ICANN

Remedies for Cybersquatting: New gTLD Domain Names

In the discussions proceeding the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) publishing The Management Of Internet Names And Addresses: Intellectual Property Issues (Final Report, April 30, 1999) that ultimately led to the ICANN implementing the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) (1999) commentators considered three remedies to combat cybersquatting: suspending, cancelling, and transferring infringing domain names. more

ICANN Must Simultaneously Reveal TLD and Second-Level Registration Rules

I outline two possible drawbacks with the idea of first revealing rules for the new proposed Top-Level Domains (TLDs) and then for second-level registrations. I propose a lottery process to initially allocate second-level domain names. A number of people have voiced concerns about the idea of automatically granting the winner of the TLD a monopoly power over second-level domain registrations. We should also be worried about the financial interest ICANN has in not providing the rules for the two-level registrations simultaneously. more

No Surprise: Verisign’s Shift on New gTLDs

Five years after ICANN approved the new gTLD policy in Paris, two years after it approved the implementation plan in Singapore, and a year after the application window closed and some concrete steps were taken toward delegation of new gTLDs, a series of scary-sounding "what if" scenarios have mysteriously taken over discussions at ICANN. From colliding names and failing life support systems to mass confusion and technological outages, the profusion of horror stories has rivaled the hype for the Y2K conversion, with about as much basis in fact. more

Changes in the ICANN Board’s Operational Activities

One of the more interesting developments in this new year is the proposed changes in how, or perhaps more accurately, when the ICANN Board will undertake its activities. Historically, the ICANN Board has held monthly teleconferences (Special Board Meetings), with the exception of those months when the ICANN Board meet in person as part of a regional meeting (Regular Board Meeting). Approximately five years ago, the ICANN Board also began holding bi-annual retreats as part of their regular business activities. Interestingly, the proposed 2010 agenda for the ICANN Board has only four proposed Special Meetings... more

Are Auctions the Last Resort to Determine gTLD Winners? I Vote Open Business Plan Competitions

I have been reading through the last gTLD applicant guidebook and have wondered whether all my efforts, traveling, attending all major music conference and lobbying come with any merit. How do you define a community? What is the difference between a dotGreece, dotGay or dotMusic community? ...Whether we like it or not, the point system is what ICANN has set up to determine the winners. If you were to ask me I would create a different method of scoring. It is one of open competition. more

A Case for Looking Before Leaping: The IANA Stewardship Proposal

In my comments on the draft Cross-Community Working Group (CWG) on Naming Related Functions proposal for the IANA transition, I expressed my overall support, albeit somewhat reserved, for the proposal... but with the ICG's deadline of January 15 having come and gone, and the informal deadline of January 31 looming for the revised proposal from the Names community to be submitted, I'd like to shed some light on what I believe the role and reasoning for some of the mechanisms identified by the CWG, specifically the Contract Co., to be. more

ICANN 48 in Buenos Aires: What Happened and What’s Next?

Last month, some of my colleagues at MarkMonitor and I traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina for ICANN 48. With the recent delegation and launch of the first new gTLDs, the atmosphere had an air of both excitement and anxiety. In my opinion, there is much to be done before brand owners should begin to feel comfortable in the post-new gTLD Internet environment, which brings a host of new challenges, as companies attempt to scale monitoring and enforcement to the new (huge) domain name space. more

Internet and the Telecommunication Acts of 1900

On his blog Bruce Schneier recently published a post called "Power and the Internet". An article that most people in the western world will agree with. Internet freedom against Internet safety and security, the powerful have a lot of power to wield and the rest is at best ad hoc organised or fairly powerless lobby organisations. So who is likely to win? Vested interests, he warns. more

Could Trump Administration Reverse ICANN Independency? ITIP Chief Weighs In

Could the Trump administration reverse the decision to give the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) autonomy from the U.S. Department of Commerce? more

ICANN’s NomCom 2-Stage (R)evolution

ICANN's Nominating Committee (NomCom) is both a strange animal and a precious resource. Having a committee charged with first recruiting, then selecting suitable candidates to hold key positions within ICANN is something that is often little, or even mis, understood. Within the ICANN community itself. By the very nature of its recruitment role, the NomCom has to remain secretive. About who the candidates are, at any rate. But that doesn't mean the rest of the NomCom's processes must remain so. more

ICANN Board Takes Steps to Launch Next Round of New gTLDs

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has adopteda 98 recommendations in the New gTLD subsequent procedures policy development process. This sets in motion the start of the implementation process for the next round of new generic top-level domains (gTLDs). more

DNSSEC Signed ROOT by 1 July 2010

Mehmet Akcin writes: As announced today as part of RIPE meeting in Lisbon, Portugal by Joe Abley, DNS Group Director at ICANN, and Matt Larson, Vice President of DNS Research at VeriSign, in their presentation (Page 25), DNSSEC for the root zone is proposed to be fully deployed by July 1, 2010. The Draft Timeline suggests Root zone being signed by December 1, 2009 while initially staying internal to ICANN and VeriSign. The incremental roll out of the signed root would then take place from January until July 2010. more

Senate Judiciary Leaders Ask New IP Czar to Facilitate ICANN-Focused Conversations

Daniel Marti was nominated to become the new White House "IP Czar" in August 2014 to replace Victoria Espinel. His predecessor, in yet another illustration of Washington's "revolving door" shuffling key individuals between the government and private sector, departed the post a year earlier to become head of BSA/The Software Alliance, the leading trade group for the software industry. more

ICANN 53 - Guaranteeing Accountability in Internet Governance

I recently attended the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers' (ICANN) 53rd meeting in Buenos Aires to further discuss the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) transition process. During the meeting, public and private Internet stakeholders made important strides on a transition timeline, accountability planning and future management of the Internet that supports global creativity and innovation. more

Informal Working Group Publish Report On New TLDs

In an interesting move several members of the ICANN community formed an "informal" Working Group to discuss the concept of "expressions of interest" in new Top-Level Domains (TLDs). This all happened very quickly, which is more or less the opposite to how most ICANN related activities progress. ...The report, which runs to about 11 pages, is concise and seems to have covered most of the areas of interest. more