Dear Colleague:

For many years, some analysts have argued that the internet is fragmenting into intranets and realms with different approaches to regulation. We seek to ascertain if this is true by surveying if you (and others) see increasing barriers to the free flow of information that underpins the internet. 

The survey is designed to:

1. get a better understanding of how various governments define digital protectionism in the absence of shared global rules;

2. understand if there is a consensus regarding how and when a government can breach existing trade rules to restrict cross-border data flows;

3. ascertain if governments have developed strategies to investigate and remedy policies that may distort cross-border data flows; and

4. examine whether governments consider the potential effects of digital protectionism on global internet stability and digital rights.

Please find the survey at this link: https://goo.gl/forms/DRAEBWRY942wP6tE2

We hope you will take the survey—it should only take you 15 minutes and we look forward to hearing your perspective. If you have any questions, please contact Survey Director Thomas Struett at tstruett@gmail.com

For more information on the project, please see attached 3 pager.

With best regards,

Susan Ariel Aaronson, Ph.D., GWU and CIGI

https://elliott.gwu.edu/susan-aaronson

Hanna Norberg, Ph.D.

http://www.tradeeconomista.com/

Thomas Struett, Survey Director