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House Leaders Urge Preservation Of ICANN Role
House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman John Dingell and ranking member Joe Barton joined 14 other colleagues on Tuesday in sending a letter to Commerce Secretary Gutierrez praising the administration's continued oversight of the international entity charged with administering the Internet.
The lawmakers also asked the Commerce Department to comment on the possibility of an overseas relocation of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which is currently based in Marina Del Ray, Calif. Rumors have swirled in recent years that some foreign government and industry stakeholders want ICANN's headquarters to move to Brussels.
The concern comes as ICANN's leaders gradually try to transition the coordination of technical functions of the Web to the private sector. "Any change that threatens the important U.S. role in promoting U.S. commercial and free speech principles on the Internet can only hurt the consumers and businesses that count on this network every day," they wrote.
The letter requests a response to a handful of questions about ICANN's future within two weeks time. While ICANN remains the "best option for reaching consensus in an increasingly divided world," members said the organization should ensure transparency and promote greater accountability in its operations. ICANN constituents meet several times a year and their next meeting is scheduled for June 22-26 in Paris, France.
Posted by Andrew on May 6, 2008 11:50 PM | Permalink
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