The U.S. Commerce Department said on Friday it would retain oversight for three more years of the company that manages Internet domain names, renewing an agreement that was scheduled to expire this weekend.The government said it signed a new agreement with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which controls addresses such as ".com" and country domain names such as ".cn" for China.
The U.S. government has previously said it plans to eventually turn over complete control of ICANN, a nonprofit group, to the private sector. The new agreement calls for a review in 2008 of ICANN's progress towards becoming more accountable, the Commerce Department said.
U.S. Keeps Control Of Web Domain Group ICANN [today.reuters.co.uk]
The U.S. government has previously said it plans to eventually turn over complete control of ICANN, a nonprofit group, to the private sector.
Now, who went and screwed up an otherwise perfectly working system by getting the public involved in the latest round of incestuous policymaking?
Not ICANN.
Don't talk about U.S. government intervention without first talking about ICANN's own failure to govern itself. The Department of Commerce should loosen their reigns over ICANN for what reason? So the ICANN fiefdom can perpetuate their recent behavior as a fully autonomous body?
[edited by: Webwork at 2:50 pm (utc) on Sep. 30, 2006]
As a government unto itself, ICANN is thusfar a failed enterprise as a democracy, where meetings are held in remote closets, where disclosure of "facts" developed at closeted meetings - the alleged facts underlying policy changes - are not publicly disclosed, and where conflicts of interest are the voice and the glue of policymaking:nice statement...
If ICANN follow the improvements in the new agreement it should give the internet 3 years of stability within an increasingly accountable framework and that has to be good for everyone.
Ok y're saying ICANN cannot be trusted if on it's own, then what about the UN the ITU? or another INTERNATIONAL body?
You people are forgetting that the US is One country among over 100 relying on ICANN policies/operations, what should the US gov retain control over ICANN?
Because Al Gore invented the Internet, a series of tubes. ;)
Ok y're saying ICANN cannot be trusted if on it's own, then what about the UN the ITU? or another INTERNATIONAL body?
As badly as ICANN is managed now, I cannot imagine how horribly run it would be if the UN got a hold of it.
then what about the UN the ITU? or another INTERNATIONAL body
Oh dearie me, there are things potentially worse than ICANN. :P
Posts of generalized nationalist sentiment, pro or con, will be removed (and have been removed).
Remember, it's WebmasterWORLD - a place where we, of many nationalities, all labor to get along . . . just like the U.N. . . only we do better job of getting along.
P.S. The posts above have nothing to do with my comments.
[edited by: Webwork at 3:35 pm (utc) on Oct. 2, 2006]
