For your information. [cid:image001.jpg@01D3FC1D.ED5973B0] 4 June 2018 Greetings, The ICANN Global Domains Division (GDD) Services & Engagement team would like to highlight some recent, more notable, community-impacting activities and projects below. We are preparing for the ICANN62 Policy Forum<https://meetings.icann.org/en/panamacity62> in Panama City, Panama and look forward to your participation. New & Noteworthy Temporary Specification for gTLD Registration Data The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was adopted by the European Union (EU) in April 2016 and took full effect on 25 May 2018. On 17 May 2018, ICANN published the Temporary Specification for gTLD Registration Data<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/gtld-registration-data-specs-en> (Temporary Specification). This Temporary Specification establishes temporary requirements to allow ICANN and gTLD registry operators and registrars to continue to comply with existing ICANN contractual requirements and community-developed policies in light of the GDPR. The Temporary Specification applies to all of ICANN’s contracted parties and is now in effect as of 25 May 2018. GDPR and Temporary Specification Webinar To offer further guidance and to learn how your organization may be affected by the Temporary Specification, we have scheduled a one-hour, interactive webinar on 6 June 2018. This will be a live webinar, held in English with live interpretation in Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, and Spanish, and we encourage you to email your questions ahead of time to globalsupport@icann.org<mailto:globalsupport@icann.org> with “GDD Temp Spec Webinar” in the email’s subject line. A recording of the webinar will be posted as soon as possible on icann.org<http://icann.org>. Webinar Details & How to Attend Date: 6 June 2018 Time: 16:00 - 17:00 UTC (click here<https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?msg=NSp+Roadmap+for+Re...> to view time zone converter) Join via Adobe Connect meeting here<https://participate.icann.org/tempspec06june2018> View dial-in information here<https://www.myrcplus.com/cnums.asp?bwebid=8369444&ppc=8021705257&num=1-605-4...> Participant Code: 802 170 5257 Contracted Parties Encouraged to Prepare for RDAP As indicated in Section 1 of Appendix A<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/gtld-registration-data-specs-en/#appen...> of the Temporary Specification for gTLD Registration Data<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/gtld-registration-data-specs-en> (Temporary Specification), the ICANN organization intends to invoke the requirements in the registry and registrar agreements for implementation of the Registration Data Access Protocol<https://www.icann.org/rdap> (RDAP) service. Currently, several contracted parties are participating in an RDAP pilot program<https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2017-09-05-en> to gain operational experience with RDAP and to define the appropriate operating profile(s) for the service. This pilot program is available to all community members. ICANN urges all registries and registrars to begin preparing to operate an RDAP service as the technical development of the service may take several months. Please see the RDAP page<https://www.icann.org/rdap> for more information. Privacy Policy Notification to Contracted Parties On Friday, 25 May 2018, the ICANN org updated its privacy policies and certain website terms of service to provide greater transparency, promote simplification, and align with recent changes in privacy laws applicable to ICANN org under the GDPR. To learn more, please visit https://www.icann.org/privacy. 2018 GDD Industry Summit The fourth annual Global Domains Division Industry Summit<https://www.icann.org/gddsummit> was held in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, from 14-17 May. Over 400 stakeholders attended from 32 countries. The primary purpose of the summit is to provide a forum for ICANN’s contracted parties to discuss issues of mutual interest and importance, share best practices, and meet one-on-one with members of the ICANN org. This year, a multiple track format was added with one track dedicated to technical operations. The ICANN org is currently scouting an appropriate location in the Asia-Pacific region for the 2019 summit. In 2020, the GDD Industry Summit will be held in Europe. Domain Name Marketplace Indicators ICANN org concluded its assessment of the draft V1.0 indicator schema, jointly developed with the project Advisory Panel, for all vendor proposals received. The project was awarded to ZookNIC, Inc<http://www.zooknic.com/>. In April, the project team presented its proposed design approach and methodology to the Advisory Panel. The schema evaluation effort will conclude by the end of August 2018. Upon completion of the evaluation, ICANN org intends to procure the external data sources necessary to finalize the V1.0 Indicators for publication prior to the end of the calendar year. Final Proposed Draft Version 4.0 of the IDN Guidelines Now Published The Internationalized Domain Name (IDN) Implementation Guidelines<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/implementation-guidelines-2012-02-25-e...> relate to IDN registration policies and practices and are designed to minimize the risk of cybersquatting and consumer confusion. Once approved by the ICANN Board, these guidelines are contractually binding for most gTLD registries and registrars offering IDN registrations. After multiple public consultations and review of current IDN Guidelines version 3.0<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/idn-guidelines-2011-09-02-en>, the IDN Guidelines Working Group<https://community.icann.org/display/IDN/IDN+Implementation+Guidelines> has published<https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2018-05-10-en> the updated Final Proposed Draft version 4.0<https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/idn-guidelines-10may18-en.pdf> of the IDN Guidelines. This draft is pending approval from the ICANN Board of Directors. After approval, version 4.0 of the guidelines will become applicable to the relevant registries and registrars. Contracted Parties Satisfaction Survey In April 2018, the annual contracted parties satisfaction survey concluded. The objective of this survey was to understand and track feedback on the GDD’s work with contracted parties on an annual basis, based on the following dimensions: integrity, dependability, competence, commitment, and satisfaction. The published results<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/metrics-gdd-2015-01-30-en> include a slide presentation with aggregated answers to each of the 12 survey questions and an executive summary. Naming Services Portal Terms of Use On 11 May 2018, changes to the Naming Services portal’s Terms of Use were deployed. Users who have not yet activated their accounts received an activation email. Please activate your account as soon as possible. For additional information regarding the features and functionality of the portal, please visit the Registry Resources<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/registry-resources-2017-09-22-en> or Naming Services portal for Registrars<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/nsp-registrars-2018-03-26-en> pages on icann.org<http://icann.org>. These pages include webinar recordings, user guides, and additional resources. Please email globalsupport@icann.org<mailto:globalsupport@icann.org> or contact your engagement manager with any questions. ICANN to Publish Semi-Annual Report on WHOIS Accuracy In mid-June, the ICANN org will publish the Phase 2 Cycle 6 WHOIS Accuracy Reporting System (ARS) Report. This report is a follow-up to previous ARS reports which have been published semi-annually since December 2015 and explores the syntax and operability accuracy of WHOIS records in gTLDs in light of the requirements of the 2009 and 2013 Registrar Accreditation Agreements (RAAs). It also examines the leading types of nonconformance, trends, and comparisons of WHOIS accuracy across gTLD types, ICANN regions, and RAA versions. Additional information about the project is available at whois.icann.org/whoisars<http://whois.icann.org/whoisars>. ICANN Finance Department to Annually Publish Tax Residency Certificate Effective this year and annually thereafter, the ICANN org will publish<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/payments-2012-02-25-en>: (1) the lCANN certification letter stating it is a tax resident of United States; and (2) Form 6166 - U.S. Tax Residency Certification for the relevant year. We expect the certificates from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service will be published annually by ICANN org in the month of March. Tax residency forms for the years 2016, 2017 and 2018 are available on the ICANN Billing and Payments page<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/payments-2012-02-25-en>. If you have questions, please submit a general inquiry case via the Naming Service portal or email globalsupport@icann.org<mailto:globalsupport@icann.org>. The 2018 Contractual Compliance Quarter One Performance Report In March 2018, the ICANN org published a blog<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/compliance-reports-2018> on Enhancing Transparency in Contractual Compliance. As described in the report and blog<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/compliance-reports-2018>, Contractual Compliance completed its work on enhanced metrics and performance reports<https://features.icann.org/compliance>. Contractual Compliance team members will be attending the ICANN62 Policy Forum and available for a limited number of one-on-one sessions with contracted parties, which can be requested by emailing compliance@icann.org<mailto:compliance@icann.org>. Policy Implementation Updates Protection of IGO and INGO Identifiers for All gTLDs On 16 January 2018, the Implementation of the Protection of IGO and INGO Identifiers for all gTLDs Policy was published<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/igo-ingo-protection-policy-2018-01-16-...>. Contracted parties have until 1 August 2018 to complete implementation of the new requirements for specified names of IGOs, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement (RCRC). For INGOs, the implementation period will be 12 months from the release of the INGO Claims Systems Specification, which is currently under development. Thick WHOIS Transition Consensus Policy On 13 May 2018, the ICANN Board passed a Resolution<https://www.icann.org/resources/board-material/resolutions-2018-05-13-en#1.e> to defer contractual compliance enforcement of the Thick WHOIS transition policy in consideration of the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). ICANN Contractual Compliance will defer enforcing the following milestones until the dates listed below: • 30 November 2018: The registry operator must begin accepting Thick WHOIS data from registrars for existing registrations in .COM, .NET and .JOBS. • By 30 April 2019: All registrars must send Thick WHOIS data to the registry operator for all new registrations in .COM, .NET and .JOBS. • By 31 January 2020: All registrars are required to complete the transition to Thick WHOIS data for all registrations in .COM, .NET and .JOBS. For more information, please refer to the published Thick WHOIS Transition Policy available here<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/thick-whois-transition-policy-2017-02-...>. Privacy/Proxy Service Provider Accreditation Program ICANN org continues to work with the volunteer Implementation Review Team (IRT) on implementing the generic names supporting organization’s (GNSO) recommendations for a proxy/privacy service provider accreditation<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/ppsai-2016-08-18-en> program. The ICANN org received a request from the RrSG on 4 May 2018<https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/correspondence/bunton-to-atallah-04may...> to pause the IRT’s work, and a communication opposing this from the Coalition for Online Accountability<https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/correspondence/marks-metalitz-to-atall...> on 10 May 2018. These requests are currently under consideration. Registrars Naming Services Portal – Registrar ICANN recently launched the Naming Services portal for Registrars, an application built to streamline the way registrars conduct business with the ICANN org. This recent launch is a step towards in making the Naming Services portal the primary system of record and replacing legacy systems. As part of this release, all registrar primary contacts now have access to the portal with the ability to view the compliance tickets for the relevant IANA IDs. The ICANN org is continuing to work with a registrar portal planning group to gather input on the future feature enhancements to the portal. Webinar Announcement: Naming Services Portal Roadmap ICANN org will hold a webinar scheduled on 13 June 2018 to discuss the Naming Service portal for registrars, its current capabilities, and the roadmap for future releases. Participants have an opportunity to provide feedback and ask questions directly from the product team. A recording of the webinar will be made available following the session. Webinar Details & How to Attend Date: 13 June 2018 Time: 14:00 - 15:00 UTC (click here<https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?msg=NSp+Roadmap+for+Re...> to view time zone converter) Join Via Adobe Connect<https://participate.icann.org/nspwebinar/> Via Dial-In Information<https://www.myrcplus.com/cnums.asp?bwebid=8369444&ppc=2897077927&num=1-605-4...> Participant Code: 289 707 7927 2013 Registrar Accreditation Agreement (RAA) Renewal The initial set of early adopters that executed the 2013 RAA are nearing the auto-renewal process. The steps for the RAA auto-renewal process are detailed here<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/renewing-2013-07-08-en>. Registrars who meet the criteria will have their agreements auto-renewed for a new five-year term of accreditation. Additional ICANN-designated Registrar Data Escrow Agent ICANN org announced<https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-3-2018-05-15-en> DENIC eG as an additional ICANN-designated Registrar Data Escrow Agent. Registrars wishing to change their escrow agent should follow the Registrar Data Escrow Agent Change<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/registrar-data-escrow-agent-change-201...> process. Registries New Registry Resources Available on icann.org<http://icann.org> One of the Registry Services & Engagement team’s goals in the coming year is to review and update the registry resources<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/registry-resources-2017-09-22-en> available on icann.org<http://icann.org>. We recently published the GDD Handbook<https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/gdd-ops-handbook-registry-operat...>, and the Registry Billing Frequently Asked Questions<https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/registry-operator-billing-faqs-3...>. If you have feedback or suggestions regarding registry resources, please submit a general inquiry via the Naming Services portal or email globalsupport@icann.org<mailto:globalsupport@icann.org>. Procedure for Community gTLD Change Requests The ICANN org and the Community gTLD Change Request Working Group discussed updates to the draft procedure based on the comments received during Public Comment<https://www.icann.org/public-comments/community-gtld-change-procedure-2018-0...> and finalized an updated version available here<https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/community-gtld-change-requests-procedu...>. The ICANN org is preparing to offer this service for community gTLD registry operators with an expected launch date in July 2018. Registry Service and Evaluation Policy (RSEP) Process Improvements Representatives from the Registries Stakeholder Group (RySG) and ICANN org are reviewing the RSEP submission and review process. The objective is to find ways to improve timelines from the initial RSEP request through ICANN approval while providing more clarity to registries in each stage of the process. Following a review of proposed updates to the operational process at the GDD Industry Summit in Richmond, British Columbia, the RySG will provide feedback to staff, and this will be discussed in more detail at ICANN62. We hope this information provides you with additional insight and transparency into our ongoing activities and look forward to your feedback. Best Regards, Cyrus Namazi Vice President, Domain Name Services & Industry Engagement ICANN Global Domains Division [cid:image001.jpg@01D3FC23.2C1C3F60]
