The Internet Bill of Rights: A Way to Reconcile Natural Freedoms and Regulatory Needs?

Abstract

Within broad debates on freedom, security and human rights on the Internet – carried on during recent years in national and international fora – the proposal for the creation and adoption of a Bill of Rights for the Internet has been the subject of uneven attention and mixed reviews. Taking stock of the renewed interest in the proposal showed by the Committee on Civil Liberties of the European Parliament, this article analyses the current state of the Internet Bill of Rights (IBR) project. The analysis briefly retraces the history and main promoters of the IBR proposal, outlines the rationale and perspectives behind it, and debates its promises, limits and future challenges.