The Interplanetary Communications Network was established by the United Nations in the mid-twenty-first century to deal with the sheer volume of objects in Cis-Luna orbit. The number of satellites that were now in operation made this region very dangerous.
This organization would serve three primary purposes. First, it awarded contracts to companies that salvaged "space" junk. Second, it awarded high-earth orbit and Lagrange Point slots for orbiting facilities such as hotels, space stations, and power collectors. Third, it regulated space lane traffic for commercial and private entities.
Article Five implemented a very important change to the old space laws. It allowed non-governmental entities to profit from salvaging space debris. However, contracts to conduct these operations could only be awarded by the ICN. As a result, over the next ten years, nearly two dozen companies were granted these contracts.
Due to the number of companies racing to attract tourist into space,, Article Nine was ratified. It gave the ICN authority to grant slots to commercial enterprises seeking to place facilities in orbit around Earth, the Moon, and the points in between.
By the 2030s, two governments and three corporations had made commitments to setting up bases on the Moon. With the traffic that would result from these efforts, the ICN regulated and monitored the space lanes that would be used for transit. As the manned Mars missions began, the ICN expanded its role in creating space lanes from Earth to Mars and from the Moon to Mars. Within the next few years, dozens of space lanes were established across the inner solar system. By the 2060's, the ICN mapped out a transit network throughout the outer solar system. By century end, the ICN was reorganized and branded into the Interstellar Transit Board. It maintained the same responsibilities as before, but in an extra solar capacity.
The ITB has jurisdiction in every star system that has commercial enterprises present. A percentage of the fees collected are distributed to the host nation or corporation.