RFC 8890: Why the Internet Must Prioritize End Users Over Other Stakeholders
RFC 8890 – The Internet is for End Users (2020)
As the author of RFC 8890, I argue that the IETF must ground its decisions in what benefits actual people, not just technical merit. Internet protocols inevitably carry political weight, affecting power dynamics and user rights. We cannot claim neutrality when our designs impact society; instead, we must explicitly favor end users to maintain the legitimacy and success of the global network.
The running code that results from our process inevitably has an impact beyond technical considerations, because the underlying decisions afford some uses while discouraging others.