are doing many things. They are actually contributing with investment, contributing with deployment of infrastructure, but not, I will say, not in a most controlled way.

speaker

Roberto Zambrana

reason

This comment introduces a nuanced perspective on the role of big tech companies in infrastructure development, acknowledging their contributions while also highlighting the need for more coordinated efforts.

impact

It shifted the conversation from a purely critical view of big tech to a more balanced discussion of their potential role in addressing digital divides.

I think that there is no way to define every fake. Even me as an expert, I cannot see all the fakes. I’ve catched a lot of times I see fake and then after a few days I remember this and oh, that was fake. But one thing is important and it’s knowledge. If you know something, it’s really hard to change your opinion about the thing. So the best way to make your armor against disinformation is to know more.

speaker

Pavel Zakharov

reason

This comment provides a realistic and pragmatic approach to dealing with misinformation, emphasizing education and critical thinking over purely technological solutions.

impact

It challenged the notion that fact-checking alone can solve the problem of misinformation and steered the discussion towards the importance of digital literacy.

Use are not just stakeholders in digital governance, but rather we are the agents of change. And young people are the largest groups of internet users, but we are also innovators, we are creators, and leaders of shaping the digital future. But in most of the discussions, young people are underrepresented when it comes to, let’s say, policymaking.

speaker

Saba Tiku Beyene

reason

This comment highlights the crucial role of youth in shaping digital governance and the need for their meaningful inclusion in decision-making processes.

impact

It brought attention to the importance of intergenerational collaboration in digital governance and emphasized the need for more inclusive policymaking processes.

Overall Assessment

These key comments shaped the discussion by introducing more nuanced perspectives on complex issues like the role of big tech, misinformation, and youth participation in digital governance. They moved the conversation beyond simplistic critiques or solutions, encouraging a more holistic and balanced approach to addressing challenges in the digital sphere. The discussion evolved from focusing solely on problems to exploring potential solutions and emphasizing the importance of diverse stakeholder involvement, particularly youth, in shaping the future of digital governance.

How can we bridge growing digital divides and avoid a new era of digital neocolonialism?

speaker

Vasily Zudin

explanation

This is a key challenge in ensuring equitable global digital development

How can we make fact-checking more effective in combating disinformation?

speaker

Pavel Zakharov

explanation

Current fact-checking efforts don’t seem to be working well enough to counter the spread of misinformation

How can we ensure affordable and universal connectivity, especially in Africa?

speaker

Milos Jovanovic

explanation

Lack of connectivity is a major barrier to digital inclusion in developing countries

How can we encourage investments in local digital ecosystems in developing countries?

speaker

Milos Jovanovic

explanation

This is important for nurturing local talent and creating technologies tailored to local needs

How can we foster international collaboration to ensure knowledge and technology flow freely while supporting growth rather than dependency?

speaker

Milos Jovanovic

explanation

This is crucial for balanced global digital development

How can we make regional and sub-regional multilateral organizations more effective in tackling digital challenges in the Global South?

speaker

Roberto Zambrana

explanation

These organizations could play a key role in addressing regional digital issues

How can we better integrate youth voices into digital governance and policymaking?

speaker

Saba Tiku Beyene

explanation

Young people are underrepresented in discussions about issues that greatly affect them

How can we strike a balance between multi-stakeholder engagement and increased government participation in digital governance?

speaker

Saba Tiku Beyene

explanation

This balance is crucial for addressing global digital challenges effectively

How can we prevent the Global Digital Compact from being co-opted by the interests of global digital platforms and large transnational businesses?

speaker

Vadim Glushenko

explanation

This is important to ensure the GDC serves its intended purpose of creating a fair digital order

How can countries with different technological potentials be brought to a more equal footing in the global digital economy?

speaker

Vadim Glushenko

explanation

This is crucial for avoiding digital neocolonialism and ensuring fair digital development