Hello All, Below is the text of the Board resolutions. There was a substantial amount of time spent discussing the various IDN-ccTLD items, so some other matters such as DNS-CERT, and UDRP only had brief discussions. The key decisions were: - approval for .info to offer one and two character domains - renewal of .pro registry agreement - Delegation of the .рф ("R.F.") domain representing the Russian Federation to Coordination Center for TLD RU - Delegation of the السعودية ("Al-Saudia") domain representing Saudi Arabia in Arabic to the Communications and Information Technology Commission - Delegation of the امارات ("Emarat") domain representing the United Arab Emirates to the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority - Delegation of the مصر ("Misr") domain representing Egypt to the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority - approval to allow both simplified and traditional versions of China .中国 (xn--fiqs8S) and .中國 (xn--fiqz9S) in the root (they now enter into the next step which is to approve allocating those strings to a specific ccTLD member); - approval to allow both simplified and traditional versions of Taiwan .台灣 (xn--kpry57d) and .台湾 (xn--kprw13d) in the root; I recommend reading the full resolutions with respect to the IDN-ccTLDs for China and Taiwan. IDN Variants remains a tricky area - and I recommend that relevant people with expertise in the GNSO also consider how they should be handled in the new gTLD process as well. Regards, Bruce Tonkin 1. Consent Agenda Resolution: Resolved, the following resolutions in this Consent Agenda are hereby approved: 1. .INFO Contract Amendment re One & Two Character Names ======================================================== Whereas, Afilias has submitted a request pursuant to ICANN's Registry Services Evaluation Policy to amend the .INFO Registry Agreements to allocate one and two-character domain names via a phased allocation process. Whereas, the proposed release of single and two-character domain names in .INFO would be consistent with the recommendations of the GNSO Reserved Names Working Group and other approvals to permit the release of one and two-character domain names. Whereas, ICANN has evaluated the proposed amendment to the .INFO Registry Agreement as new registry services pursuant to the Registry Services Evaluation Policy and has posted amendments for public comment and Board approval (http://www.icann.org/registries/rsep/). It is hereby RESOLVED (2010.04.22.01) that the .INFO amendment is approved, and the CEO and General Counsel are authorized to take such actions as appropriate to implement the amendments. 2. Redelegation – Tanzania (.TZ) ================================= Whereas, TZ is the ISO 3166-1 two-letter country-code designated for the United Republic of Tanzania, Whereas, ICANN has received a request for redelegation of .TZ to Tanzania Network Information Centre Limited; Whereas, ICANN has reviewed the request, and has determined that the proposed redelegation would be in the interests of the local and global Internet communities. It is hereby RESOLVED (2010.04.22.02), that the proposed redelegation of the .TZ domain to Tanzania Network Information Centre Limited is approved. 3. Approval of Recommendation from Compensation Committee regarding Paul Twomey's At Risk Component of Compensation as Senior President ========================================================================================= Whereas, on 30 September 2009, the ICANN Board granted to ICANN's CEO "the authority vested under the Consultant Services Agreement for setting milestones, evaluating performance against those milestones, and making payment to Argo Pacific for the Senior President, Dr. Paul Twomey's performance bonus, as the President and CEO reasonably determined, in his discretion." Whereas, the CEO has developed a proposal for payment to Argo Pacific for Senior President Dr. Paul Twomey's performance bonus for services provided under the Consultant Services Agreement. Resolved, (2010.04.22.03), the Board hereby adopts and ratifies the proposal for payment to Argo Pacific for the Senior President Dr. Paul Twomey's performance bonus under the Consultant Services Agreement between ICANN and Argo Pacific. 4. Renewal of DotPro Registry Agreement ======================================= Whereas, the Current Agreement is due to expire on 27 May 2010; Whereas, ICANN staff conducted good-faith negotiations with Registry Services Corporation, operator of the .PRO gTLD, for the renewal of their Registry Agreement; Whereas, on 9 March 2010, ICANN announced that negotiations with Registry Services Corporation had been successfully completed, and posted the Agreement for public comment http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-09mar10-en.htm; Whereas, the Board carefully considered the Agreement and finds that its approval would be beneficial for the whole Internet community; It is hereby RESOLVED, (2010.04.22.04), that the .PRO Registry Agreement is approved, and the CEO is authorized to take such actions as appropriate to implement the Agreement. 2. Main Board Meeting Resolutions ================================ 1. President's Report (For discussion only) 2. Delegation of IDN ccTLDs i. Delegation of the .рф (xn--p1ai)("R.F.") domain representing the Russian Federation to Coordination Center for TLD RU ========================================================================================== Whereas, the Russian Federation is a country currently listed in the ISO 3166-1 standard; Whereas, рф (xn--p1ai)("R.F.") is a string that has been deemed to appropriately represent the Russian Federation through the IDN Fast Track process. Whereas, ICANN has received a request for delegation of .рф (xn--p1ai)to Coordination Center for TLD RU. Whereas, ICANN has reviewed the request, and has determined that the proposed delegation would be in the interests of the local and global Internet communities. It is hereby RESOLVED (2010.04.22.05), that the proposed delegation of the .рф (xn--p1ai) domain to Coordination Center for TLD RU as a country-code top-level domain is approved. ii. Delegation of the السعودية (xn--mgberp4a5d4ar)("Al-Saudia") domain representing Saudi Arabia in Arabic to the Communications and Information Technology Commission ========================================================================================== Whereas, Saudi Arabia is a country currently listed in the ISO 3166-1 standard; Whereas, السعودية (xn--mgberp4a5d4ar)("al-Saudiah") is a string that has been deemed to appropriately represent Saudi Arabia through the IDN Fast Track process. Whereas, ICANN has received a request for delegation of السعودية . to the Communications and Information Technology Commission. Whereas, ICANN has reviewed the request, and has determined that the proposed delegation would be in the interests of the local and global Internet communities. It is hereby RESOLVED (2010.04.22.06), that the proposed delegation of the السعودية . (xn--mgberp4a5d4ar) domain to the Communications and Information Technology Commission is approved. iii. Delegation of the امارات (xn--mgbaam7a8h)("Emarat") domain representing the United Arab Emirates to the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority ============================================================================================ Whereas, the United Arab Emirates is a country currently listed in the ISO 3166-1 standard; Whereas, امارات (xn--mgbaam7a8h) ("Emarat") is a string that has been deemed to appropriately represent the United Arab Emirates through the IDN Fast Track process. Whereas, ICANN has received a request for delegation of امارات . to the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority. Whereas, ICANN has reviewed the request, and has determined that the proposed delegation would be in the interests of the local and global Internet communities. It is hereby RESOLVED (2010.04.22.07), that the proposed delegation of the امارات . (xn--mgbaam7a8h) domain to the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority is approved. iv. Delegation of the مصر (xn--wgbh1c )("Misr") domain representing Egypt to the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority ========================================================================================== Whereas, Egypt is a country currently listed in the ISO 3166-1 standard; Whereas, مصر (xn--wgbh1c )("Misr") is a string that has been deemed to appropriately represent Egypt through the IDN Fast Track process. Whereas, ICANN has received a request for delegation of مصر. (xn--wgbh1c) to the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority. Whereas, ICANN has reviewed the request, and has determined that the proposed delegation would be in the interests of the local and global Internet communities. It is hereby RESOLVED (2010.04.22.08), that the proposed delegation of the مصر. (xn--wgbh1c) domain to the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority is approved. 3. Latin American Meeting Location ================================== Whereas, ICANN intends to hold its third Meeting for 2010 in the Latin America region as per its policy; Whereas .CO Internet S.A.S. was one of the entities that submitted a viable proposal to serve as host for the ICANN 2010 Latin America Meeting; Whereas, staff has completed a thorough review of the .CO Internet S.A.S proposal and finds it acceptable; Whereas, the Board Finance Committee recommended and the Board of Directors have approved a budget of US$2.126M for the ICANN 2010 Latin America Meeting; It is hereby RESOLVED, (2010.04.22.09), that the Board accepts the .CO Internet S.A.S. proposal and approves that the ICANN 2010 Latin America Meeting shall be held in Cartagena, Colombia from 5-10 December 2010, with a budget not to exceed US$2.126M, and that the Cartagena Meeting designated as the 2010 Annual Meeting. 4. Affirmation of Commitments ============================== i. (A) Meeting Our Commitments under AOC (B) Board oversight of performance of Affirmation of Commitments ii. Supporting & Facilitating Reviews iii. Transparency & Accountability Review Update (For discussion only) 5. DNS Cert (For discussion only) 6. New gTLDs i. Reporting performance against new Project Plan ii. Status of Vertical Integration, IP Issues and Communications Plan (For discussion only) 7. Proposed Implementation Plan for Synchronized ccTLD IDNs . CNNIC Request for (Simplified and Traditional Chinese) IDN ccTLDs ===================================================================== Whereas, the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) has requested the simultaneous delegation of .中国 (xn--fiqs8S) and .中國 (xn--fiqz9S); Whereas, CNNIC has met the existing Fast Track requirements and rules for String Evaluation of the requested IDN ccTLDs, including the DNS security and stability evaluation; Whereas, an issue has arisen around the delegation and management of domains that reflect parallel uses of "Simplified" and "Traditional" character-renderings and orthographies for the Chinese language communities, and thus CNNIC is requesting delegation of this pair of IDN ccTLDs; Whereas, CNNIC has a significant depth of experience with the registration of strings containing variants as domain names at second and lower levels under principles discussed in RFC 4713 (<http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc4713.txt> - Registration and Administration Recommendations for Chinese Domain Names - October 2006), with the delegation and management of domains that are expected to reflect parallel uses of "Simplified" and "Traditional" character-renderings and orthographies for Chinese, and can point to good management experience and good user experience with this methodology, and have stated that they have the necessary competence and experience to operate the pair of IDN ccTLDs in a stable manner; Whereas, there is general and wide community support for the notion of simultaneously delegating this particular requested pair of IDN ccTLDs to meet the well understood needs of users of Chinese, namely that users accessing a domain expect that the traditional and simplified Chinese names have been assigned to the same registrant, and that such delegations would solve a significant problem for the user communities; Whereas, public comment makes it clear that the methodology for operation and management of IDN ccTLDs based on such parallel strings can only be achieved today through operational and administrative procedures, as there are no DNS protocol mechanisms yet that provide the desired behavior, which procedures must be handled by the local IDN ccTLD manager; Whereas, the delegation of these IDN ccTLDs would be an extension to the current published IDN ccTLD Fast Track Process; Whereas, the ICANN Board on 12 March 2010 resolved on a set of "Principles for Handling Synchronized IDN ccTLDs for the specific requests related to the Fast Track Process"; Whereas, after public comment and general consultation with the technical community, it became apparent that some of the ideas expressed and words used in the Principles were found to be confusing and imprecise – e.g. "Equivalent" and "Synchronized" IDN ccTLDs – and that this terminology made it difficult to evaluate important aspects of the Proposed Implementation Plan for Synchronized IDN ccTLDs; Whereas, the methodology to be taken by the IDN ccTLD manager to handle these particular instances of parallel IDN ccTLDs is, in the short-term, the only option available, but there are serious limits to where such an approach is viable in practice, so that it cannot be viewed as a general solution, and that consequently, long-term development work should be pursued; Whereas, significant analysis and possibly development work should continue on both policy-based and technical elements of a solution for the introduction on a more general basis of strings containing variants as TLDs; Therefore, it is RESOLVED, (2010.04.22.10), that CNNIC be notified that the .中国 (xn--fiqs8S) and .中國 (xn--fiqz9S) IDN ccTLD request has completed the Fast Track String Evaluation and that they may enter the String Delegation step in the Fast Track Process, using the standard IANA ccTLD delegation function, and that delegation is contingent on completion of the IANA process criteria and publication of CNNIC's detailed Implementation Plan to be finalized in consultation with ICANN. ii. TWNIC Request for (Simplified and Traditional Chinese) IDN ccTLDs ===================================================================== Whereas, the Taiwan Network Information Center (TWNIC) has requested the simultaneous delegation of .台灣 (xn--kpry57d) and .台湾 (xn--kprw13d); Whereas, TWNIC has met the existing Fast Track requirements and rules for String Evaluation of the requested IDN ccTLDs, including the DNS security and stability evaluation; Whereas, an issue has arisen around the delegation and management of domains that reflect parallel uses of "Simplified" and "Traditional" character-renderings and orthographies for the Chinese language communities, and thus TWNIC is requesting delegation of this pair of IDN ccTLDs; Whereas, TWNIC has a significant depth of experience with the registration of strings containing variants as domain names at second and lower levels under principles discussed in RFC 4713 (<http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc4713.txt> - Registration and Administration Recommendations for Chinese Domain Names - October 2006), with the delegation and management of domains that are expected to reflect parallel uses of "Simplified" and "Traditional" character-renderings and orthographies for Chinese, and can point to good management experience and good user experience with this methodology, and have stated that they have the necessary competence and experience to operate the pair of IDN ccTLDs in a stable manner; Whereas, there is general and wide community support for the notion of simultaneously delegating this particular requested pair of IDN ccTLDs to meet the well understood needs of users of Chinese, namely that users accessing a domain expect that the traditional and simplified Chinese names have been assigned to the same registrant, and that such delegations would solve a significant problem for the user communities; Whereas, public comment makes it clear that the methodology for operation and management of IDN ccTLDs based on such parallel strings can only be achieved today through operational and administrative procedures, as there are no DNS protocol mechanisms yet that provide the desired behavior, which procedures must be handled by the local IDN ccTLD manager; Whereas, the delegation of these IDN ccTLDs would be an extension to the current published IDN ccTLD Fast Track Process; Whereas, the ICANN Board on 12 March 2010 resolved on a set of "Principles for Handling Synchronized IDN ccTLDs for the specific requests related to the Fast Track Process"; Whereas, after public comment and general consultation with the technical community, it became apparent that some of the ideas expressed and words used in the Principles were found to be confusing and imprecise – e.g. "Equivalent" and "Synchronized" IDN ccTLDs – and that this terminology made it difficult to evaluate important aspects of the Proposed Implementation Plan for Synchronized IDN ccTLDs; Whereas, the methodology to be taken by the IDN ccTLD manager to handle these particular instances of parallel IDN ccTLDs is, in the short-term, the only option available, but there are serious limits to where such an approach is viable in practice, so that it cannot be viewed as a general solution, and that consequently, long-term development work should be pursued; Whereas, significant analysis and possibly development work should continue on both policy-based and technical elements of a solution for the introduction on a more general basis of strings containing variants as TLDs; Therefore, it is RESOLVED, (2010.04.22.11), that TWNIC be notified that .台灣 (xn--kpry57d) and .台湾 (xn--kprw13d) IDN ccTLD request has completed the Fast Track String Evaluation and that they may enter the String Delegation step in the Fast Track Process, using the standard IANA ccTLD delegation function, and that delegation is contingent on completion of the IANA process criteria and publication of TWNIC's detailed Implementation Plan to be finalized in consultation with ICANN. 8. May Retreat (For discussion only) 9. UDRP (For discussion only) 10. Executive Session