Delegates from 193 countries are meeting in Dubai to discuss the future of the internet. They will be negotiating a new International Telecommunications Treaty - which has not been updated since 1988.
The main debate at the conference is over internet freedom. The US and Europe want less internet regulation, while countries like Russia and China are accused of wanting more.
But the possibly bigger question of who controls the internet is also in play. The US in particular is criticised for dominating the way the internet is run.
Since 1947 a UN body called the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has been in charge of international technical standards.
Delegates from 193 countries have regulated everything from radio frequencies to satellite orbits. Their mission is to make sure networks and technologies easily interconnect. But according to internet giant Google, the ITU could be about to take steps to reduce the free flow of information on the web.
| "There is a mood to change the governance structure of the internet from one that is multi-stakeholder system to one that is inter-governmental. And I think the fear is that the internet repression and censorship that is already going and the throttling of the speed of communication and widespread surveillance in certain countries will be legitimised if they change the system." - Richard Rogers, University of Amsterdam |
It says if proposals being heard at the ITU conference in Dubai are accepted, there will be an increase in censorship and national regulation.
But other countries censor content on the internet as well.
"There are concerns that this conference might result in some sort of regulation that may threaten the internet's freedom and individuals' ability to get information over the internet freely without getting extra regulations and censorship on the content."
- Ahmed Mansoor, a freedom of speech activist
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