ABSTRACT
The end-to-end design is the "core" of the Internet. Changes to the Internet's original core will in turn threaten the net's potential everywhere—staunching the opportunity for innovation and creativity. Policy makers—especially those outside the United States—need to understand the importance of network architectural design to the innovation and creativity of the original net. A "commons" is a resource to which everyone within a relevant community has equal access. Core resources of the Internet were left in a "commons." It was this commons that induced the extraordinary innovation that the Internet has seen. Broad-based innovation may threaten the profits of some existing interests, but the social gains from this unpredictable growth will far outstrip the private losses—especially in nations just beginning to connect. By refusing to optimize the network for any single application or service, the Internet kept the network open to new innovation. The World Wide Web is perhaps the best example.
