Expanding Beyond Internet Governance
INTA’s Technology Transformation Committee
Technology Transformation Committee Chair Madhu Rewari describes how the new Committee is expanding beyond how the Internet effects IP rights to tackle AI, blockchain, quantum computing, and space technology.
As technology reshapes how brands are created, protected, enforced, and experienced, INTA’s former Internet Committee has evolved to meet a broader and more complex set of challenges.
Its new name—the Technology Transformation Committee—reflects more than a rebrand. It signals a fundamental expansion in scope.
The issues facing trademark owners, practitioners, and policymakers today extend far beyond traditional internet governance.
While domain names, online enforcement, and digital identity remain central concerns, the Committee’s work now also spans artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain and Web3, quantum computing, and even the implications of space technologies for intellectual property (IP).
In short, the focus is no longer only on how the internet affects IP rights, but on how technological transformation as a whole is redefining the IP landscape.
To reflect this wider mandate, the Committee is now structured around three subcommittees: the Internet Governance Subcommittee, the Technology Trends Subcommittee, and the Communications and Resources Subcommittee.
Together, they address both immediate challenges and longer-term developments shaping the future of IP practice and policy.
The Internet Governance Subcommittee remains deeply engaged with the institutions and systems that influence trust, accountability, and enforcement online.
Its work is organized across four key working groups.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) Working Group recently participated in the ICANN meeting in Mumbai and is monitoring developments related to the next round of the new generic top-level domain (gTLD) program.
It has also prepared an INTA Bulletin article for INTA members on the application process and its implications for IP owners, while developing a practical toolkit to help practitioners obtain domain name registrant information and pursue more effective online enforcement and takedown strategies.
The group continues to track ICANN public comment opportunities as well.
The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Working Group submitted a proposal in March to highlight possible thematic areas for the 2026 Internet Governance Forum. It includes a meeting focused on Trust and Accountability, Intellectual Property, and Digital Identity.
The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Working Group developed and submitted INTA’s 2026 proposal for the July WSIS meeting in Geneva, titled “From GenAI to Agentic Fraud: A Multi-stakeholder Approach to Building Global Digital Trust.”
WSIS and IGF are UN-directed programs that influence how governments regulate the digital world including the development of global governance principles and agreements.
"The issues facing trademark owners, practitioners, and policymakers today extend far beyond traditional Internet governance."
- Madhu Rewari | Anand and Anand (India)
Meanwhile, the Other Institutions Working Group is preparing a summary of the UN’s Global Digital Compact (GDC) to identify issues relevant to INTA members. It is also documenting challenges brand owners face when filing domain name complaints with certain country-code registrars, with the aim of engaging those registrars and encouraging more modern and streamlined complaint processes.
The Technology Trends Subcommittee serves as a forum for research and thought leadership on the technologies changing the online commercial experience and how IP professionals work today—and how they will work in the future.
Its focus includes blockchain and Web3, AI, quantum computing, and space. These subjects range from emerging issues to more established technologies, requiring both practical guidance and forward-looking analysis.
In areas such as Web3, the Subcommittee is exploring potential recommendations for policies on governance issues, alongside practice tools and resources for members. In faster-evolving areas, the emphasis is on education: helping INTA members understand unfamiliar technologies and their implications for IP rights and enforcement.
This work includes examining quantum computing and its potential impact on IP protection, security, and enforcement, as well as updating INTA’s 2022 report on IP in Space considering rapid growth in commercial space activity.
The Subcommittee is also continuing its work on AI advocacy principles for INTA. Building on the Board Resolution adopted in the prior term, the current effort seeks to move from foundational concepts toward a deeper and more developed set of AI-related principles for the Association’s consideration.
The Communications and Resources Subcommittee is contributing through a forthcoming paper, The Future of Technology Transformation on IP and Supporting Governance Frameworks.
The paper explores four broad themes: the evolving role of IP rights in an AI-driven innovation system; governance and liability challenges arising from cross-border AI regulation; control of technological infrastructure; and the disruptive potential of technologies such as quantum computing and agentic AI.
Rather than predicting a single outcome, the paper is designed to help INTA members, practitioners, and policymakers think critically about where the IP landscape is heading—and how to prepare strategically for what comes next.
A highlight of the Committee’s work this year was yesterday's Annual Meeting session, Guardrails or Handcuffs? AI Regulation’s Impact on Brand Strategy, which examined the fast-evolving AI regulatory landscape and its impact on brand management.
As AI transforms content creation and customer engagement, brand professionals must navigate increasingly complex legal and ethical questions.
Panelists explored current regulations and emerging policy frameworks across key jurisdictions, with a focus on implications for brand protection, enforcement, and reputation.
As is evident from the above, the Committee’s objectives are both practical and strategic.
It aims to develop tools, guidance, submissions, and advocacy positions that help INTA members address immediate issues—from domain name abuse, Internet governance issues to AI governance—while also preparing the IP community for a future defined by accelerating technological change, fragmented governance frameworks, and new forms of risk and opportunity.
The future of IP will be shaped not by a single technology or policy debate, but by the interaction of many.
For INTA members, that means engaging not only with the challenges of today’s Internet, but also with the broader systems of trust, governance, innovation, and enforcement that will define the digital economy of tomorrow.
