February 2020 - CPWG - lists.icann.org

Fwd: [NCUC-DISCUSS] ICANN Receives Letter from California Attorney General Regarding .ORG Change of Control
by Marita Moll 04 Feb '20

04 Feb '20

Attached for your information, letter to ICANN from the California AG. ICANN has is now seeking a deadline extention from PIR in order to reply to the 35 questions posed by the State of California re the proposed sale. Marita -------- Forwarded Message -------- Subject: [NCUC-DISCUSS] ICANN Receives Letter from California Attorney General Regarding .ORG Change of Control Date: Fri, 31 Jan 2020 12:58:57 -0200 From: Bruna Martins dos Santos <bruna.mrtns(a)gmail.com> To: NCUC Discuss <ncuc-discuss(a)lists.ncuc.org> Dear NCUC, FYI During this morning, at the NCSG call with Board Member Matthew Shears, he mentioned that the Office of the Attorney General of the State of California has requested information from ICANN regarding the PIR deal. The correspondence <https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/correspondence/ca-ago-to-icann-board-…> asks a set of 35 questions/requests to ICANN, from organizational matters, ICANNs capacity to regulate the registration fees and so on. Icann also issued a blog post <https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2020-01-30-en> explaining that they are also /"providing formal notice to PIR, pursuant to the terms of the PIR Registry Agreements, because the CA-AGO has requested that ICANN provide information that PIR designated as confidential. In addition, the CA-AGO has asked for more time, surpassing the current ICANN deadline to review the proposed change of control of the PIR Registry Agreements that is currently set as 17 February 2020. Accordingly, the letter from ICANN to PIR requests additional time, up to 20 April 2020, to conclude both the CA-AGO and ICANN reviews." / Best regards, -- */Bruna Martins dos Santos /* Skype ID: bruna.martinsantos @boomartins

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request for input on MSM model implementation
by Marita Moll 04 Feb '20

04 Feb '20

Colleagues: In preparation for possible discussion on the CPWG call re: feedback on the evolving multistakeholder model (which forms part of the FY21-25 operating and financial plan), a draft google doc has been started here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1BVJLVRlQYP6tpJ0-TXLpSeTu11vzbNZCYuWFc05… Should there be any time to discuss this subject on the call, I will concentrate on the following task: *Rank the six workstreams according to which issue which represents the most “ripe fruit” opportunity – i.e. an approach or solution can be developed with minimal (lesser) resources.* The 6 workstreams and the proposed leads are: Consensus + Representation/inclusivity – GNSO working with SOs/ACs Prioritization of work + efficient use of resources – SO/AC chairs working with ICANN org. CEO and ICANN Board chair Culture, trust and silos – ALAC working with ACs/SOs Complexity – ICANN.org re: accessibility to info/data + SO/AC chairs re: process, procedures, bylaws, communication and documentation Precision in scoping – TBD (SSAC has been suggested) Roles and responsibilities – ICANN Board with community and ICANN.org CEO In the draft document, I have proposed that work on culture, trust and silos would naturally precede representation/inclusivity (which includes recruitment/demographics) -- especially because of the competition between groups for committed and engaged volunteers. But that is a practical suggestion, not made with the "minimal resources" idea in mind. But please send me your thoughts on how you might rank some of these other workstreams from the "low hanging fruit"perspective. Thanks Marita ** **

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Re: [CPWG] ISOC/PIR Advice: Thank you!
by Roberto Gaetano 03 Feb '20

03 Feb '20

Sorry, resending from the good email address R On 01.02.2020, at 07:36, Roberto Gaetano <roberto(a)gaetano.org<mailto:roberto@gaetano.org>> wrote: Thanks Jonathan. But let me acknowledge that you did most of the work, and add my apologies for having provided my last contribution a bit late. I would also assume that there will be more work to do in the future, as the matter is nowhere near closure. Cheers, Roberto On 31.01.2020, at 17:58, Jonathan Zuck <JZuck(a)innovatorsnetwork.org<mailto:JZuck@innovatorsnetwork.org>> wrote: Thanks all for your help in getting this advice over the finish line. I think we struck a delicate balance between assertive and rational and the board will be hard pressed to ignore it. Thanks, in particular, to Roberto for providing the thought leadership on our position and taking on the difficult task, during such an emotional and tumultuous time, to identify what was most important so that we could strike that balance. Please accept my apology for taking so long to draft this. It simply felt like matters were gaining both clarity and complexity with each passing day and I wanted to make sure that as many viewpoints as possible were explored. This process also highlighted some real disfunction inside the NPOC and forced us to peak around the corner of our remit. Perhaps we should attempt to engage with them as this process is far from over. Thanks again for your principled participation! Jonathan Jonathan Zuck | Executive Director | Innovators Network jzuck(a)innovatorsnetwork.org<mailto:jzuck@innovatorsnetwork.org> | O 202.420.7497 | S jvzuck | <image001.png>

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Fwd: [IP] Sale of .org domain registry delayed by California attorney general
by Bastiaan Goslings 01 Feb '20

01 Feb '20

Fyi, see below: (‘a stunning development that certainly vindicates the concerns of non-profits, internet activists and domain name holders’) Regards, Bastiaan — Envoyé du mon iPhone Begin forwarded message: > From: Dave Farber <farber(a)gmail.com> > Date: 1 February 2020 at 04:33:41 CET > To: Ip Ip <ip(a)v2.listbox.com> > Subject: [IP] Sale of .org domain registry delayed by California attorney general > Reply-To: ip <ip(a)ip.topicbox.com> > > Begin forwarded message: > >> https://mashable.com/article/california-attorney-general-dot-org-sale/ >> >> The .org domain takeover has been delayed, at least for now. >> >> California Attorney General Xavier Becerra sent a letter to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) demanding more information about the private equity takeover of the .org domain registry. The attorney general is seeking answers to 35 questions concerning the sale as well as documents sent between ICANN, private equity firm Ethos Capital, and Public Interest Registry (PIR), which manages the .org domain. >> >> Ethos Capital disclosed last year that it was acquiring PIR from its non-profit parent organization, the Internet Society, for $1.135 billion. >> >> ICANN, the non-profit organization that oversees domain names, disclosed the letter on its website along with its own correspondence with PIR, informing it of the development. Previously, ICANN had until Feb. 17 to approve or deny the sale. According to ICANN, as a result of the California AG’s letter, it’s seeking to delay this deadline until April 20. >> >> ICANN says it's "fully cooperating" with the request. In its letter to PIR, ICANN gives a heads up that it will be providing the attorney general "confidential material" to comply with the AG's demands. As ICANN's letter states, it has terms in its contract with PIR which forbid the organization from disclosing information that the registry deems confidential unless required by law. ICANN clearly views the AG's letter as applicable. >> >> It’s a stunning development that certainly vindicates the concerns of non-profits, internet activists, and domain name holders. >> >> Many of the attorney general’s questions revolve around the removal of the long-standing price caps in ICANN’s most recent contract renewal with PIR. The price caps on .org domains allowed the registry raise registration prices no more than 10 percent each year. Without those price caps, the registry could raise pricing for registration and renewals as much as it would like. In addition, it could also add new pricing structures, such as deeming certain domains as "premium" and charging whatever it would like for those domains. >> >> Not long after ICANN’s price cap removal gave the registry complete control of .org domain pricing, Ethos Capital announced its acquisition of the registry. Many critics of the sale were concerned with the timing of these developments. Non-profit organizations, which previously galvanized to try and stop the price cap removal in the first place, worried that the private equity firm would raise .org prices in order to quickly recoup its investment. >> >> ICANN previously said that the organization was “powerless” to do anything about the sale of the .org registry. However, ICANN’s tune quickly changed as news spread of the private equity takeover. An ICANN board member told internet activists, who recently protested outside of ICANN’s LA offices, that the organization was taking the sale “very seriously.” >> >> There are currently more than 11.5 million registered .org domain names. Registrants pay a yearly fee to renew their domain registrations. PIR currently generates around $100 million a year selling .org domain names to registrars, such as Namecheap and Godaddy, for just under $10 per year. >> >> The AG’s office oversees nonprofits and charitable organizations in the state of California. Becerra has cracked down on nonprofits that break the law. >> >> Whether the acquisition is stopped remains to be seen. It all depends on what the California attorney general finds in his investigation. _______________________________________________ >> > ip / ip / see discussions + participants + delivery options Permalink

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