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ALERTS From the Secretariat: New gTLD Registration Closed Today 29 March TAS Registration Deadline
by Benedetta Rossi March 30, 2012

March 30, 2012

Dear BC members, Please find below an announcement posted yesterday on the ICANN web site: http://www.icann.org/en/news/announcements/announcement-29mar12-en.htm 29 March 2012 29 March TAS Registration Deadline The window has closed for anyone planning to apply for a new gTLD to register and submit a TLD application request. As of 25 March there were 839 registered users in the TLD Application System. This number will be updated. Why can't registrations be submitted after 29 March, when applications are being accepted until 12 April? Registration in TAS is the step in the process that occurs before you apply for a TLD. As stated in the Applicant Guidebook and subsequent announcements, the 29 March deadline was put in place to ensure applicants have sufficient time before the deadline of 23:59 UTC on 12 April 2012 to submit an application, which includes the following steps (as of 29 March steps 1-2 had to be completed for all qualified applicants): Steps 1.Applicant completes TAS user account information (user profile and applicant profile) 2.Applicant completes a TLD application request 3.ICANN conducts the Legal Compliance check (see Applicant Guidebook section 1.2.1 -- Eligibility) 4.Applicant submits USD 5000 registration fee 5.ICANN confirms receipt of the USD 5000 registration fee 6.Applicant completes and submits the full application and remaining evaluation fee amount of USD 180000 7.ICANN confirms receipt of the USD 180000 registration fee Once ICANN completes Step 3 we strongly encourage applicants to promptly complete Step 4 for all open application requests. Since no one can predict how long it may take for ICANN to receive wire transfers from your bank, you might experience delays in obtaining access to the areas within TAS necessary to complete your TLD application(s). Bank delays and the up to 5 business days it might take ICANN to reconcile your fee will impact how much time remains for you to complete and submit your final application, submit your final USD 180000 evaluation fee, and for ICANN to confirm receipt of that fee. Both the completed application and final fee must be received by ICANN no later than 23:59 UTC on 12 April 2012. Changes to Your Accounts or Applications 29 March was also the last day during the registration and application submission period to request any changes to your applicant profile. If you have a change to your profile (for instance, a new point of contact, or an updated address) it will not be processed until the end of the Administrative Completeness Check. The Administrative Completeness Check begins when the application window closes and lasts for approximately 8 weeks. At the end of Administrative Completeness Check (the beginning of the Initial Evaluation period) change requests will once again be processed. Glen de Saint Géry GNSO Secretariat gnso.secretariat(a)gnso.icann.org <mailto:gnso.secretariat@gnso.icann.org> http://gnso.icann.org

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BC ANNOUNCEMENT OF PUBLIC COMMENT - .com Registry Agreement Renewal - Public comment period open to 26 April 2012
by Marilyn Cade March 28, 2012

March 28, 2012

In the Secretariat's absence, I am forwarding the recent public posting of the .com Registry Agreement Renewal for members awareness. If you have any requests to the Secretariat, she returns tomorrow. Marilyn Cade, BC Chair ============================================================================ http://www.icann.org/en/news/announcements/announcement-27mar12-en.htm .com Registry Agreement Renewal Executive SummaryICANN is posting today for public comment Verisign's proposed agreement for renewal of the 2006 .com Registry Agreement between ICANN and Verisign. This proposal is a result of discussions between ICANN and VeriSign, and will be considered by the ICANN Board after public comment. The current agreement will expire on 30 November 2012. Public comment may be submitted through April 26, 2012 and viewed at: http://www.icann.org/en/news/public-comment/com-renewal-27mar12-en.htmThis summary describes important aspects of the registry agreement renewal process, the content of the proposed agreement renewal, and certain background to the proposed agreement. This summary is accompanied by the "red line" version of the agreement and several documents that describe and summarize the proposal. Upcoming agreements due to be renewed in 2012 such as .biz, .info, .name and .org will follow a similar process.

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RE: Preference Amendments IGNORE AND DELETE
by Phil Corwin March 27, 2012

March 27, 2012

BC Members -- Please ignore and delete the e-mail I just sent you all by auto-mistake. Thank you. Philip S. Corwin, Founding Principal Virtualaw LLC 1155 F Street, NW Suite 1050 Washington, DC 20004 202-559-8597/Direct 202-559-8750/Fax 202-255-6172/cell "Luck is the residue of design" -- Branch Rickey

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Preference Amendments
by Phil Corwin March 27, 2012

March 27, 2012

Hi Jonathan. Just checking in to see where you're at with drafts of those preference amendments. Let me know. Thanks, Philip Philip S. Corwin, Founding Principal Virtualaw LLC 1155 F Street, NW Suite 1050 Washington, DC 20004 202-559-8597/Direct 202-559-8750/Fax 202-255-6172/cell "Luck is the residue of design" -- Branch Rickey

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FW: Reuters Story on ICANN
by Phil Corwin March 24, 2012

March 24, 2012

FYI-- http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/03/23/us-internet-icann-ethics-idUKBRE82… Web address controversy deepens after U.S. warning Fri, Mar 23 2012 By Georgina Prodhan<http://blogs.reuters.com/search/journalist.php?edition=uk&n=georgina.prodha…> LONDON (Reuters) - A controversial attempt to expand Internet addresses far beyond the likes of .com, .org or .net has provoked a rare threat from the U.S. government to withdraw a key license from the body that runs the Internet's core functions. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) depends on its U.S. government contract to coordinate the unique addresses that tell computers where to find each other, without which the global Internet could not function. But this month the government warned that the non-profit body's rules against conflicts of interest were not strong enough and only temporarily extended ICANN's contract - which it has held since its formation in 1998 - instead of renewing it as many in the industry had expected. A failure to secure the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) contract would severely damage ICANN's ability to implement its address expansion program, the most radical move in the organization's history. The conflict of interest concerns arise from the fact that some past and present board members stand to benefit financially from the liberalization of Web addresses through ties to organizations that make money from registering new domain names or consulting on the expansion. Currently, organizations are restricted to a couple of dozen so-called top-level domains, such as .com, .org or .net, or country code domains such as .co.uk. ICANN wants to enable brands, cities or firms seeking to build new Internet businesses to apply to own and run their own domains, for example .apple, .nyc or .gay, giving them more control over their Web presence and a greater choice of names. "Not to award ICANN the IANA contract would be to completely knock it off its foundations," said Philip Corwin, who is legal counsel for the Internet Commerce Association, an organization for domain name investors and developers. "ICANN needs that contract to have the authority they need to really make this program work." The contract has been renewed until September. A whole industry has already sprung up to take advantage of ICANN's initiative. One of those is Top Level Domain Holdings, a London-listed firm set up to acquire and operate the new domains, whose chairman, Peter Dengate Thrush, was chairman of ICANN when it approved the change. TLDH has already put in 40 applications and intends to submit more for domains including .miami and .music. BUZZ Many critics are skeptical as to whether ICANN will achieve its stated aim of boosting competition and innovation, pointing to previous experiments with the likes of .aero, .travel and .museum, which have gone largely unused. But convinced or not, hundreds of consumer brands feel forced to apply for their own domains - a costly and complex process that comes with obligations to actively operate the domain - fearing they will lose out to rivals if they do not. A three-month window will close on April 12, likely for years and possibly forever. A recent survey by Internet registry services company Afilias, which is applying for about 150 new domains on behalf of clients and already provides key infrastructure for .org, .info and .mobi, found considerable uncertainty about the process. Of 200 major consumer brands it surveyed in the United States and Britain, 53 percent were either not aware that they could participate in the process at all or did not know that the application window was open and when it would close. Of those who were aware, however, 54 percent of brands were in the process of applying, and only 6 percent said they definitely would not. "There's a buzz about this now," said non-executive Afilias director Jonathan Robinson. Others with less of a stake in the process call such behavior outright defensive. "Of the people that I'm talking to, the vast majority of those that are moving ahead to apply don't have a concrete business initiative in mind for how they will use the registry," said Jeff Ernst of technology analysis firm Forrester. "They're fearful of another organization getting their string, or they're fearful that another competitor will buy its own and get first-mover advantage in doing something strategic." Stuart Durham, European sales director of consultancy Melbourne IT, which is preparing about 100 applications for customers, says interest is rapidly increasing as the end of the window approaches. FINANCIAL INTERESTS Joshua S. Bourne, a managing partner and co-founder of FairWinds Partners, a consultancy that works with brands on their Internet strategy, said some of the world's biggest brands were refusing to apply. "I think we're going to be very surprised on May 1st when some of the world's biggest brands aren't included," he said. "They want to make a statement because they don't agree with the whole ICANN process, but in the end I think they'll regret it." Rod Beckstrom, ICANN's outgoing chief executive, told Reuters this week the expansion was going smoothly. "We're holding the course. There's not a single complaint about anything to do with the administration of the program." But at a major ICANN meeting earlier this month he warned it was time for the organization to tighten up its rules. "ICANN must be able to act for the public good while placing commercial and financial interests in their appropriate context. How can it do this if all top leadership is from the very domain name industry it is supposed to coordinate independently?" "Preserving ICANN's ability to act independently, in the public interest, is paramount to the future of the Internet and this institution," he said. (Reporting by Georgina Prodhan; Editing by Erica Billingham) (c) Thomson Reuters 2011. All rights reserved. Users Philip S. Corwin, Founding Principal Virtualaw LLC 1155 F Street, NW Suite 1050 Washington, DC 20004 202-559-8597/Direct 202-559-8750/Fax 202-255-6172/cell Twitter: @VlawDC "Luck is the residue of design" -- Branch Rickey ________________________________ No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com<http://www.avg.com> Version: 10.0.1424 / Virus Database: 2113/4891 - Release Date: 03/24/12

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ICANN News Alert -- Improving Global Engagement: ICANN Globalization Survey
by Marilyn Cade March 24, 2012

March 24, 2012

Dear BC membersIn our Secretariat's absence, I am forwarding the News Alert announcing the ICANN survey regarding ICANN's Globalization Survey. I am asked as a Chair of the BC to encourage you to take the survey. This is an ICANN survey. I did take the survey, so that I can advise you of the time commitment, which is at least 20 min. It was not pre-reviewed with the leadership of the organization. It allows you to 'skip' certain questions. Should you need more information on a particular topic, you might decide to skip questions. or show that in the optional open comment box. If you want to discuss the overall purpose of the survey, feel free to contact me. However, each individual respondent is asked to respond as an individual, so I will not be discussing responses. Merely trying to help to understand the purpose of the survey. Marilyn Cade, BC Chair News Alerthttp://www.icann.org/en/news/announcements/announcement-2-21mar12-en.h… Global Engagement: ICANN Globalization Survey21 March 2012ICANN published today a survey to solicit community input on improving its effectiveness as a global organization. ICANN has community participants and leaders from all regions of the world, and is seeking ways to make enhancements to its performance as a global organization.The feedback collected from the survey will help inform ICANN's strategy for improving its global engagement. By identifying the activities that are most important toward fully reflecting the global nature of ICANN's mission, it will also help to establish priorities for next steps.The survey is available in all of the UN languages, and feedback is encouraged from stakeholders in all regions.Take the survey: http://questionpro.com/t/AHB7OZM7LxThe survey is designed to:Help ICANN understand its relative strengths and challenges as a global participant;Evaluate ICANNs major organizational functions/processes and the extent to which they can be leveraged to improve ICANNs effectiveness and reputation globally; andAssist ICANN in prioritizing initiatives that will improve its effectiveness as a global organization.The survey results will be shared with the ICANN community, and additional opportunities will be made available to comment before any actions are formalized and implemented.The survey is open until 22 April 2012.Questions may be sent to participation(a)icann.org. Glen de Saint GéryGNSO Secretariatgnso.secretariat@gnso.icann.orghttp://gnso.icann.org

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Out of office
by Benedetta Rossi March 24, 2012

March 24, 2012

Dear BC Members, This is just to let you know I will be out of office until Thursday 29 March 2012. For any urgent queries Monday-Wednesday please contact Marilyn Cade or Chris Chaplow, otherwise I will get back to you via email on Thursday. Thank you, Kind regards Benedetta Rossi BC Secretariat Sent from my iPhone

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ALERTS From the Secretariat: Proposed Agenda for the Special GNSO Council Meeting 26 March 2012 at 16:00 UTC
by Benedetta Rossi March 22, 2012

March 22, 2012

Dear BC Members, Please find below the proposed agenda for the Special GNSO Council Meeting scheduled for Monday 26 March 2012. Kind Regards, Benedetta Rossi BC Secretariat https://community.icann.org/display/gnsobc/Home www.bizconst.org bc-secretariat(a)icann.org Proposed Agenda for the Special GNSO Council Meeting 26 March 2012 http://gnso.icann.org/meetings/agenda-council-26mar12-en.htm The Agenda posted on the *Wiki page* usually has the latest updates: https://community.icann.org/display/gnsocouncilmeetings/Agenda+26+March+2012 The*motions* can be found on page: https://community.icann.org/display/gnsocouncilmeetings/Motions+26+March+20… Note that this agenda may be updated as more information becomes available so interested parties are encouraged to periodically check for the latest updates on the GNSO Council workspace. <https://community.icann.org/display/gnsocouncilmeetings/Home> This agenda was established according to the GNSO Council Operating Procedures approved 22 September 2011 for the GNSO Council and updated. http://gnso.icann.org/council/gnso-operating-procedures-16dec11-en.pdf For convenience: * An excerpt of the ICANN Bylaws defining the voting thresholds is provided in Appendix 1 at the end of this agenda. * An excerpt from the Council Operating Procedures defining the absentee voting procedures is provided in Appendix 2 at the end of this agenda. _Meeting Times <http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?msg=Special+Council+Me…> _Coordinated Universal Time: 16:00 UTC 09:00 Los Angeles; 12:00 Washington DC; 17:00 London; 18:00 Paris; 01:00 Tokyo; 27 March 2012 05:00 Wellington Councilors should notify the GNSO Secretariat in advance if a dial out call is needed. *_Item 1: Administrative matters (10 minutes)_* 1.1Roll Call*_ _* 1.2 Statement of interest updates 1.3 Review/amend agenda *_Item 2: Red Cross and Olympic Committee names_* A GNSO Drafting Team is working on a charter to determine recommendations how to handle the protection of RC and IOC names at the top level for the current new gTLD application round to send to the ICANN Board. Council must now vote on whether to approve these recommendations. This motion was deferred from the San José Council meeting. Due to the severe time constraints involved in acting on the Drafting Team's recommendations, this motion is being considered today as an emergency item. https://community.icann.org/display/gnsocouncilmeetings/Motions+14+March+20… 2.1 Reading of the motion (Jeff Neuman) 2.2 Discussion 2.3 Vote *__* *_Item 3: Any Other Business (5 minutes)_* *Appendix 1: GNSO Council Voting Thresholds (ICANN Bylaws, Article X, Section 3)* 9. Except as otherwise specified in these Bylaws, Annex A hereto, or the GNSO Operating Procedures, the default threshold to pass a GNSO Council motion or other voting action requires a simple majority vote of each House. The voting thresholds described below shall apply to the following GNSO actions: 1. Create an Issues Report: requires an affirmative vote of more than 25% vote of each House or majority of one House; 2. Initiate a Policy Development Process (“PDP”) Within Scope (as described in Annex A): requires an affirmative vote of more than 33% of each House or more than 66% of one House; 3. Initiate a PDP Not Within Scope: requires an affirmative vote of more than 75% of one House and a majority of the other House (“GNSO Supermajority”); 4. Approve a PDP Recommendation Without a GNSO Supermajority: requires an affirmative vote of a majority of each House and further requires that one GNSO Council member representative of at least 3 of the 4 Stakeholder Groups supports the Recommendation; 5. Approve a PDP Recommendation With a GNSO Supermajority: requires an affirmative vote of a GNSO Supermajority; and 6. Approve a PDP Recommendation Imposing New Obligations on Certain Contracting Parties: where an ICANN contract provision specifies that “a two-thirds vote of the council” demonstrates the presence of a consensus, the GNSO Supermajority vote threshold will have to be met or exceeded with respect to any contracting party affected by such contract provision. *Appendix 2: Absentee Voting Procedures (GNSO Operating Procedures 4.4 <http://gnso.icann.org/council/gnso-operating-procedures-22sep11-en.pdf>) * 4.4.1 Applicability Absentee voting is permitted for the following limited number of Council motions or measures. a. Initiate a Policy Development Process (PDP); b. Approve a PDP recommendation; c. Recommend amendments to the GNSO Operating Procedures (GOP) or ICANN Bylaws; d. Fill a Council position open for election. 4.4.2 Absentee ballots, when permitted, must be submitted within the announced time limit, which shall be 72 hours from the meeting‟s adjournment. In exceptional circumstances,announced at the time of the vote, the Chair may reduce this time to 24 hours or extend the time to 7 calendar days, provided such amendment is verbally confirmed by all Vice-Chairs present. 4.4.3 The GNSO Secretariat will administer, record, and tabulate absentee votes according to these procedures and will provide reasonable means for transmitting and authenticating absentee ballots, which could include voting by telephone, e- mail, web-based interface, or other technologies as may become available. 4.4.4 Absentee balloting does not affect quorum requirements. (There must be a quorum for the meeting in which the vote is initiated.) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Local time between March & October (Summer in the NORTHERN hemisphere ) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reference (Coordinated Universal Time) UTC 16:00 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- California, USA (PST <http://www.timeanddate.com/library/abbreviations/timezones/na/pst.html>) UTC-8+1DST 09:00 New York/Washington DC, USA (EST) UTC-5+1DST 12:00 Buenos Aires, Argentina (ART <http://www.timeanddate.com/library/abbreviations/timezones/sa/art.html>) UTC-3+0DST 13:00 Montevideo, Uruguay (UYST <http://www.timeanddate.com/library/abbreviations/timezones/sa/uyst.html>) UTC-3+0DST 13:00 London, United Kingdom (BST) UTC+0DST 17:00 Abuja,Nigeria (WAT <http://www.timeanddate.com/library/abbreviations/timezones/africa/wat.html>) UTC+1+0DST 17:00 Tunis, Tunisia (CET) UTC+1+0DST 17:00 Bonn, Germany (CET) UTC+1+0DST 18:00 Paris, France (CET) UTC+1+0DST 18:00 Ramat Hasharon, Israel(IST <http://www.timeanddate.com/library/abbreviations/timezones/asia/ist-israel.…>) UTC+2+0DST 18:00 Karachi, Pakistan (PKT <http://www.timeanddate.com/library/abbreviations/timezones/asia/pkt.html> ) UTC+5+0DST 21:00 Hong Kong (HKT <http://www.timeanddate.com/library/abbreviations/timezones/asia/hkt.html>) UTC+8+0DST 00:00 next day Tokyo, Japan (JST <http://www.timeanddate.com/library/abbreviations/timezones/asia/jst.html>) UTC+9+0DST 01:00 next day Wellington, New Zealand (NZDT <http://www.timeanddate.com/library/abbreviations/timezones/pacific/nzdt.html> ) UTC+12+1DST 05:00 next day ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The DST starts/ends on last Sunday of October 2012, 2:00 or 3:00 local time (with exceptions) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For other places see http://www.timeanddate.com Glen de Saint Géry GNSO Secretariat gnso.secretariat(a)gnso.icann.org <mailto:gnso.secretariat@gnso.icann.org> http://gnso.icann.org

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BC Whois Policy Review Team Draft Report Comments
by Elisa Cooper March 17, 2012

March 17, 2012

Please find attached the Business Constituency's (BC) comments on the WHOIS Policy Review Team Draft Report. The BC generally agrees in principle with most of the recommendations, however, the BC also believes that many of the recommendations do not go far enough to ensure that WHOIS is effective, meets legitimate needs of law enforcement, and promotes consumer trust. Please find in the attached document the BC's analysis and recommendations relative to each of the 20 recommendations made by the Review Team.

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Debrief call/to be announced
by Marilyn Cade March 16, 2012

March 16, 2012

Dear members, Thanks to all of you who were engaging, both remotely and in person in Costa Rica. Several of our new members were with us and that was a rare opportunity for all of us. Bene will schedule a debrief at a time slot of 11 am on Wed or Thursday of next week. Thanks to all of you who welcomed our newest members, and our possible applicants. More on a Chair's debrief after we see all resolutions! M

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