(b) For more than 40 years I have combined academic curiosity with a commitment to practical solutions. In the Sixties and Seventies, this has been applied to Systems Analysis and Data Processing on mainframe computers. In the last two decades, my interests have shifted to media and communications, and thus have met the Internet.

As an academic, I have led several projects in these areas; the most recent publications from these projects are "Exploring the Limits – Europe's Changing Communication Environment", "Die Internet-Oekonomie – Strategien für die digitale Wirtschaft" ("E–conomics – Strategies for the Digital Marketplace" in English), and "Rundfunk Online". Responsibilities in university self-government currently include being the Dean of the Department of Political and Social Science. Currently, I am serving on the editorial boards of: Journal of Media Economics, InterMedia, The International Journal on Media Management.

Resulting from my academic work, I have frequently been invited as an expert consultant by state and national governments as well as by companies and organisations. Most recent obligations have included the role of an expert for the EU on the future multimedia labour market, and for the German government as an Expert for Modern Governance in the 21 century. As a Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the German Federal Regulatory Agency for Telecommunications and Postal Services I am familiar with practical policy issues of communication infrastructures.

The majority of the present and future members of the ICANN board have an admirable background in technical competence, and quite obviously a degree of sensitivity to more encompassing issues. My nomination intends to strengthen those other competencies and sensitivities of the board:
(1) the economic and social dimensions of Internet governance,
(2) the non-US, more specifically the European dimensions of Internet development, and
(3) encouraging and envigoring the democratic elements in ICANN's self-regulating structure.

I consider myself to be independent, but my work has put me intensely in touch with normal users (not just the frontier net community), with people in old an new economy companies, particularly with Internet start-up pioneers, and with visionaries and administrators of public policy. My personal bias is with academia, of course, but I know these other constituencies and I will try to make their issues relevant in ICANN's work, and this is why I look for support from different people in all of these various walks of life.

Self-government in practice is my intention for the European region. If elected, I will make sure that the open and democratic consultation process of ICANN's work is underpinned in Europe by a regular cooperation of those interested in shaping the future of our Internet. Some friends and colleagues have already offered their intellectual support, from academia (Thomas Hoeren, Herbert Kubicek), from business (Menno Harms, Joachim Sauter) and from the political sphere (Joerg Tauss). And looking at the remarkable list of remarkably able European candidates, I have reason to hope that in this case some of them would join the regular consultation process.