Preventing SDO monopolies solves fragmentation from strategic competition.

Ian Levy, “Get ready for the death of the global internet. It won’t be pretty,” WIRED, 01-29-2021, https://www.wired.com/story/internet-balkanisation-ian-levy/

In 2021, new alliances will form around the creation of indigenous and sovereign versions of the technology we use to communicate and manage modern life. We will see standards bodies fragment and supply chains and infrastructure redesigned to align with these new realities.

States will start to take more drastic action to ensure that their supply chains are protected, and that their sovereign “silicon-to-service” technology stacks are insulated from the actions of others and enforce their national values.

The global debate around 5G security has led to a position where we will likely see two independent camps moving forward, ostensibly led by the US and China. They are likely to develop the standard in slightly different ways, driven by national requirements and values. China will accelerate its “Made in China 2025” strategy to ensure it owns and builds critical technologies. As a result, other nations will have to decide which camp better serves their national interest, since the only companies that produce this technology are bound to those countries. This will establish a pattern which will be repeated across other critical technologies.

The multi-stakeholder approach to standards that ensures no one party has too much power will be more critical than ever to ensure that we can continue to do cybersecurity at scale. But just as important is ensuring that there is a diverse set of companies that can provide these technologies, and that we continue to have interoperability. The UK’s diversification strategy for telecoms is an example of the sort of intervention that will be needed. If we fail, the world will become less connected, less resilient and less secure.