Hey NARALO, Just in case you haven't seen this.... June 9, 2009 Internet Governance Project Calls For U.S.-Led International Agreement On ICANN Citing U.S. President Barack Obama’s 2008 statement that the “global challenges we face demand global institutions that work,” a group of academic experts called on the United States to take decisive action on the future of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). The group, Internet Governance Project (IGP), urged the U.S. Commerce Department in its comments to let the so-called Joint Project Agreement with ICANN expire and engage with other governments to create stronger and more internationalized legal arrangements that will keep the organization accountable to Internet users. “It’s time to fish or cut bait on the ‘transition’ of the Internet’s naming and addressing system,” said Dr. Milton Mueller, professor at the Syracuse University School of Information Studies and chair of IGP’s Scientific Committee. “After 11 years, either ICANN is ready to be independent or it is not. If it still has problems, and it does, let’s take decisive action to fix them.” While noting ICANN’s shortcomings, the IGP comment focused its criticism on the Commerce Department’s Joint Project Agreement (JPA) with ICANN. The JPA is a temporary form of supervision that allows the Commerce Department to negotiate goals and priorities for ICANN on a short time frame. The Internet Governance Project contends that the “JPA process is inherently broken” and “contributes to ICANN’s failings… It does nothing but invite the stakeholders in one privileged country to complain to their own government about policy outcomes they don’t like.” Instead of continuing an endless series of renewals and revisions of the JPA, IGP argues that the “U.S. government needs to let the JPA expire and immediately initiate an international agreement that completes the transition of ICANN to a stable, accountable form of global governance.” That agreement should: Affirm and formalize the nongovernmental status of ICANN Formally recognize the sovereignty of other national governments over their top level domains Prohibit ICANN from interfering with freedom of expression Ensure the consistency of ICANN’s regulations with antitrust law and nondiscriminatory trade principles Select an appropriate body of national corporate law under which ICANN should operate Dissolve ICANN’s Governmental Advisory Committee By taking the lead in the negotiation of an international agreement, IGP claims, “the United States can gain buy-in from other governments for its own model of Internet governance and ensure that the transition does not harm any of its own legitimate interests. But to succeed in completing the transition and to avoid fragmenting the Internet, the U.S. will have to win the acceptance of a critical mass of other countries and peoples.” The Internet Governance Project is an alliance of academics that puts expertise into practical action in the fields of global governance and Internet policy. IGP’s Scientific Committee includes recognized experts in global governance and Internet policy from Syracuse University’s School of Information Studies and Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Technology University of Delft, Netherlands, the London School of Economics, and American University. Learn more at http://blog.internetgovernance.org. Click here to safely unsubscribe now from "Internet Governance Project Headlines" or change your subscription or subscribe Your requested content delivery powered by FeedBlitz, LLC, 9 Thoreau Way, Sudbury, MA 01776, USA. +1.978.776.9498 MADCoList | Archives | Modify Your Subscription | Unsubscribe Now