ICANN

The 2026 String Similarity Guidelines: Automating the Mistakes of the Past

The draft String Similarity Evaluation Guidelines risk entrenching past failures of Internet governance. With opaque algorithms and no right of appeal, ICANN's credibility hangs on whether transparency and fairness are restored before final adoption. more

ICANN’s 52nd Meeting Kicks Off in Singapore

Singapore's Minister of Communications and Information, Dr. Yaacob bin Ibrahim, and former Senior Advisor to President Bill Clinton, Ira Magaziner, spoke to the success of the multistakeholder model of Internet governance during the Opening Ceremony of ICANN's 52nd public meeting today... more

GOP Lawmakers Say NTIA Violated Law in IANA Transition Plan

A number of Congressional Republicans today questioned National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) for apparent violation of federal law in using federal funds to relinquish U.S. oversight of the Internet. more

Internet Society Submits Comments on IANA Stewardship Transition Proposal

Internet Society submitted its comments today in response to the Call for Public Comment by the IANA Stewardship Transition Coordination Group. "The Internet Society has consistently advocated for the globalization of the IANA functions, said President and CEO Kathryn Brown in a related post today. "We firmly believe that the global community is ready now to assume this important stewardship role and that a successful completion of this process is a critical step in providing additional confidence in the collaborative and multistakeholder Internet governance model." more

Lawsuit Against IANA Transition Dropped

Four US states attorneys general have quietly thrown in the towel in their attempt to have the IANA transition blocked," reports Kevin Murphy this morning in Domain Incite. more

ICANN Needs to Tighten Director-Conflict Policies, Says CEO

ICANN needs to strengthen conflict-of-interest policies for its board of directors, said Rod Beckstrom, CEO, in his opening remarks during the organizations 43rd public meeting in San Jose, Costa Rica. "It is time to further tighten up the rules that have allowed perceived conflicts to exist within our board. ... ICANN must place commercial and financial interests in their appropriate context," said Beckstrom, who plans to step down in July. "How can it do this if all top leadership is from the very domain name industry it is supposed to coordinate independently?" more

ICANN Releases Call for Public Input for NTIA’s Stewardship Transition of IANA

On 8 April 2014, ICANN released the "Call for Public Input: Draft Proposal, Based on Initial Community Feedback, of the Principles and Mechanisms and the Process to Develop a Proposal to Transition NTIA's Stewardship of the IANA Functions." more

Harvard’s Berkman Center to Study ICANN’s Accountability and Transparency Review Process

The Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University announced today that it "will conduct an independent, exploratory study analyzing ICANN's decision-making processes and communications with stakeholders." The study is aimed at developing a framework and recommendations for understanding and improving ICANN's accountability and transparency. "The Berkman Center's final report will be made publicly available after ICANN's Accountability and Transparency Review Team has had the opportunity to utilize its findings in recommendations to the ICANN board." more

When Registry Power Detaches From Liability, It Detaches From Reality

IPv4 scarcity turned regional internet registries from clerks into gatekeepers of a valuable resource. Yet liability caps remain trivial, leaving powerful institutions with little accountability and incentives for conflict and structural breakdown ahead. more

What If IANA Transition Was Only a Mirage?

The U.S. government has long had a far-reaching control over the internet's technical center. What will happen now when ICANN's Board puts together a proposal on how to transfer responsibility for certain key functions within the domain name system to the internet community? Last week, ICANN had its 55th conference in Marrakech. The most important result of the meeting is that all parts of the so-called internet community approved that ICANN's Board will send a proposal to the U.S. National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) which suggests how to transfer responsibility for certain key functions within the domain name system to the internet community... more

Second Round of Initial Evaluations for New gTLDs

Mary Iqbal writes to report that ICANN has released the second round of Initial Evaluation Results on March 29. ICANN is currently reviewing new gTLD applications at a rate of 30 applications per week and has plans to increase that to 100 per week. more

For ICANN to Have a Future, It Needs to Take Human Rights Considerations Seriously

Despite previous attempts1 I think it is safe to say that the discussion about Human Rights in ICANN was, until recently, fairly dead, even taboo. Nowadays, there seems to be a renewed demand for ICANN to have a future, and it needs to take Human Rights considerations seriously. During the ICANN Cancun meeting, representatives from several stakeholder groups mentioned HR and how they might support ICANN by informing its policy-making processes. more

ICANN Is Violating Its Legal Agreements with the U.S. Government – Who’s Next?

In April, I published an article, The Multistakeholder Moment of Truth: Will Stakeholders Hold ICANN Accountable?, alerting stakeholders that ICANN is violating its legal agreements with the U.S. Government -- namely the InterNIC licensing agreement and merged Memorandum of Understanding. At that time, I warned that it is essential for stakeholders not to remain silent in the face of this transgression, "hoping that such behavior left unchecked will end of its own accord." more

Republicans Barreling Toward a September Showdown Over IANA Transition

Republicans gear up for fight against internet transition," Ashley Gold and Tony Romm reporting in the POLITICO today. more

Internet Society Urges Congress to Press Ahead with IANA Steward Transition

In a letter to key Congressional leaders, the Internet Society's CEO, Kathryn Brown, has urged Congress to allow the IANA stewardship transition to proceed without delay. The contract between the US Commerce Departments National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is set to expire on September 30. more