IANA Stewardship Transition Coordination Group (ICG), Conference Call

Upcoming ICG Events - source: ICANN--The IANA Stewardship Transition Coordination Group (ICG) will hold a conference call on Wednesday, 1 October 2014 from 04:00-05:00 UTC [time zone conversions] which is TUESDAY Sept 30th at 9 PM PDT (US). "The community is welcome to attend by way of a listen-only mode Virtual Meeting Room through which audio of the call will be streamed. Translations will be available through relevant Adigo Bridge dial-in numbers and Conference ID codes.

"A list of country dial-in numbers can be found here. In the case that there is no appropriate dial-in number for an interested participant, ICANN will provide a dial-out service to that individual. Correspondingly, language service Conference ID numbers are listed below:
Français – Conference ID: 75929475
Español – Conference ID: 68385764
中文 – Conference ID: 825702
Pусский – Conference ID: 345720
العربية – Conference ID: 82855066
Português – Conference ID: 759752

"Participants who are interested in an English line but are unable to join by way of the Virtual Meeting Room may request a dial-out service. For all dial-out service requests please contact Alice Jansen by 03:00 UTC, 1 October."

In-Person Meeting:
The ICG will be holding their next face-to-face meeting on Friday, 17 October 2014 from 09:00-17:30 PST/ 16:00-00:30 UTC in Los Angeles, California [Time zone conversions]. Observers are welcome to attend the session in-person, however, seating is limited. Information on remote participation and interpretation opportunities will be forthcoming.

In addition, the ICG has invited the community to attend a special Open Discussion Session on Thursday, 16 October from 10:00-12:00 PST / 17:00-19:00 UTC [Time zone conversions] More information on the session will be made available as it is finalized.

For more info: http://icann.org/stewardship.

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Domain Names Industry, ICANN, Regulatory Capture

"ICANN has been largely captured by the [domain] names industry"

What is "capture?"

Regulatory Capture: definitions--
Regulatory capture - Wikipedia: "Regulatory capture is a form of political corruption that occurs when a regulatory agency, created to act in the public interest, instead advances the commercial or special concerns of interest groups that dominate the industry or sector it is charged with regulating. Regulatory capture is a form of government failure [or Internet governance failure in the case of ICANN]; it creates an opening for firms to behave in ways injurious to the public (e.g., producing negative externalities). The agencies are called "captured agencies"."

Regulatory Capture Definition | Investopedia: "Regulatory capture is a theory associated with George Stigler, a Nobel laureate economist. It is the process by which regulatory agencies eventually come to be dominated by the very industries they were charged with regulating. Regulatory capture happens when a regulatory agency, formed to act in the public's interest, eventually acts in ways that benefit the industry it is supposed to be regulating, rather than the public."

"... regulatory capture occurs because groups or individuals with a high-stakes interest [ICANN's high-stakes stakeholders--e.g., Registries, Registrars, and Registry service providers] in the outcome of policy or regulatory decisions can be expected to focus their resources and energies in attempting to gain the policy outcomes they prefer, while members of the public, each with only a tiny individual stake in the outcome, will ignore it altogether.[1] Regulatory capture refers to the actions by interest groups when this imbalance of focused resources devoted to a particular policy outcome is successful at "capturing" influence with the staff or commission members [i.e., ICANN groups, committees, Board of Directors] of the regulatory agency [ICANN], so that the preferred policy outcomes of the special interest groups are implemented..." (source: Wikipedia, supra)

Regulatory economics - Wikipedia: "... Countering, overriding, or bypassing regulation is Regulatory Capture where a regulatory agency created to act in the public interest, instead advances the commercial or special concerns of interest groups that dominate the industry that the agency is charged with regulating. The probability of regulatory capture is economically biased, in that vested interests in an industry have the greatest financial stake in regulatory activity and are more likely to be motivated to influence the regulatory body than dispersed individual consumers, each of whom has little particular incentive to try to influence regulators. Thus the likelihood of regulatory capture is a risk to which an agency is exposed by its very nature..."

This is a well-known flaw at the heart of multistakeholderism. To paraphrase George Orwell, within ICANN, all stakeholders are equal, but some are more equal than others. ICANN's high-stakes stakeholders with vested interests--e.g., domain name registry operators, service providers, and registrars--have "captured" the organization, dominate its decision-making, policies and outcomes, Board of Directors, and are generally over-represented throughout its organizational structure. The most effective counter to powerful commercial vested interests are governments, but in the case of ICANN, governments are relegated to an advisory capacity except for the United States government which still holds "ultimate power and authority" by virtue of its agreements and contracts with ICANN. As for domain name registrants, who are the actual customers or consumers of domain names (and who pay a fee to ICANN included as part of the registration fee for each domain name), they have almost no representation within ICANN--there is no "Registrants Group" within the ICANN structure (unlike the multiple groups who represent registries (one for gTLDs, one for ccTLDs, etc.) and registrars. Unsurprisingly, ICANN's record of protecting domain name registrants from price-gouging and other abusive registry and registrar practices is almost non-existent. So much for the multistakeholder model of Internet governance as practiced by ICANN.

A good example of  ICANN's capture by the Domain Names Industry is ICANN's new gTLDs program where ICANN, ridden with conflicts of interest at its highest levels, subverted the wider public interest in favor of the high-stakes stakeholders' interests--

Ethics Fight Over Domain Names Intensifies - New York Times  March 18, 2012: "The Commerce Department ...warned the organization [ICANN] that it needed to tighten its rules against conflicts of interest or risk losing a central role.... ICANN has come under heightened scrutiny because of an initiative to increase vastly the number and variety of available Internet addresses. Under the plan, which ICANN is putting into effect, hundreds of new “top-level domains” — the letters like “com” that follow the “dot” in addresses — are set to be created. Some business groups say the expansion of domains will cause a rise in trademark violations and cybersquatting, while some governments object to Icann’s move to create address suffixes like .xxx, for pornography. But the initiative has been cheered by companies that register and maintain Internet addresses. A number of current and former members of the ICANN board have close ties to such registrars or to concerns involved in other areas that stand to benefit from the expansion... [Rod] Beckstrom [former ICANN Chairman]... “... all [ICANN] top leadership is from the very domain-name industry it is supposed to coordinate independently... “A more subtle but related risk is the tangle of conflicting agendas within the board...”... the United States government is also dissatisfied with ICANN. The Commerce Department said it had canceled a request for proposals to run the so-called Internet Assigned Numbers Authority because none of the bids met its requirements: “the need for structural separation of policy-making from implementation, a robust companywide conflict of interest policy, provisions reflecting heightened respect for local country laws and a series of consultation and reporting requirements to increase transparency and accountability to the international community.” Eyebrows were raised last year when Peter Dengate Thrush, former chairman of ICANN and a fan of the domain name expansion, joined a company that invests in domain names. [Read more at the link above--a version of this article appeared in print on March 19, 2012, on page B6 of the New York edition with the headline: Ethics Fight Over Domain Names Intensifies.]

See also:

• Most New gTLD Domain Names Are On Life-Support, Infecting Other gTLDs
• ICANN Board of Directors, Conflicts of Interest
• For Domain Name Registrants, ICANN Is Useless
• ICANN Process for New gTLDs Dysfunctional -- from the beginning
• ICANN, New gTLD Domain Name Renewal Fees, Price Gouging
• ICANN Fails to Prohibit Warehousing OR Speculation in Domain Names by new gTLD Registry Operators and Registrars
• ICANN, Kurt Pritz, Conflict of Interest, new gTLD domain names program
• New gTLD domain names, exorbitant prices, ICANN Incompetence
• Does ICANN Exist Primarily to Enrich Insiders and Contractors?

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Comments on ICANN Enhancing Accountability and Governance Process

The Enhancing ICANN Accountability, New Comment Period on Process (see prior post on this) ended on September 27, 2014, and selected excerpts follow:

Comments of the Brazilian Government [editor's note: Brazil was the only government that submitted comments, and they were of the highest quality of all comments submitted although some are substantive in nature]--

Brazil believes the concept of public interest mentioned in the NETmundial Statement should be seen as encompassing the larger interest of the different communities involved in the Internet Governance processes and not be limited to the interests and objectives of private corporations; 

With all due respect to the ongoing efforts carried out in the context of the Accountability and Transparency Review Teams (ATRTs), Brazil believes self-review and nonbinding reports should not be deemed as real accountability;

ICANN’s staff should not play a major role in the accountability process – limited perhaps to a supporting role - since ICANN would have a clear conflict of interest in that regard. In particular, ICANN´s staff for instance should not be allowed to unilaterally amend registry contracts;

ICANN’s accountability problem is somehow built into its own organizational structure. Unfortunately, the corporation constitutes a form of governance in which there is no clear separation and independence of powers.

Brazil believes it is crucial to make sure the this process is structured in a way that all stakeholders feel fully involved – including governments - in order to ensure that the final outcome of the exercise is also considered legitimate by all participants;

On a more substantive point, Brazil believes there is an urgent need for an overhaul of ICANN´s procedures, rules and decision making processes with a view to a more transparent, clear, effective and predictable policy development. The "rules of the game" should be clearly set forth and should include appropriate community-driven redress, appeal and enforcement mechanisms.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce--Much of the September 18 response letter [see below*] seemed to focus on the need to develop trust between the ICANN Board and those stakeholders involved in the accountability process. While we are confident the Board will act in the best interests of the global community, the Chamber suggests injecting transparency into the role and responsibility of the Board.

INTA Internet Committee--We believe that there is a need to ensure that the role and voice of the full spectrum of the business sector is heard as it will be integral to obtaining governmental support of any new ICANN framework resulting from the accountability process. In this regard, the staff proposal’s limitation on participation in the Coordination Group to only one representative per GNSO stakeholder group is inadequate and would not even ensure the participation of business interests and/or brand-owners through the Business Constituency or the Intellectual Property Consistency.

Richard Hill--I agree with those who have criticized this process, in particular because it gives full powers to the ICANN Board. Since the issue is how to replace the oversight provided to date by an organization external to ICANN (NTIA), the decision regarding replacing that oversight should not, in my view, be made by ICANN itself. The decision should be made by the global multi-stakeholder community, as called for by NTIA in its announcement regarding the transition of stewardship of the IANA function.

More background info here: Enhancing ICANN Accountability Process - ICANN, including--

• Questions from the leadership of multiple Supporting Organizations, Advisory Committees, Stakeholder Groups and Constituencies on the process are available here [PDF, 106 KB].
• Stephen Crocker and Fadi Chehadé respond to questions about the Enhancing ICANNAccountability Efforts here [PDF, 501 KB].--Sept 18, 2014 letter*
• All of the comments submitted by the September 27th deadline are here

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ITU Plenipotentiary Conference, US Government Preparations

A continuation of yesterday's post: The Internet, US Government, ICANN, ITU Plenipotentiary Conference--

So the US government has been feverishly preparing for next month's International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Plenipotentiary Conference in Busan, Korea, hopeful of avoiding the spectacle of having to walk out again (see WCIT Treaty Talks End in Dubai With Walkout of U.S., Allies)--

Preparing for Busan: Regional Unity in Inter-American Proposals to the 2014 International Telecommunications Union Plenipotentiary Conference | DipNote: (September 17, 2014) "... With only two days to get the job done, the United States and our friends in other countries including Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Uruguay, Colombia, Paraguay, the Dominican Republic, and The Bahamas, hammered out an unprecedented 46 Inter-American Proposals for the upcoming International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Plenipotentiary Conference this October-November in Busan, Korea. As a statement of regional unity and shared values, the importance of these proposals cannot be overstated. With the leadership of an incredibly able Chairman from Canada and the good will of all involved, delegates formed a sensible center on some of the most controversial issues that the ITU conference will face, including those surrounding Internet governance... All in all, we found a way to manage a complex dance with multiple moving parts without stepping on each other’s toes.  And in this case, the number of partners was more than two. In short, it was a very successful final regional preparatory meeting for the United States– a success we share with others in our region and that we believe establishes a sound platform for success in October in Busan."-- Ambassador Daniel A. Sepulveda, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and U.S. Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy in the State Department’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs (EB)."

Joint Press Statement for the U.S.-Japan Policy Cooperation Dialogue on the Internet Economy - The Sixth Director General-Level Meeting: September 19, 2014--"The United States and Japan held the sixth Director General-level meeting of the U.S.-Japan Policy Cooperation Dialogue on the Internet Economy in Washington, D.C. on September 16 and 17, 2014. "In this dialogue, which included a session with private sector representatives, participants held candid and vibrant discussions on important Internet and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) topics, such as: U.S.-Japan cooperation for ensuring the multi-stakeholder system of Internet governance; the use of personal data and protection of privacy; improving awareness of cyber security risks; telecommunications services; open data; R&D cooperation; and ICT for development. In particular, the United States and Japan continued their joint coordination in preparation for the upcoming Plenipotentiary Conference of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU PP-14). (1) U.S.-Japan Cooperation for Securing the Multi-Stakeholder System of Internet Governance - Participants underscored the importance of an inclusive, open, and transparent system of Internet governance based on the multi-stakeholder approach endorsed in international fora, such as the “NETmundial” conference held in Sao Paolo, Brazil in April 2014. Participants noted satisfaction with increasing global support for multi-stakeholder Internet governance and shared the view that international cooperation on Internet policy issues is vital to ensuring the free flow of information and further development of the global Internet Economy. Specifically, participants concurred that both governments will steadfastly support free and open Internet policies at ITU PP-14, to be convened in Busan, Republic of Korea, in October 2014. Participants further concurred that sustaining the multi-stakeholder model of Internet governance is essential to preserving the free and open Internet... The Japanese government expressed its support for the U.S. government’s announcement to transition stewardship of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to the global multi-stakeholder community as the final phase of the privatization of the Domain Name System (DNS), as outlined by the U.S. government in 1997. Participants expressed satisfaction with the growing role of the multistakeholder community in Internet Governance activities.... the United States and Japan share core values such as democracy and the free flow of information and that both will cooperate to lead development of the global Internet Economy. Participants commented that this public event symbolized solid cooperation between the two countries on Internet Economy issues, and noted that this event helped draw attention to the importance of bilateral and multilateral cooperation in this field... "

--Stay tuned.

more info:

http://www.itu.int/en/plenipotentiary/2014/Pages/default.aspx

http://www.itu.int/en/about/Pages/overview.aspx

http://www.internetsociety.org/sites/default/files/ITU%20Plenipot%20Background_FINAL.pdf

http://www.itu.int/net/pressoffice/index.aspx?lang=en#.VB6AbPldUdp

http://www.itu.int/en/plenipotentiary/2014/newsroom/Pages/default.aspx

http://www.itupp2014.org/en_main/?en_popup=1
http://www.itupp2014.org/en_main/?skin=1010
http://www.itu.int/net/pressoffice/press_releases/2014/Advisory-13.aspx#.VB6ApfldUdp

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The Internet, US Government, ICANN, ITU Plenipotentiary Conference

The ITU and the Internet: "The ITU is certainly one of the more venerable institutions in the communications sector. It can trace its origins to May 1865, when the first International Telegraph Convention was signed by 20 founding national members, and the International Telegraph Union was established to facilitate subsequent amendments to this initial agreement. Two decades later, in 1885, the ITU drafted international legislation governing telephony. With the invention in 1896 of wireless telegraphy, similar coordinating measures were adopted by the International Radiotelegraph Convention. In 1932 the Union combined the International Telegraph Convention of 1865 and the International Radiotelegraph Convention of 1906 to form the International Telecommunication Convention. The name of the body was changed to International Telecommunication Union to properly reflect the full scope of the Union's responsibilities, which by this time covered all forms of wireline and wireless communication. In 1947 the ITU, under an agreement with the newly created United Nations, became an agency of the United Nations, with responsibilities in international telephony, telegraphy, and radio communications. Over the next four decades the ITU oversaw a system of international interconnection of telephony and data systems..." (source)

The Formation of ICANN: "Whatever the original motivation in creating ICANN to administer the IANA responsibilities, it is now apparent that ICANN was deliberately structured to provide the industry with an alternative structure of coordination and regulation within national and international communications sectors to that of the ITU. The critical difference is that ICANN had not placed governments at the forefront of visible activity, but instead placed industry needs and the operation of a competitive deregulated international communications sector as being the major thrust of coordination activities." (source; also see this)

The ITU and the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference: The ITU (International Telecommunication Union), as noted above, is the UN specialized agency for information and communication technologies – ICTs. According to its website: "ITU membership reads like a Who’s Who of the ICT sector. We’re unique among UN agencies in having both public and private sector membership. So in addition to our 193 Member States, ITU membership includes ICT regulators, leading academic institutions and some 700 private companies. In an increasingly interconnected world, ITU is the single global organization embracing all players in this dynamic and fast-growing sector." The ITU Plenipotentiary Conference is the key event at which ITU Member States decide on the future role of the organization, thereby determining the organization's ability to influence and affect the development of information and communication technologies (ICTs) worldwide. The Plenipotentiary Conference is the top policy-making body of the ITU. Held every four years, the Conference: (a) sets the ITU's general policies; (b) adopts four-year strategic and financial plans; and (c) elects the senior management team of the organization, the members of Council, and the members of the Radio Regulations Board. Dates: Oct 20 - Nov 7, 2014 (3 weeks) in BEXCO, Busan, South Korea. Participants will include around 3,000 government delegates including 150 ministers and vice ministers, and over 300,000 visitors attending special events.

So what's the fuss? In short, internet governance--from the DNS and root zone to cybersecurity, censorship and free speech--the respective roles of ICANN, ITU, national governments, and others. A little historical background--

Remember the 2012 disaster in Dubai? "Three little ICANN atrocities that make the ITU look good by comparison | IGP Blog - December 1, 2012: December 1st [2012] marks the beginning of the World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) in Dubai. Fussing about the threat to the Internet posed by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is reaching that state of critical mass where media outlets write about it mainly because other media outlets are writing about it. The tacit assumption behind much of this fussing is that the status quo, exemplified by ICANN and other “multi-stakeholder institutions,” is doing a wonderful job and we should strive to preserve them. But the status quo is not so wonderful. In the past two weeks ICANN’s board and CEO have made decisions that are so bad they call into question its very legitimacy as an institution...."--Professor Milton Mueller (ICANN participant since 1998)

As a result of last March's IANA stewardship transition announcement, wherein the U.S. government said it was going to end its contract with ICANN, thereby terminating the U.S. stewardship role over ICANN and the internet, some have suggested that the ITU, with its long historical role in all information and communication technologies, including its UN status, and its status as a recognized multinational, international organization under Swiss law, should step into the role of stewardship oversight being vacated by the United States, particularly in wake of the Snowden revelations. And although the US government has said it "will not accept a proposal that replaces the NTIA [US government] role with a government-led or an inter-governmental organization solution," other governments, groups, and individuals have said that in view of those Snowden revelations, the US government can no longer dictate to the rest of the world, nor set preconditions, as to how the global internet community decides the global internet should be governed, nor force the international community to accept ICANN, a California corporation that has no membership, and formed at the instance of the US government in 1998, as the sole authority over the DNS and internet root zone going forward, particularly since most now concede that ICANN "has been largely captured by the [domain] names industry" see: Opinion: ICANN, the ITU, WSIS, and Internet Governance - The Internet Protocol Journal - Volume 8, Number 1 - Cisco Systems by Geoff Huston, APNIC.

Tomorrow's post: How the US government has been preparing for next month's ITU Plenipotentiary Conference.

See also: Domain Names Industry, ICANN, Regulatory Capture

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What to Expect at ICANN 51, Webinar for Business Stakeholders

What to Expect at ICANN 51: A Guide for Business Stakeholders - ICANN:

Date: Thursday, 25 September 2014
Time: 17:00-18:00 UTC (Time Converter)  [Thursday 1:00 PM EDT (US)]

Join ICANN's North American engagement team, Christopher Mondini and Joseph Catapano, for a pre-ICANN 51 webinar for business participants--

"This webinar is meant as an introduction to how the business sector contributes to domain name policies. The presentation is designed for people from the private sector new to the ICANN Community and interested in the upcoming ICANN 51 public meeting in Los Angeles. Specifically, the webinar will profile diverse constituencies within the Commercial Stakeholders Group of the Generic Names Supporting Organization."

Presenters include:
Elisa Cooper – ICANN Business Constituency
Kristina Rosette – ICANN Intellectual Property Constituency
Christian Dawson – ICANN ISPs and Connectivity Providers Constituency

To RSVP and learn how to access the webinar, follow this link: http://goo.gl/kqhD3z

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Global Broadband Internet subscriptions per 100 population

Broadband Internet subscriptions per 100 population [place cursor on map for each individual nation shown and the "All Countries Average"]: Chart indicates the number of fixed broadband Internet subscriptions per 100 population. Total fixed (wired) broadband Internet subscriptions refers to subscriptions to high-speed access to the public Internet (a TCP/IP connection), at downstream speeds equal to, or greater than, 256 kb/s. This can include, for example, cable modem, DSL, fiber-to-the-home/building, and other fixed (wired) broadband subscriptions. This total is measured irrespective of the method of payment. It excludes subscriptions that have access to data communications (including the Internet) via mobile cellular networks.

Data from World Economic Forum (Last updated: Nov 21, 2011)

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GDP per capita, GNI per capita, Correlation to Domain Names

Gross domestic product per capita in current US dollars in selected nations--India, China, South Africa, Turkey, Russia, Brazil, France, Germany, UK, US.

GDP per capita -- similar to GNI per capita (see below) which is the single biggest correlating factor in the number of registered domain names per internet user. Other factors that are also important are the absence of censorship, the availability of fast and cheap internet, and the level of content creation.

source: World Bank Data

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Negative Trends for Domain Names, Domain Name Industry

Google Trends - Web Search interest: tld, Top-level domain, domain name, icann - Worldwide, 2004 - present: TLD, Top-Level Domain, Domain Name, ICANN

Registrar Stats reported a total net loss of 3,511 registered domain names in their Total TLD Domain Counts report for September 20, 2014. Of the 10 largest gTLDs (generic Top-Level Domains), all showed a net loss of registered domain names, except for .COM, .XYZ, .ASIA, and .BERLIN. What will happen next year when it comes time for renewals of new gTLD domain names (which are generally priced higher than .COM domain names)?

Maybe ICANN is 10 years too late in launching 1000+ new TLD domain name extensions--maybe, as Chris Dixon has said, the audience and all the action is going mobile--moving towards native mobile applications, bypassing the web altogether. Whatever it is, the numbers are not impressive in most of the new gTLDs, and in recent months there's been a spate of stories negative on domain names (new gTLDs) and the domain name industry (registrars/registries)--here's a sampling:

GoDaddy’s proposed IPO--Go time or past time?

Critical Look at New gTLD Registries' Tactics

Hey domain registrars, get your sh*t together!

Why most brands may never sign the ICANN contract

Update on the Status of Already-Launched gTLDs: Is Anyone Out There?

Rightside – Short Idea – Trending on towards the Wrong-side

New TLDs: is it an awareness, acceptance or demand issue?

ICANN Insiders On New gTLDs: Mistakes, Fiascos, Horrible Implementation

Verisign Ranked #1 By Z-Score Which Predicts Companies Heading Into Serious Financial Distress

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IANA Stewardship Transition ICG Updates, ICANN 51 Webinar

IANA Stewardship Transition Coordination Group (ICG)--

1. Suggested Transition Process Timeline:

IANA Stewardship Transition Coordination Group Process Timeline (pdf)

Timeline Graphic: https://www.icann.org/en/system/files/files/icg-process-timeline-graphic-10sep14-en.xlsx [XLSX, 45 KB]

"While this timeline is aggressive, every attempt has been made to be flexible and allow all communities to participate effectively. The ICG is therefore providing this timeline for review and comment. Please provide comments by email to icg-forum@icann.org by 6 October 2014. They will be publicly archived athttp://forum.icann.org/lists/icg-forum."

2. ICG Guidelines for Decision Making (17 September 2014) (pdf)

more info:
https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/icg-activities-2014-07-18-en
https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2014-09-09-en


ICANN:  Pre-ICANN 51 Policy Update Webinar

"As ICANN 51 in Los Angeles approaches, the Policy Development Support Team is working diligently to update the global multistakeholder community on policy development work at ICANN. The team will be hosting the Pre-ICANN 51 Policy Update Webinar on Thursday 2 October 2014. There are two 90-minute sessions to allow for greater participation from around the world: 10:00 UTC and 19:00 UTC. If you plan to attend one of the webinar sessions, please RSVP by completing and submitting this form by 26 September 2014. Remote participation details will be sent the week of 29 September 2014."

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Alibaba IPO, How Big Is China's E-Commerce Growth? (video)

Alibaba IPO: Just How Big Is China's E-Commerce Growth? -

Bloomberg’s Mia Saini reports on the Chinese story in Alibaba’s IPO. She speaks on “Market Makers.” (Source: Bloomberg--Sept19)

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Alibaba IPO, Historic, Record Breaking, Rise of the Chinese Dot COMs (video)

Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba is reported to have raised $21.8 billion in a U.S. initial public offering. The company and shareholders including Yahoo sold 320.1 million shares for $68 each. Bloomberg’s Julie Hyman reports on “Taking Stock.” (Source: Bloomberg--Sept 18, 2014)

Alibaba and the rise of China's internet giants - Forum:Blog Forum:Blog | The World Economic Forum: "... After the IPO...  Alibaba will probably have a market value of around $200 billion. This will make it the world’s fifth-most-valuable TMT (Technology, Media and Telecom) company behind Apple ($614 billion), Google ($387 billion), Microsoft ($382 billion) and China Mobile ($259 billion).... After the Alibaba IPO, the aggregate value of the world’s largest 50 internet companies will be about $1.7 trillion, of which about $530 billion is accounted for by Chinese companies formed in the past 15 years. Today, 15 of the world’s 50 most valuable – and imposing – internet companies are Chinese which, beyond Alibaba, include Tencent, Baidu, JD.com, VIP Shop, Qihoo and CTrip. Add up the combined value of a handful of companies brewed in the US – eBay, Twitter, Netflix and Priceline – and you would still require about another $20 billion in order to match Alibaba’s market capitalization..."--Michael Moritz, Chairman of Sequoia Capital

Domain Names of Companies referenced above:
alibaba.com
alibabagroup.com
yahoo.com
apple.com
google.com
microsoft.com
www.chinamobileltd.com
tencent.com
baidu.com
jd.com
vip.com
qihoo.com | 360.cn | 360safe.com
ctrip.com
ebay.com
twitter.com
netflix.com
priceline.com
sequoiacap.com

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Peter Thiel: Google More Dominant Than Facebook, Apple, Amazon (video)

Peter Thiel: Google More Dominant Than Facebook, Apple -

Peter Thiel discusses Google, Facebook, Apple, and Amazon. He speaks with Bloomberg's Emily Chang on "Studio 1.0." He says Google is more dominant due to its core search technology. (Source: Bloomberg-Sep 17, 2014)

Peter Thiel - Wikipedia: ".. (born October 11, 1967) is an American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and hedge fund manager. Thiel cofounded PayPal with Max Levchin and Elon Musk and served as its CEO. He also cofounded Palantir, of which he is chairman. He serves as president of Clarium Capital, a global macro hedge fund with $700 million in assets under management; a managing partner in Founders Fund, a venture capital fund with $2 billion in assets under management; and cofounder and investment committee chair of Mithril Capital Management. He was the first outside investor in Facebook, the popular social-networking site, with a 10.2% stake acquired in 2004 for $500,000, and sits on the company's board of directors. Thiel was ranked #293 on the Forbes 400 in 2011, with a net worth of $1.5 billion as of March 2012... Thiel lives in San Francisco, California..."

"Google has a huge new moat. In fact, I've probably never seen such a wide moat."
 - Charlie Munger, 2009

10 Years Of Google And The Importance Of Long-Term Thinking - Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) | Seeking Alpha: " Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) celebrated the 10-year anniversary of its IPO last week."

Domain Names of Companies referenced:
amazon.com
apple.com
facebook.com
google.com
mithril.com
clarium.com
foundersfund.com
paypal.com
palantir.com

see also: 
Google Domains -- Google's Domain Name Registrar
Google Registry -- Google's new gTLDs Registry

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Yahoo Value Without Alibaba? (video)

What Is Yahoo Really Worth Without Alibaba? -

Yahoo, which owns part of Alibaba, stands to gain a lot of cash in the Alibaba IPO, but what is the value of Yahoo without Alibaba? Senior Research Analyst at Pivotal Research, Brian Wieser, discusses Alibaba’s impact on Yahoo’s valuation. Weiser owns no stock in Yahoo. Shutterstock CEO Jonathan Oringer also speaks on “Market Makers.” (Source: Bloomberg Sept 16)

Yahoo's business strategy going forward and ability to convert its Alibaba cash into profitable business is the big unknown.

Domain Names referenced:
yahoo.com
alibaba.com
alibabagroup.com

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Chinese Dot COM Alibaba Increasing IPO Price

How Alibaba Works: Explained With 280 Pairs of Pants -
Alibaba's IPO could be the biggest in history. Bloomberg's Sam Grobart explains how Alibaba works through the experience of ordering 280 pairs of pants manufactured overseas. Video by: Dan Przygoda, David Yim (Source: Bloomberg - Published on Sep 14, 2014)

Alibaba Plans to Boost IPO Price on Strong Demand - Bloomberg: "Alibaba aims to be a global company and plans to expand its business in Europe, the U.S. and Asia, [Jack] Ma told reporters before the investor luncheon. Ma, a 50-year-old former school teacher, is China’s richest person with a net worth of $21.9 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The company is seeking to list after valuations for technology shares rose to a 4 1/2-year high, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The Nasdaq Composite Index (CCMP) climbed to the highest since March 2000 on Sept. 2, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index hit a fresh record three days later and a gauge of Chinese stocks in the U.S. traded near a three-year high. At the original range, Alibaba’s market value was as high as $162.7 billion, which was conservative relative to peers. At the top end, the company was asking for about 29 times three analysts’ estimates for earnings in the year through March 2015, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Chinese Internet peer Baidu Inc. trades at about 35 times estimates of this year’s earnings, while Tencent Holdings Ltd. trades at 37 times. A valuation of 35 times would imply a price of nearly $80 a share for Alibaba. Amazon.com Inc. fetches closer to 136 times forecast 2014 earnings." (read more at link above)

Domain Names referenced:
alibaba.com
alibabagroup.com
amazon.com
baidu.com
tencent.com

More info: Alibaba SEC F-1 filings

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World Economic Forum + Larry Strickling + China + Fadi Chehade?

World Economic Forum, NTIA's Larry Strickling, China, ICANN's Fadi Chehade--Internet governance politics certainly makes strange bedfellows! China's internet censorship is among the worst in the world--see video below--


Bloomberg’s Mia Saini examines the history of Alibaba’s relationship with China and United States investors weighing the risks of doing business with Alibaba. She speaks with Betty Liu on “In The Loop.” (Source: Bloomberg Sept. 12, 2014)

World Economic Forum press release - Internet Rules Should Be Made by All, Not Only by Governments: "A governments-only International Telecommunications Union conference in October may let governments set the rules of the internet and push other stakeholders to the side, US official Lawrence Strickling warned participants at the eighth Annual Meeting of the New Champions that is taking place in Tianjin, China, on 10-12 September 2014... “What has driven the internet is the absence of government in much of the process,” said Strickling, who is Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information and Administrator, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), USA. “We need to find a way to keep governments participating, but must take great care to avoid having governments take over.” China, which now accounts for one out of every five internet users worldwide, supports multistakeholder decision-making, said Lu Wei, Minister, Cyberspace Administration of the People's Republic of China. “We must seek common ground while serving our differences.” But national sovereignty must be respected. While China welcomes all internet companies, they must respect its laws, protect the national interest and safeguard the rights of consumers. “Freedom and order are twins,” he said. “But your freedom should not come at the pain of others. We need to have public security. We need to respect the laws and regulations of host countries to ensure the orderly development of the internet.” Fadi Chehade, Chief Executive Officer, Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), USA, urged governments, civil society, the business community, technologists and other parties to come together. “We don’t need 15 years to finalize a treaty,” he said. “Some solutions are local, some are global. We have to accept and understand this reality.”..."

ref. International Telecommunications Union (ITU) conference in October

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Alibaba IPO Closing Books Early Amid Demand; Pre-IPO Roadshow Videos

(Allow video to load after clicking play or go to link below)

Alibaba IPO: Closing Books Early Amid Demand: Video - Bloomberg: "Scarlet Fu updates the latest news on Alibaba’s IPO on “Bloomberg Surveillance.” (Source: Bloomberg Sept 12)"

Alibaba's Pre-IPO Roadshow Videos Are A Must-Watch - Alibaba Group Holding Limited (Pending:BABA) | Seeking Alpha: "In advance of its upcoming IPO, Alibaba (Pending:BABA) has released a series of videos explaining the company’s mission to potential investors. The videos, which have been online for several days at Retail Roadshow, describe the company’s numerous shopping platforms and how each of them has impacted the lives of ordinary Chinese consumers... an excellent overview of the company’s products and how it influences China’s retail infrastructure. If you’re hazy on the nuances behind Alibaba’s business model or numerous services, it’s well worth viewing...." (read more at the link above)

Other Links re: Alibaba:
Alibaba IPO: Assessment Of Risks, Rewards - Alibaba Group Holding Limited (Pending:BABA) | Seeking Alpha
Alibaba IPO Demand Strong; May Close Deal Early And Boost Price - Alibaba Group Holding Limited (Pending:BABA) | Seeking Alpha:
Will Alibaba Disrupt U.S. E-Commerce? The Man Who Should Know - Alibaba Group Holding Limited (Pending:BABA) | Seeking Alpha

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Why Yahoo Faced Massive Fines for Opposing the NSA (video)

Yahoo: Why It Faced Massive Fines for Opposing the NSA: Video - Bloomberg:
(Allow video to load after clicking play or go to link above)

IDC Chief Research Officer Crawford Del Prete discusses NSA requests for internet users’ data and expectations for privacy. He speaks on “Bloomberg West.” (Source: Bloomberg, Sept 12, 2014)

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Internet Governance, US State Department Video, Help or Hindrance?

Dear US @StateDept: please stfu. By making this simplistic propaganda, http://t.co/ks65cxHgDc you discredit the cause you purport to be for
— Milton Mueller (@miltonmueller) September 11, 2014

Dr. Mueller is referring to the video below, and the reason he is telling the US State Department to stfu is referenced in the Washington Post excerpt further below:

The Internet Belongs to Everyone - YouTube:

Why the video--and why now?

The State Department’s plan to spark a global SOPA-style uprising around Internet governance - The Washington Post: "... things are more complicated as other countries and advocates coalesce their opposition to the current way of doing things... an ongoing debate over how the Internet's standards and practices should be decided. It has long operated under a unique "multistakeholder model" in which governments, NGOs, academia, individuals and others all focused on consensus-driven decision-making, under the ICANN umbrella. But there's a push to expand the ITU's purview to include Internet governance ... The issue will likely come up again at the quadrennial ITU Plenipotentiary happening in late October in Busan, South Korea...."

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ICANN Economic Study RFP, Global Domain Name System Market

Interesting RFP--this should have been done on a regular basis beginning years ago (and certainly before new gTLDs were ever authorized); hopefully the contractor chosen will be unbiased and competent--if you know of any competent, qualified candidate, please pass this along:

Request for Proposal for Economic Study - ICANN: ICANN Announcement September 8, 2014:

"The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers ("ICANN") is seeking one or more provider(s) to conduct an economic study examining pricing trends and other competition indicators in the global domain name system (DNS) market. The selected provider(s) will design and execute an initial study to create a meaningful baseline of data on multiple factors of competition and will perform a follow-on study one year later, to generate and analyze a set of comparison data. ICANN is seeking one or more qualified providers to manage this complex exercise in a timely and efficient manner.

"ICANN anticipates a contract to be signed and work to begin with the selected provider(s) no later than November 2014.

"As part of ICANN's Affirmation of Commitments ("Affirmation"), ICANN has pledged to promote competition, consumer trust, and consumer choice. The Affirmation outlines ICANN's responsibilities to the global community of Internet users, who are all served by the DNS. The Affirmation focuses on three primary areas of accountability: (a) ensuring accountability, transparency and the interests of global Internet users; (b) preserving security, stability and resiliency of the DNS; and (c) promoting competition, consumer trust and consumer choice. Each of the focus areas includes regular reviews by the community to gauge ICANN's performance.

"The economic study will capture some of the metrics proposed by ICANN's community to evaluate the impact of the New gTLD Program on competition, consumer choice and consumer trust. A multi-stakeholder review team, to be formed, will include the findings as it examines other measures of competition, such as survey findings on end users' perceived choice in the DNS, as well as the quantities of new gTLD operators, service providers, registrars, domain name registrations, and other metrics. The review may also provide recommendations to ICANN on additional initiatives that should be undertaken.

"As the DNS serves a large ecosystem of registries, registry service operators, registrars and resellers, and domain name registrants, the study must be able to capture inputs in a representative manner from across the multitude of players relevant to marketplace practices.

"For additional information and instructions for submitting responses please click here [ZIP, 799 KB].

"Proposals should be submitted to economicstudy-rfp@icann.org by 23:59 UTC on 29 September 2014." (source: ICANN, emphasis added)

Questions: 

• What data, specifically, is being collected? What methodologies of data collection and analysis are being used? What data, specifically, is not being collected, or not able to be "captured" that might be relevant?
• Who is interpreting the data? The data may be subject to multiple interpretations. Therefore, will ICANN disclose the raw data, the methodologies used for collection and analysis, and alternative interpretations?
• How is ICANN (or anyone else) measuring (what are the "metrics") "competition, consumer choice and consumer trust"? These are loaded terms with multiple meanings depending on the vested interests at stake.

Recommendation to ICANN: If ICANN wants an unbiased, competent, valid study, it should automatically disqualify anyone from, or referred by, any member of the so-called Domain Name Association--this is the industry group representing, principally, some of the new gTLD registry operators and others in alliance with their self-seeking goals, which may be detrimental to the interests of the domain name industry as a whole or the wider public interest--the conflict of interest is obvious.

Report submitted by: contributing editor, John Poole, Domain Mondo

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Free Webinar on Building a Website

Attention Small Business Owners and others:

Free Webinar September18: Building a Website Made Easy 

Meeting Description: "If you’ve been on the fence about building a website for your business, there’s no reason to wait any longer. In this webinar sponsored by Verisign, you’ll learn about the essentials of a website, how to approach the process, and get a live, hands-on demonstration building a website using a popular, free website building tool." 

Sponsored by: Verisign, Inc.

Presenter: Edison Guzman - SCORE Mentor & Owner, A&E Advertising and Web Design

"As Chair of the Orange NY SCORE, Edison Guzman advises people on how to start and grow a business. Having been an entrepreneur since 1991, Edison understands the survival skills a business must possess in order to thrive in any economic condition."

Duration: 1 Hour

When: Thursday, September 18, 2014 at 1:00 PM Eastern / 10:00AM Pacific

Host: SCORE Association

More info and Registration

[Note: This posting is not sponsored, nor an endorsement. expvc.com has no relationship with the presenter or SCORE, and is providing this information solely as a courtesy to those who may find the webinar informative or useful. Questions and further information about the webinar should be directed to the sponsor, SCORE, at the link above]

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Alibaba, Jack Ma, His Vision, 1999 Video, Domain Names

Alibaba IPO: Jack Ma's Original Sales Pitch in 1999: Video - Bloomberg:
(Allow video to load after clicking play or go to link above)

In this video clip from 1999, Jack Ma delivers a speech to 17 friends in his apartment to introduce Alibaba and lay out his plan to compete with U.S. internet titans. For more, check out "Crocodile in the Yangtze: The Alibaba Story," on Bloomberg Television (source: Bloomberg)

Alibaba's Domain Names and more info:
alibaba.com
alibabagroup.com
taobao.com
tmall.com
aliexpress.com
1688.com
alimama.com
aliyun.com
alipay.com

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Evolutıon of Internet Governance Ecosystem and the role of the IGF (video)

IGF 2014 - Maın/Focus sessıon: Evolutıon of ınternet governance ecosystem and the role of the IGF:

IGF 2014 - Maın/Focus sessıon: Evolutıon of ınternet governance ecosystem and the role of the IGF
(program starts at: 32:15) Streamed live on Sept 4, 2014
Session 1: Evolution of the IG Internet Ecosystem – Viewpoints from IG Players
1. Benedicto Fonseca Filho (Brazil)
2. Kathy Brown (ISOC) (TC)
3. Fadi Chehade (ICANN)
4. Vint Cerf (Google) (Private Sector)

Format/Agenda
"This main session will use a ‘town hall’ approach with Session one relying on senior leaders from various organizations in the Internet Governance “Ecosystem” on how the IG Ecosystem is evolving, what issues and external factors and key activities are driving changes. This is followed by engagement with participants in the room. The focus includes global processes and initiatives: NETmundial, the CSTD Working group on Enhanced Co-operation; UN-CSTD, WSIS +10 Review, ITU, ICANN, UNESCO, UNGA Resolution on WSIS Review Modalities, etc, which will inform the dialogue and engagement of participants in the room, and following remotely....."

Description of Issue:
"The Internet has been an engine of growth and development, bringing connectivity that bridges countries and cultures, connecting individuals, businesses, enterprises, and governments. The Internet and the resources it connects can inform, educate and empower and is a source of knowledge. Its contribution to social, cultural and economic growth and opportunity is recognized, but with its increased role and importance to societies, individuals and economies, comes key questions of governance, accountability, misuse, access. Governments and organizations and individuals understandably turn to models they understand or are familiar with to address concerns they view about the use, and potential misuse of the Internet. As the Internet expands, existing organizations, such as the UN agencies, regional organizations, and others are examining their roles. Newer organizations that follow more of the technical community’s bottom up governance approach, such as ICANN, now co exist alongside older intergovernmental organizations. The IGF was created by agreements in the Tunis Agenda, to further examine the kinds of issues and challenges emerging regarding the Internet’s governance.

"Since 2006, the IGF has been a platform for stakeholders to come together on an equal footing to discuss, exchange ideas and share good practices with each other. While recognizing that there are no negotiated outcomes from the IGF, over the years the IGF has both inspired those with policy making power and acted as a platform to build bridges and engage in dialogue. While many are embracing the engagement of stakeholders more directly in decisions and governance, others remain concerned that more intergovernmental oversight over the Internet is needed. Numerous discussions during 2013 and 2014 have continued to elevate these debates.

"Today, national policy makers and global policy makers, alongside various stakeholders are engaging in developing approaches to deal with key issues, whether about bringing connectivity to the unconnected, or addressing rules for protection of individual privacy online, or security of networks. A debate about who does what, and who should drive the Internet ecosystem has evolved rapidly.

"While over the years the IGF has also become a space that discusses solutions, questions continue about what next for the IGF? And for the other existing institutions and organizations? How should the IGF co exist with other structures? What is the best way to give developing countries the similar opportunities as wealthier nations to engage in the debate on Internet governance."

The speakers and representatives of key stakeholder groups in the IG Ecosystem Session have been identified in an effort to be as inclusive of many of the major IG organizations. The second session brings speakers from different stakeholder groups who are experienced and knowledgeable about the IGF, as well as other key fora. Participation from the room will be critical to hear new voices.

Co-Moderators:
Jovan Kubalija, DIPLO – NGO
Nermine el-Saadany – Egypt – Government [former host country of IGF and V. Chair, WSIS +10 MPP]

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Enhancing ICANN Accountability, New Comment Period on Process

Enhancing ICANN Accountability Process - ICANN: "In response to community request, ICANN is opening a 21-day comment period on Enhancing ICANN Accountability Process posted on 14 August 2014. Community input after the posting highlighted that, given the importance of this issue, the community needs more time to ensure that as many stakeholders as possible can review proposals and post questions and comments. Comment Period: 6 Sep 2014 - 27 Sep 2014 23:59 UTC"

Apparently the ICANN community can not agree on an Enhancing ICANN Accountability Process. Various ICANN insiders a/k/a stakeholders (see list under "Background Materials" here) objected to the process developed by ICANN staff after public comments had been received twice--initially and then again after publishing a first draft of a proposed process. So, everything substantive is now on hold for another comment period open from September 6-27, 2014.

According to ICANN, the "decision to post this comment period is based on 3 factors:

1. A request from the community for more time to discuss with their constituencies the process posted, allowing for a broader consideration of the process before moving ahead.
2. The emphasis made by the U.S. government at ICANN's Town Hall Meeting at the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Istanbul that the enhancement of ICANN's accountability mechanisms be narrowly focused on those related to the IANA Functions Stewardship Transition, that is reiterating its focus is on the changing historical contractual relationship with the US, and that both the transition and accountability processes be delivered simultaneously by September 2015 when the IANA contract expires.
3. Consideration of recent questions submitted by ICANN community leaders, requesting clarification on several issues concerning the posted process."

Note that this "Comment Period" is not for substantive issues concerning ICANN Accountability--"issues and solutions are not under discussion here. The question for this public comment discussion is: Are there any final modifications or improvements needed to the Enhancing ICANN Accountability process design to allow for this discussion to proceed?" (source: ICANN)

We asked John Poole of Domain Mondo for his take on all this, here's what he had to say:

"I am not an 'ICANN insider' so I am not privy to 'all information,' but I heard Theresa Swinehart explain the process at the IGF Town Hall, and from her explanation [and given the reality that this will be an ICANN Board and US government driven process] I see it as a good process which reaches out to those outside ICANN in the wider global internet community, for both general input and expertise. As explained by Ms. Swinehart, the process allows anyone in the world to participate. What is wrong with that? Well, remember the insiders--their vested interests, viewpoints (some of which I am sure are valid), privileged positions, egos, etc., have somehow been slighted, they believe, and they are blaming the ICANN staff (who only did what staff are supposed to do). Apparently there is an on-going power struggle between various factions within ICANN, and frankly, I am now more fearful of some of the vested interest stakeholders within ICANN than any government or outside group. Some of the proposals I have seen circulated by some of these insiders are absolutely ridiculous, e.g., ICANN should have two Boards of Directors; multi-stakeholders should have the power to discipline ICANN staff; Verisign should not only have an exclusive market-dominant monopoly on the .COM Registry in perpetuity, but be able to charge whatever it wants for registration and renewal fees (no wonder Warren Buffett is loading up on Verisign stock!). Where all of this is heading, I do not know, but in the end it may not matter. I believe we may be at a tipping point in Internet governance. It wouldn't take much--France, India, Russia, China, plus others in the developing world, may find the end results of the IANA transition or ICANN accountability processes unacceptable. In that case, all bets are off."

Links:
https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-08-2014-09-05-en
https://www.icann.org/public-comments/enhancing-accountability-2014-09-05-en
https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2014-08-14-en
https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/process-next-steps-2014-08-14-en
https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/enhancing-accountability-2014-05-06-en
Enhancing Accountability (ICANN Search)
Enhancing Accountability Process--Comments Forum

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IANA Transition Coordination Group Meeting, Saturday, September 6

ICG Meeting Agenda -  6 Sept 2014

Reminder: Next Meeting of ICG to follow IGF in Istanbul - ICANN:

"The next face-to-face meeting of the IANA Stewardship Transition Coordination Group (ICG) will take place on 6 September 2014 following the Ninth Annual IGF Meeting in Istanbul, Turkey.  9 am local time (Istanbul)--time conversion  (2 am EDT-US)

Current ISTANBUL Time:

"Similar to the London Meeting, the community will be able to follow the ICG's second meeting through a Virtual Meeting Room and through audio translations into these languages:

English
Français
Español
中文
Pусский
العربية
Português

"In addition, there will be a real time text provided outside of the Virtual Meeting Room available to the community."

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IANA stewardship transition, ICANN accountability process, IGF 2014

Friday at the Internet Governance Forum--IGF 2014--September 5 • 9:30am - 11:00am {2:30am EDT (US)}: Main/Focus Session: IANA Functions: NTIA's Stewardship Transition and ICANN's Accountability Process - watch replay--audio starts at 5:46:

"In March 2014, the United States National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced its intent to transition its stewardship of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) function to the global multi-stakeholder community. The IANA function is a technical administrative function relating to three categories of Internet identifiers: Internet protocol parameters, Internet Protocol addresses, and Internet domain names. Policy development relating to these three categories takes place outside of the technical administration of the IANA function. Various parties, such as the Internet Engineering Task Force, the regional communities associated with the Regional Internet Registries, and Supporting Organisations within the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), develop these policies, which are then translated into the technical fabric of the Internet by the IANA team. This process ensures that the Internet remains the globally unique resource that we are all familiar with today.

"The IANA function is performed by ICANN, pursuant to a contract between ICANN and the NTIA. Discussion about the stewardship of the IANA function has generated a parallel discussion about accountability within ICANN. From an organisational perspective, this discussion focuses on how ICANN’s broader accountability mechanisms should be strengthened to address the absence of its historical contractual relationship with the US Government. While separate from the IANA stewardship transition discussion, the process on enhancing ICANN’s accountability is a key component to the success of the IANA stewardship transition.

"The IGF enables the global community to further deliberate on these two issues: the transition of NTIA’s stewardship of the IANA functions and the parallel process of enhancing ICANN’s accountability. This Main Focus Session will have been successful if participants leave feeling better informed on these two interrelated processes.

"Thus this session will be divided into two parts: the first will discuss the transition of NTIA’s stewardship role, and the second will discuss the impact of the transition on ICANN’s accountability scheme. For each part, the session will provide questions that both panelists and audience members can respond to. The session will open with a brief background on the IANA functions.

Relevant questions include the following:
Transition of NTIA's Stewardship of the IANA Functions:
1. How is the IANA transition discussion evolving?
2. How will the various parties involved in the IANA functions be affected by these proposals?
3. What are the expectations with respect to the timeline and how could the process improve to meet the deadline?

Enhancing ICANN Accountability:
1. What are the guiding principles to ensure that the notion of accountability is understood and accepted globally?
2. What features does the community identify as being core to strengthening ICANN's overall accountability in the absence of its historical contractual relationship to the U.S. Government?
3. What are the means by which the global community is assured that ICANN is meeting its accountability commitments?

Chair
Mr. Nihat Sümer, Vice-President, Information and Communications Technologies Authority, Turkey
Moderators
For Panel No 1 on IANA stewardship: Nii Quaynor, University of Cape-Coast, Ghana.
For Panel No 2 on ICANN accountability: Matthew Shears, Center for Democracy and Technology.

Panelists for the IANA stewardship transition:
Joseph Alhadeff, Chair of the ICC Commission on the Digital Economy;
Andrew Sullivan, IAB
Narelle Clark, Internet Society;
Byron Holland, President and CEO, Canadian Internet Registration Authority, Chair, ccNSO;
Manal Ismail, National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency of Egypt;
Valentina Pavel Burloiu, Association for Technology and Internet, Romania.

Panelists for ICANN’s accountability process:
Avri Doria, Researcher, ICANN, IETF and Internet Society participant;
Benedicto Fonseca, Itamaraty, Brazil;
Towela Nyirenda-Jere, NEPAD;
Theresa Swinehart, ICANN;
Paul Wilson, APNIC.

IGF2014 concludes Friday, September 5, 2014, at Istanbul, Turkey:

IGF 2014 Schedule
IGF Webcast Info
IGF2014 Video Replay

IGF YouTube Channel
IGF Live Tweets

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