Dear All:

I hope you are all doing fine.

During August, in addition to the monthly council meeting on August 21^st., an extraordinary meeting was held on August 7^th.

Extraordinary meeting on August 7^th., 2025

During that meeting the ccNSO Council approved support of the Review of Reviews CCG Charter, adopted criteria for nominees, agreed to appoint two candidates, and endorsed both the formation of a Selection Committee and the related timeline. The final selection was made on August 19^th. All resolutions were approved without objection.

The 2 selected candidates are: Annaliese Williams and Chris Disspain

Council meeting #220 August 21^st. 2025

Agenda and draft resolutions

Statements and responses

Some Highlights

1. Administrative Updates

Correspondence: Letters discussed regarding Review of Reviews, CSC coordination, and deferral of the 3rd CSC Effectiveness Review.

Completed Action Items:

·       The Secretariat published the adopted FY26–27 workplan, providing a roadmap for upcoming activities.

·       For the Board Seat 11 nomination process, the Secretariat published the resolution adjusting the voting procedure in the event of a single candidate.

·       The approval of IFRT recommendations was added to the Meeting #220 agenda, as requested.

·       Appointments to working groups and committees were formally communicated, enabling appointees to begin their roles immediately.

·       A note on proposed ICANN Bylaw and CSC Charter changes (introducing alternates and adjusting review timing) was circulated to gather Council feedback.

·       The Chair provided ongoing updates on the Review of Reviews charter and related matters.

·       The Secretariat ensured inclusion of the IANA IPR transfer decision on the Meeting #220 agenda.

Ongoing Action Items:

·   The Guidelines Review Committee (GRC) is considering whether to formalize Council voting periods by specifying clear opening and closing times for online votes.

·   The Council Chair, Peter Koch, and Luis Diego Espinoza (ccNSO appointees to the RSSAC GWG) are preparing the joint ccNSO–RSSAC session for ICANN84, which requires cross-community coordination.

 2. Updates

• Working Groups: Many groups are dormant or awaiting for ICANN84 sessions.
• ccPDP4-IDN: Still progressing slowly; caucus reconvening for validation processes.
• Review of Reviews: Charter adopted; 2 members appointed (Annaliese Williams, Chris Disspain). Concerns raised about limited volunteers.
• 360 Review: Completed; feedback given, with suggestions to improve timing of evaluations.
• Board Seat 11 Nomination: The only candidate is Patricio Poblete (current holder), moving forward with due diligence; no election required but a Q&A session will take place during ICANN84.
• Website Redesign: Expected launch in December 2025.

3. Finance WG2 Final Report & Adoption

The Finance Working Group 2 (Finance WG2) delivered its final report on August 15^th., 2025, after 9 months of work, consultations during ICANN81–83, and a survey, and a July 2025 public comment period.

Main findings & proposals:

• Updated cost model sets expected ccTLD contribution at USD 3.6 million (previously USD 3.5M).
• No major structural changes; voluntary principle reaffirmed.
• New banded model introduces three additional lower tiers for smaller ccTLDs, maintaining a range of USD 500 to USD 225,000.
• Addressing discrepancies between expected and actual contributions requires segmented, personalized engagement by ICANN, acknowledging the diversity of ccTLDs (size, governance, budget cycles).
• Emphasis on transparency, outreach, and trust-building as motivators.

 

Council Decision:

The Council adopted the new 2025 Principles and Banded Model, requested the Chair to share the report with ICANN’s CEO, while recommending a more segmented outreach approach, instructed the Secretariat to replace the 2013 Guideline with the updated 2025 version, and confirmed that the Working Group would be formally closed seven days after the resolution’s publication.

4. Other Major Decisions

Approval of IFRT2 Recommendations:
The Council approved two recommendations from the 2^nd. IANA Function Review Team (IFRT2), both requiring changes to the IANA Naming Function Contract:

1. Remove policy details from the contract.
2. Identify and point to the appropriate policy authority for DNSSEC.
   These recommendations were published for public comment earlier in 2025 and received no objections. Approval was unanimous, ensuring alignment with ICANN Bylaws requirements for supermajority support.

 

Transfer of IANA Intellectual Property Rights:
The Council endorsed the transfer of stewardship of the IANA-related intellectual property (trademarks and domain names) from the IETF Trust to the newly created IETF Intellectual Property Management Corporation (IPMC).

The Council agreed to support the transfer of stewardship of the IANA intellectual property rights from the IETF Trust to the newly created IETF Intellectual Property Management Corporation (IPMC). This change was described as purely legal and technical, without altering any accountability mechanisms. The decision followed the advice of the ccNSO appointee to the Community Coordination Group (CCG), and it was confirmed that the transfer would become effective seven days after publication, with the ccNSO Secretariat tasked with notifying the appointee.

Root Server System Governance (RSS GWG):

A new Council statement procedure was initiated to provide ccNSO input on the draft governance structure for the Root Server System.

A drafting team, supported by ccNSO-appointed members Peter Koch and Luis Diego Espinoza, will prepare the Council’s statement on the draft Root Server System Governance Structure. The statement is expected before next Council Meeting 221 in September 2025.

Rescheduling of Committee Reviews:
The Council approved an updated timeline for the review of all ccNSO committees, which had been delayed. The first review (MPC) will now begin in September 2025, with other committees shifted by six months.

The Secretariat will update the ccNSO workplan and seek at least three volunteers who have not previously been involved in the committees under review. The revised timeline extends through 2030 and includes reviews of the IGLC, GRC, UAC, TLD-Ops, SOPC, Tech WG, OMC, and DASC.

Appointments to Working Groups and Committees:
The Council confirmed new appointments to several groups, adding Lucien Castex (.fr) and Fatma Demirel (.tr) to the IGLC, Sarah Gooch (.uk) to the SOPC, and Fatma Demirel (.tr) to the DASC. These appointments take effect immediately, and the Secretariat will coordinate their integration into the respective groups.

Customer Standing Committee (CSC) related Matters:

 

Membership Selection

The Customer Standing Committee (CSC) is composed of members appointed by both the RySG and the ccNSO, with voting rights, while liaisons do not hold voting power.

The proposed slate of members includes:

 

Pablo Rodriguez and Maarten Simon (ccNSO) as full members, Erwin Lansing (ccNSO) as alternate.

Nick Wilhelm and Gordon Dick (Nominet, RySG) as RySG appointees.

The next step is the approval of the full slate by both the ccNSO and GNSO Councils in September 2025. While the ccNSO has mandated a selection committee to oversee this process, the GNSO will address it through its consent agenda. Once approved, the new term will officially begin on 1 October 2025.

Bylaw and Charter Updates

The Second CSC Effectiveness Review produced three main recommendations:

1. Conduct a full SLA review; amended procedures will be published shortly, and the CSC, together with IANA, will review the 46 SLAs agreed upon during the transition.
2. Adjust the frequency of CSC effectiveness reviews to take place five years after the previous review, requiring changes to both ICANN Bylaws and the CSC Charter.
3. Introduce alternates formally, which also necessitates updates to the Bylaws and CSC Charter. Draft language is currently being developed by ICANN Legal and will be shared by the next Council meeting.

 

Both the ccNSO and GNSO Councils will need to approve these updates once finalized.

 

5. ICANN84 - Dublin

The draft block schedule was presented and included a Disaster Recovery session, GRC workshop, and ccTLD News session.

 

Thank you for reading.

If you have any questions or topics you would like to have more information, please let me know and I will be happy to provide it.

Have a nice week. 

Kindest Regards,