Page 251 - Communication Cultural and Media Studies The Key Concepts

WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION

. determining which backbone is in use if they are under contract to
a certain carrier (which may slow down user connection speed);
. filtering data;
. preventing customers from developing home networks between
computer units.

Furthermore, by not carrying e-mail traffic from addresses assigned by
a different provider, ISPs can prevent the customer from using another
service simultaneously.
See also: Broadband, Internet

Further reading: Miller (2000)

WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION

The World Trade Organisation, or WTO, was formed out of the
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1994. GATT had
been in existence since the post-World War II period and consists of a
collection of contractual arrangements between consenting countries
intended to lower tariff barriers imposed on imported goods by states.
As GATT began to extend its attention to other aspects of trade
protectionism, its primarily voluntaristic dispute resolution processes
and limited scope were seen to require further means of ensuring
adherence to agreements. In contrast to its predecessor, the WTO is a
member organisation with a consistent set of rules intended to govern
all trade relations rather than a set of separate agreements. It is wider in
scope, applies to more countries and has greater force (Croome, 1999).
Including aspirants, the WTO membership numbers over 160, making
its influence and reach practically universal.
The mission of the WTO is to promote free trade and free markets.
By entering into free trade agreements, members must open their
markets to other signatories. As members agree to abide by its rules
and obligations when they join, the WTO acts a legal framework for
the processes of economic globalisation. WTO membership, it is
argued, is beneficial for less economically powerful and developing
countries in that it provides them with advantages that they may not
be able to negotiate through bilateral trading agreements. It is also
promoted as a defence against the activities of larger nations and
transnational corporations (Arup, 2000). However, free trade can
favour already industrialised nations who have reached a status of

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