Rising China and Internet Governance: Multistakeholderism, Fragmentation and the Liberal Order in the Age of Digital Sovereignty

This book provides an account of the transformation of Chinese stakeholders’ engagement in Internet governance, from normative contestation to integration, and from isolation to an industrial leadership role. The book concludes that Chinese stakeholders are not seeking to fragment the Internet but are rather integrating in the existing global Internet governance mechanisms while adopting strong regulation domestically. This counters a widespread media (and academic) narrative on China as the promoter of an alternative Internet and/or an alternative model of Internet governance. These conclusions are reached through a mix of qualitative methods, including interviews with people involved first-hand in Internet governance, such as technologists engaged in the making of Internet and mobile connectivity standards.

Riccardo Nanni is Researcher in Data Governance at Fondazione Bruno Kessler’s Digital Commons Lab. He obtained a Ph.D. in International Relations (June 2022) from the Department of Political and Social Sciences of the University of Bologna (Italy). His Ph.D. thesis discussed the influence of Chinese public and private stakeholders in Internet governance, particularly the making and distribution of Internet and mobile connectivity standards.