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Another Milestone Towards the IANA Stewardship Transition
Steve Crocker
On March 14, 2014, 818 days ago, the U.S. National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) asked ICANN to convene the global Internet community to develop proposals to transition the stewardship of the IANA functions to the multistakeholder community. It also called for enhancements to ICANN's accountability mechanisms.
Today, NTIA released a comprehensive evaluation of the proposals. I am very pleased with NTIA's finding that the community-developed proposals met its stringent criteria. It is an important recognition of the entire community and its tireless work to reach this important milestone.
We appreciate NTIA's efficient and thorough review of the transition proposals. In the meantime, ICANN staff and community members continue to plan and prepare for a timely and successful implementation of the proposals.
We thank everyone involved for their support and hard work to see the transition through to this point. There is still more work to come, but this moment should serve as a validation of your time and effort in this process. We are one step closer to seeing the transition many of us have been working towards for years, to ensure an open, interoperable Internet for years to come.
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ICANN Launches African Engagement Office in Nairobi
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ICANN Launch at the Dinner
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ICANN Staff and Community in Our New Africa Engagement Office
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Last month, we launched our Africa Engagement Office in Nairobi, Kenya. ICANN staff members celebrated the opening - notably Sally Costerton, Senior Advisor to the President and Senior VP of Global Stakeholder Engagement, and Pierre Dandjinou, VP of Stakeholder Engagement in Africa. Read their blog post about the opening.
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Read About Göran Marby's Introduction to ICANN
As I begin my role withICANN, I wanted to provide you with a quick update on my early days. With a packed schedule, I've been focused on learning as much as possible, and on meeting many members of the ICANN community.
I kicked off with my first Board workshop, in Amsterdam. I spent time with my senior team and the Board, and was able to dig into some of the big issuesICANNis tackling. After the Board Workshop, I attended the first day of the GDD Summit.It was a great opportunity to meet many of the contracted parties that are members of the ICANN community, and I appreciated learning more about issues affecting registries and registrars, as well as the lively discussions on subsequent procedures of generic top-level domains.
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What You Need to Know About ICANN56 and the New Meeting Strategy
ICANN56 Helsinki will be the first public policy forum in ICANN's new meeting strategy. Designated a Meeting B, the four-day event will concentrate on policy work and outreach. Under the new format, the Supporting Organizations and Advisory Committees drive the program, focusing solely on topics that contribute to policy development and cross-community dialogue. Because of the community-driven agenda and the short meeting duration, ICANN56 will not include certain events associated with the longer meetings - welcome ceremony, public forums, public board meeting and sponsor exhibition area.
The community-led Meeting Strategy Working Group crafted the new strategy to better meet the needs of ICANN constituents. ICANN's Board of Directors approved the proposal at ICANN53 Buenos Aires. ICANN55 Marrakech - the first meeting of 2016 - marked the kickoff of the new meeting strategy.
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Register Now for ICANN56 in Helsinki!
ICANN56 starts just 11 days from now. If you don't need a
ICANN56 mobile app helps you prepare for and personalize your ICANN Public Meeting experience - with your own schedule, interactive venue maps, meeting alerts and more. You can also engage with fellow participants and give instant feedback on sessions you attend.
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ICANN Engages in Events Across South East Europe
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Andrea Beccalli speaking at the University of Belgrade
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This month, ICANN staff and community members engaged in activities across the South East Europe (SEE) region, including Internet governance forums (IGFs). We informed audiences of ICANN's ongoing engagements in the SEE region and the latest global developments at ICANN. These events validated the local community's interest in ICANN and Internet governance. - 16 May. At the National IGF in Ljubljana, Slovenia, Andrea Beccalli participated on a panel that addressed the question "Who governs the Internet?" The proceedings were sent to the European IGF in Brussels (EuroDIG 2016).
- 30 May. Professor Dusan Popovic, former ICANN Fellow, organized a seminar at the Faculty of Law at the University of Belgrade in Belgrade, Serbia. The session dealt with the Internet and intellectual property. Andrea Beccalli gave an overview of ICANN and its engagement in the SEE region. Aysegul Tekce, ICANN's Manager of Registry Services and Engagement from the Istanbul hub, spoke about the rights protection mechanisms in the domain space.
- 1 June. Lousewies Van der Laan, ICANN Board member, attended the Croatia IGF in Opatija, Croatia. During the opening sessions, Andrea Beccalli addressed the audience, giving an update on ICANN's activities in the region.
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Belarus Holds Its First IGF
Vice President, ICANN Stakeholder Engagement in Russia & Central Asia
I am happy to say that the first Internet governance forum in Belarus far exceeded everyone's expectations. It was viewed as a great success by all, providing a vibrant platform for cross-regional dialogue among the Eastern Europe countries in attendance. Though the Republic of Belarus is not well-known outside the region, it is placed exactly in the geographical center of continental Europe. With a population of around 9.5 million people, almost no substantial natural resources, and (since Soviet times) a highly educated population, Belarus has become a regional champion of Internet technology development, network penetration rates and quality of services. Recently, the Belarusian government announced its goal to enter the "Top 30" of leading Internet economies.
On 17 May, Belarus held its first IGF in Minsk. The event was organized by the local country code top-level domain (ccTLD) registry (.by/.bel) with the support of ICANN, Réseaux IP Européens Network Coordination Centre (RIPE NCC) and other global organizations. Attended by over 350 participants from the local communities, and delegates from Armenia, Georgia, Estonia, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine, it was a true subregional Eastern European IGF. The speakers and panelists at the plenary sessions and panel discussions were from different countries and different stakeholder groups. This diversity gave local stakeholders the opportunity to discuss the most recent social, legal and cultural aspects of the technical development of the Internet. Colleagues from the region shared best practices.
Apart from the traditional model of an IGF with a set of keynote presentations and sessions on general topics like "Internet for Governments" or "Internet and Society," the agenda contained some unexpected features. One novel session was a student debate on Internet governance issues - with teams from local universities. We were impressed by the students' eloquence and subject-matter knowledge. During the forum, a special panel was convened on the regional aspects of Internet governance. Speakers from Belarus, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine shared their views on what is unique and what is common in the Internet governance agenda of the Eastern European region.
ICANN's participation in the forum was important to help us better understand how to develop and implement our regional (or subregional) strategy in the most efficient way. ICANN has consistently been a supporter of IGFs, and we continue to work with our partners and Internet communities in the region to strengthen constructive dialogue on Internet topics and to help in the development of local Domain Name System (DNS) industries.
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DNS Entrepreneurship Center Continues to Make Progress
Last month, on 24 May, Cherine Chalaby, Vice Chairman of the ICANN Board, and Baher Esmat, VP of Global Stakeholder Engagement in the Middle East, met with the DNS Entrepreneurship Center ( DNS-EC) team at the Smart Village in Cairo to review and discuss the draft of the center's three-year strategy. During the meeting, the DNS-EC team highlighted their key objectives and expected outcomes for the coming years. The discussion was interactive, with Chalaby providing valuable insights regarding the center's prospective activities and long-term business sustainability.
The DNS-EC and ICANN also organized a workshop in Morocco on 30-31 May, hosted by the Moroccan National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency ( ANRT). The workshop reviewed the local market SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis of the DNS industry and the top-level domain marketing of .ma. StartingDot supported the workshop, and Godefroy Jordan, StartingDot CEO, was the lead instructor. Over 25 participants attended - coming from the .ma registry and local registrars.
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ICANN Holds Second Africa Topical Workshop
After the first edition organized in May 2014 in Cotonou, Republic of Benin, the second African topical workshop took place from 9-10 May in Harare, Zimbabwe. Over 100 participants from 20 countries attended the workshops. Participants came from the government, private sector, academia, research institutions, technical community, civil society organizations and media. Topics covered were related to DNS security, domain name dispute issues, internationalized domain names, ICANN registrar accreditation process and the Africa DNS market study. After two days of fruitful exchanges, the participants agreed on the need for:
- More capacity building on domain names dispute resolution
- Constitution of a forum for legal experts interested in domain name matters
- Need for more volunteers from Africa in IDN working groups
Key recommendations included:
- Regional and national actors need to collaborate and coordinate on issues in the domain name industry in Africa that are related to trademarks and intellectual property.
- Registries, registrars and resellers need to automate to facilitate quick resolution of online disputes.
- Coordination is needed to formulate local, regional and international laws and policies aimed at resolving trademark and intellectual property disputes.
Participants expressed their gratitude to the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ), the Government and people of the Republic of Zimbabwe, and ICANN. The topical workshop is part of the ICANN's Africa strategy, with the next edition scheduled for May 2017.
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ICANN's Launch of Africa Engagement Office in Nairobi: The Continent Now Has a Seat at the Table
by Kris Senanu, Deputy CEO, Internet Solutions Kenya, and Chair of Kenya Network Information Center (KeNIC), Kenya's domain registry institution
The launch of the ICANN office in Nairobi confirms Kenya's and Africa's seats at the global table of Internet policy and governance discourse. The role ICANN plays across the world cannot be overstated. With the world now moving fast toward full-scale digitization, the Internet has become omnipresent. A critical resource platform, governments across the world need to invest in its reliability and sustainability.
Here in Kenya, under the auspices of KeNIC, we have taken a futuristic step towards capacity building, benefiting people who embrace the growing use of the Internet. Specifically, through domain registry, we support the increasing number of local businesses that are going online to extend their presence and markets. We appreciate the potential for monetization of web hosting, creation of domain names, creation of e-commerce platforms and a plethora of other online solutions.
The Kenyan government, in formulating policies and legislation, has continuously reinforced the multistakeholder approach in the development of the Internet ecosystem. By bringing together the private sector, civil society and International organizations to share their expertise, the resulting industry guidelines balance commercial and legal interests. Yet these guidelines also address the information and communications technology of Kenyan citizens.
Part of ICANN's Africa strategy, which was first advanced in 2012, is to support a stronger presence for ICANN in Africa and to increase African participation in ICANN. KeNIC, in association with ICANN, held the Youth Community Workshop (YouthComm) that concluded its second series in Nairobi on 26 May 2016 - another great accomplishment for Kenya. This ICANN initiative exposes youth under 30 years of age to matters of information and communications policy and governance, and also to the wider Internet ecosystem. The goal is to enable this new audience to better participate in the future in policy issues, within and without government and private sector circles.
Indeed, Africa is the next e-market frontier, and as the expansion and ease of access to the Internet continue across the world, with an ever-increasingly younger population, we expect to see more adaptation of world-class technologies in Kenya and the rest of Africa.
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ICANN staff and community members are focused on a handful of projects related to the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) Stewardship Transition, including implementation planning, and education and awareness building for stakeholders globally.
Implementation Planning
ICANN staff and community members are collaborating to ensure alignment on transition implementation planning. Resources from all meetings and calls are posted publicly. In addition, ICANN has continued its series of in-depth updates on implementation planning.
ICANN Board Issues Resolutions
On 27 May, the ICANN Board issued resolutions in preparation for the transition implementation:
- Adoption of the new ICANN Bylaws, which reflect changes made as a result of the IANA Stewardship Transition proposals
- Approval to sign the 2016 Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) Supplemental Agreement between ICANN and the IETF for the performance of the IANA function related to protocol parameters
- Approval to sign the Regional Internet Registry (RIR) Service Level Agreement (SLA) between ICANN and the Number Resource Organization for performance of the IANA function related to numbering resources
Both the IETF MoU Supplemental Agreement and the RIR SLA will become effective upon completion of the transition.
Open Public Comment Period
ICANN's Draft Restated Articles of Incorporation (27 May to 6 July 2016)
Education and Awareness Building
Global Education Continues
To build awareness of the transition, ICANN staff, community and Board members are participating in stakeholder events around the world. In addition to giving details and context for the community's proposals, they answer questions and give updates on the status of the implementation planning and the U.S. Government's review process. Find events in your region.
U.S. Senate Committee Holds Hearing on the Transition
On 24 May, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a hearing to examine the transition. Members of the community answered questions and discussed consequences associated with delaying or postponing the transition. During this hearing, letters of support from industry and civil society groups within the community were entered into the hearing record. |
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EURALO Reviews and Redrafts Its Bylaws
Since April, a task force within EURALO has been meeting weekly to review and redraft its Articles of Association or bylaws, which were adopted in April 2007 and amended in May 2011. The aim of this effort is to improve EURALO's organizational efficiency and effectiveness. The process involves identifying the variance between the written procedures and the actual practice, and implementing necessary changes to bridge the gap. Read more.
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RIPE NCC Survey 2016 Launches
The Réseaux IP Européens Network Coordination Centre (RIPE NCC) launched its 2016 membership and stakeholder survey on the final day of RIPE 72 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Oxford Internet Institute is conducting the survey, which guarantees anonymity to participants and independent assessment of results. Anyone may take the survey; RIPE NCC members and all other interested parties are invited to participate. The survey takes around 15 minutes to complete, and participants have the opportunity to win one of five iPads. The survey will remain open until 30 June 2016. Take the survey today!
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Two GNSO Working Groups Approve Work Plans
On 13 May, the Rights Protection Mechanisms Working Group of the Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO) approved its work plan. Phil Corwin, J. Scott Evans and Kathy Kleiman, Co-Chairs, project the work to last for around 24 months. The working group has already attracted 133 participating members and 88 observers. To volunteer, email the GNSO Secretariat.
The Next Generation Registration Directory Services Working Group also approved its work plan on 13 May, and started to establish requirements.
Both topics will be discussed at cross-community sessions at ICANN56.
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At-Large Review Begins
Following the appointment of ITEMS International as the independent examiner, the organizational review of the At-Large Community has officially started. This review has four purposes:
- Assess the effectiveness of the improvements resulting from the last review in 2008
- Evaluate the organizational effectiveness of the various components of the At-Large Community
- Acknowledge areas that are working well in the At-Large Community, with a focus on the Regional At-Large Organizations and At-Large Structures
- Identify areas that need improvement and propose needed changes
ITEMS will collect both quantitative and qualitative data through various work methods, such as a global online survey and community interviews. Follow the review's progress. |
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GAC Hosts Webinars on DNS Fundamentals
In cooperation with the Government Advisory Committee (GAC) Working Groups on Underserved Regions and Public Safety, ICANN staff recently held webinars on the fundamentals of the Domain Name System (DNS) for interested GAC representatives. Presenters from the ICANN Security, Stability and Resiliency team covered a range of topics - basics of name resolution and registration in the DNS, insights into privacy and proxy services, and WHOIS accuracy and abuse aspects. Participants asked about the impact of DNS Security Extensions (DNSSEC) deployment on the security of the DNS and the structure of the DNS marketplace, including capacity-building efforts to develop national DNS industries. Given the positive feedback and expressed interest in other topics, ICANN staff members plan to arrange future webinars. Access the presentation materials and recordings. |
GNSO Community Leaders Preview ICANN56
James Bladel, GNSO Council Chair, and Donna Austin, GNSO Council Vice Chair, previewed ICANN56 in a recent interview. ICANN56 will follow the new Meeting B format, featuring sessions on current policy development work and cross-community dialogue. Jeff Neuman, New gTLD Subsequent Procedures Policy Development Process Working Group chair, also provided an overview of what that working group will be focusing on in Helsinki. Watch the interviews.
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ccNSO Prepares for IANA Stewardship Transition Implementation
The Country Code Names Supporting Organization (ccNSO) is preparing to implement specific aspects of the CCWG-Accountability* and CWG-Stewardship** proposals that apply to it and the country code top-level domain (ccTLD) community, including new post-transition bodies. Currently the ccNSO Guideline Review Committee (GRC) is developing the procedures and processes to select and appoint the ccNSO representatives to the Customer Standing Committee. The GRC expects to present final guidelines at ICANN56. View the ccNSO Members Day agenda for ICANN56.
* Cross Community Working Group on Enhancing ICANN Accountability
** Cross Community Working Group to Develop an IANA Stewardship Transition Proposal
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At-Large Contributes to Internet Governance Activities
Members of the At-Large Community have been actively promoting the public understanding of ICANN and the role of the At-Large Community in Internet governance. During the Africa Internet Summit in Gaborone, Botswana, Alan Greenberg, At-Large Advisory Committee Chair, and Tijani Ben Jemaa and Seun Ojedeji, At-Large Advisory Committee members from Africa, participated in the ICANN Day sessions, civil society panel and Africa strategy session. As the institutional partner of the European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG), the European Regional At-Large Organization (EURALO) played a key role in organizing various panels, workshops and events.
At the World Summit on the Information Society Forum ( WSIS Forum), Olivier Crépin-Leblond, EURALO Chair, spoke about the contribution of At-Large to the IANA Stewardship Transition process. He also presented At-Large's role in enhancing participation by underrepresented communities in global Internet governance. Read more news of the At-Large Community.
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New gTLD Program Reaches 1,000th Delegation
More than 1,000 new generic top-level domains (gTLDs) have now been introduced to the Internet under the New gTLD Program. This significant expansion of the domain name system allows greater diversity in how people and businesses can represent themselves online. It also enables communities, cities and brands to more closely align their digital and real-world identities.
Read more about how the New gTLD Program is contributing to choice, competition and innovation in the domain name space.
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GDD Industry Summit: Catch Up on Sessions You Missed
Registries, registrars and other contracted parties gathered recently in Amsterdam for ICANN's second Global Domains Division (GDD) Industry Summit. The event provided an opportunity for participants to focus on industry-specific topics, rather than general Internet policy. More than 420 attendees from around the world shared best practices, exchanged ideas and addressed issues of common importance with industry peers, ICANN staff and board members. Weren't able to attend? Listen to the session recordings.
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Changing the Keys to the Domain Name System Root Zone
ICANN, Verisign and the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) are preparing to roll, or change, the root zone key signing key (KSK). Rolling the KSK means generating a new cryptographic public and private key pair and distributing the new public component to parties who operate validating resolvers.
A new resource page serves as home to all information related to the KSK rollover, including regular progress updates. Learn more
about this security best practice and how it may affect you.
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Thirty New gTLDs delegated in May 2016
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(العليان, "Olayan", /al-alian/)
guardian
shop
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netflix
mattel |
For the full list of new gTLDs delegated in May 2016, click here.
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Join us at these upcoming events in the EMEA region:
| 21-22 June | The First Central Asian Forum on Internet Governance (CAIGF), Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan |
27-30 June
| ICANN56, Helsinki, Finland |
Learn more about how ICANN will be participating in regional events near you.
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