Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!ginosko!gem.mps.ohio-state.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!A.ISI.EDU!CERF
From: CERF@A.ISI.EDU
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip
Subject: Re: Remote database services ???
Message-ID: <[A.ISI.EDU]24-Sep-89.13:22:03.CERF>
Date: 24 Sep 89 17:22:00 GMT
References: <34890@apple.Apple.COM>
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The Internet
Lines: 32

Pat,

In principle, your view ought to be an easy one to support, but
access, usage and interconnection policy is complicated by the
fact that the Internet is, in many parts, subsidized by the U.S.
Government.  As a consequence, agencies who provide
infrastructure support have a fiscal responsibility to be sure
that the infrastructure resources are not abused for personal or
corporate gain.

The informal Federal Research Internet Coordinating Committee
(FRICC) members are working on policy statements to help guide us
(users and servers) in this matter.  As an example, it has been
permitted to put up links to commercial email carriers (such as
MCI Mail and CompuServe) as long as the carrier does not charge
the government for emitting traffic from the Internet into the
carrier's network.  The carrier is free to charge its users for
sending mail into the Internet.

The National Research and Education Network (NREN) is intended to
succeed the current Internet on a larger scale in size and in
capacity (eventually reaching 3 gigabits/sec on its trunk links
and capable of supporting as much as a gigabit between pairs of
hosts that need this kind of bandwidth).  It is the hope of the
NREN sponsors that the system will eventually be feasible as a
commercial offering and that direct government involvement in its
operation can be minimized and perhaps completely eliminated.

Finding suitable conditions under which commercial services can
be made accessible to the Internet community is of real interest.

Vint Cerf