Tech Daily Dose

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.

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Brand Owners Urged To 'Say ICANN'

The Coalition Against Domain Name Abuse planned to send an e-mail to thousands of brand owners on Thursday urging them to get involved in the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the global body that administers the World Wide Web.

The group's cleverly phrased May Day message, "Say ICANN," is aimed at curbing abusive practices of certain Internet registrars and registrants, Tech Daily Dose has learned. "Suspicious new registrar activities such as domain front running and the proposal of a new voting structure that will strengthen the strangle hold that registrars and registries have on the ICANN process necessitate immediate action on the part of brand owners," the e-mail said.

Recently, concerns have been raised about domain name "tasting" and "kiting." Tasting is when an entity registers several Web addresses and exploits a five-day grace period, during which names can be returned for refunds. Kiting is repeatedly adding and dropping domains to avoid registration costs while making money off pay-per-click links.

Four CADNA members -- AIG, Dell, Eli Lilly, and DirecTV -- have already answered the call by pledging to join ICANN’s business constituency, officials said. "Currently, domain industry insiders dominate ICANN’s membership and often sway decisions in their favor," the e-mail argues. ICANN's next meeting will take place in Paris, France in June.

According to ICANN's business constituency site, its membership outreach already extends directly to over 50,000 companies and indirectly to over 1.5 million companies worldwide. Some big-name members include eBay, Microsoft, News Corp., Nokia, Walt Disney Co., Time Warner, and Verizon.

View CADNA's "Say ICANN" page here.

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ICANN Digs, Finds More Space On The Net

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers has found a little breathing room in the existing address space known as IPv4 with its recovery of a block of 16 million addresses. The IP addresses recovered were once used to connect older protocol packet-data networks with the fledgling Internet, according to a press release.

A small percentage of the addresses had been assigned, most more than 15 years ago. The assignments were so old that finding people who knew about them was a lengthy process. Nearly 50 organizations worked cooperatively with ICANN staff last year to confirm that the 984 registrations were no longer in use.

While the reclamation of the IPv4 space is a temporary fix, Barbara Roseman of ICANN's Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, said "the real and lasting solution is the technical move to IPv6 -- the protocol that will make 340 trillion trillion trillion unique IP addresses available."

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ICANN Debuts Revamped Public Participation Site

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers revved up its public participation Web site last week in anticipation of the group's upcoming meeting in New Delhi, India. The site boasts colorful graphics and improved functionality and usability.

The online destination will provide an estimated 700 physical attendees and several hundred virtual visitors with all the information they need to participate in the Feb. 10-15 meeting. Look for meeting agendas, presentations and transcripts as well as links to chat rooms and audiocasts from the event. More information about the meeting can be found here.

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Some Tried To 'Hijack' Internet Talks In Rio

"Governments who want to stomp-out dissidents or just stick a finger in the American eye" attempted to "hijack" some of the conversations held by participants at the Internet Governance Forum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil this week, according to one industry source.

For them, the term "protecting critical Internet resources" has become a euphemism for "killing ICANN," the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which administers the Web addressing system, wrote Steve DelBianco, executive director of the e-commerce trade group NetChoice.

"The motivations of repressive regimes are obvious, but as I've stated before, those who see ICANN as a mechanism for American imperialism over the Internet are grossly overestimating the power of ICANN," he wrote on his blog. Read more here.

Technology Daily has been following the IGF too:
• Participants At Brazil Forum Hail Its Open Process
• The Net As 'A Tool Of Repression'
• Cuban Official's Calls For Net Change
• Call For 'Net Bill Of Rights' Opposed
• U.S. Likes Structure For Net Policy

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ICANN Urges Greater International Involvement

The chairman of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which administers the Web addressing system, made a plea to participants at a Web policy summit in Brazil to get involved with his group.

"Whoever you are, wherever you are, if you are interested in finding out more about ICANN, or its work, the door is open. Please walk in," Peter Dengate Thrush told attendees of the Internet Governance Forum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Thursday.

ICANN's organizational model allows all to contribute, from business to governments to the technical community to everyday Internet users, he said. The group's transparency has been routinely criticized but it is trying to improve its image in international circles.

Thrush said a new e-mail address -- get-involved@icann.org -- has been set up for those who wish to learn more about ICANN's structure and to get involved. "We will be glad to hear from you," he said. Read more about the forum in Technology Daily's PM Edition.

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Vint Cerf's 'Exit Interview'

On the heels of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers' fall meeting in Los Angeles last week, Technology Daily's "Issue Of The Week" feature appropriately focuses on Vint Cerf, who left his post as ICANN chairman on Friday.

In an interview conducted shortly before the meeting began, Cerf reminisced with me about his lengthy tenure as the face of ICANN and the organization's biggest challenges and successes over the years. He also spoke candidly about his plans for the future (hint: Oprah's Book Club better be on the lookout). Read the article here.

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YouTube Star Sighting In LA

I hadn’t intended to run into any Web celebrities during my time at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers fall meeting in Los Angeles (with the exception of ICANN Chairman Vint Cerf, of course).

So imagine my surprise when I encountered a stick-thin, mascara-wearing, bleached blonde at a trendy restaurant on Sunset Boulevard. That's right, I'm about 99 percent sure that a friend and I had a run-in with YouTube sensation Chris Crocker. Then again, it could have been Courtney Love.

Crocker, if you'll recall, made headlines earlier this year with his dramatic defense of beleaguered pop singer Britney Spears. Shortly after the Tennessee native's foray into the public eye, there were rumors of him getting his own reality television show. Perhaps that's what brought him to La-La Land?

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My First ICANN Meeting

Although I wasn’t able to stay for the entire week, I wanted to post a few thoughts about my first experience covering a global gathering of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers in person.

Since meetings are typically held in far-flung locales like Portugal, Morocco and New Zealand, I usually follow key sessions via webcast. When I heard that the fall meeting would be held in Los Angeles, I knew I had to attend.

My first observation is that members of the ICANN community are extremely committed. They wake up early for pre-meeting meetings; engage in heated discussions all day long; and continue those debates over cocktails and hors d'oeuvres. Some even engage in late-night strategy sessions to prep for the next day.

Secondly, ICANN meeting participants are scarily smart. They eat, sleep and breathe the World Wide Web -- and it shows. Their knowledge of all things Internet-related was demonstrated at each session I attended and in every conversation I had with them -- both on and off-the-record.

It's worth noting that the group is truly a multi-stakeholder entity with participants from nearly every corner of the world. That was illustrated by the row of translation booths in the back of the main conference hall that made large sessions immediately available in a variety of languages.

Continue reading "My First ICANN Meeting" »

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ICANN Celebrates Vint Cerf At Los Angeles Gala

Hundreds of members of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers community celebrated the tenure of longtime chairman Vint Cerf on Tuesday night at Sony Pictures Studios in Los Angeles. Cerf, who also serves as Google's chief Internet evangelist, leaves his ICANN post later this week.

"Vint was very much a part of the ICANN model's creation. No individual, no country, no company controls the Internet. Instead, it is the Internet community that drives the ICANN agenda," ICANN President Paul Twomey said.

"People may not realize that Vint, like all members of the ICANN board, serve the ICANN community as volunteers. It's an incredible sacrifice made in the name of a stronger and better single globally interoperable Internet. That model works," he added.

Twomey led a series of tributes at the gala, which included speeches from Ira Magaziner, who oversaw the Clinton White House policy on the Internet that led to the creation of ICANN, and Steve Crocker, chair of ICANN's Security and Stability Advisory Committee and Cerf's life-long friend.

Read more about Cerf's time at ICANN in Technology Daily's "Issue of the Week" on Monday.

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Harry Potter Attends ICANN Meeting?

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers' 30th meeting in Los Angeles this week drew a broad cross-section of stakeholders from the United States and around the world -- and apparently a fictional storybook character or two.

A quick scan of ICANN's published list of 623 pre-registered attendees, which the group posted on its conference Web site, includes an entry for "Harry Potter" from the U.K. whose affiliation is listed as "Hogwarts."

Potter is the main character of a series of fantasy novels written by British author J.K. Rowling that have been remade for the big screen. The stories about the adolescent wizard are largely set at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a school for young wizards and witches.

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ICANN On Ice & 'Constituency Day'

An ice sculpture of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers' logo wowed guests at a Monday night reception. Read more about ICANN's meeting in Technology Daily's PM Edition.

Tuesday is “Constituency Day” where the different elements of ICANN’s supporting organizations hold their own meetings to discuss the latest developments and their positions on matters likely to be raised later in the week. There will be an evening gala at Sony Pictures Studios with a special tribute to outgoing chairman Vint Cerf.

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ICANN Meeting Photos

If you can't be in Los Angeles in person for the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers' meeting, check out our Flickr photostream here. I'll be posting photos for the next few days.

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ICANN Meeting Kicks Off

Vint Cerf, the longtime chairman of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers kicked off the group's 30th meeting in Los Angeles on Monday by lauding members of his international community for their continued efforts to engage in a "rich, candid and respectful dialogue."

There is a "great deal of passion and energy to be found" among ICANN's ranks and Cerf said he has "been impressed by the maturing of ICANN dialogue into an increasingly thoughtful and substantive discussion." Cerf will step down from his post at the end of the week-long assembly.

Meanwhile, ICANN President Paul Twomey made the gathering a family affair. During the morning coffee break, I had a quick chat with his father who flew in from Sydney, Australia for the event.

The good-humored elder said that coming to the conference was an intriguing proposition but this would be his "first and last" ICANN meeting. A leg ailment limits his mobility and compulsory sightseeing over the weekend didn’t help the situation much.

Read more about the ICANN meeting in Technology Daily's PM Edition.

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ICANN Meets In La-La Land

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers meets in Los Angeles this week. Stay tuned for coverage in Technology Daily and on Tech Daily Dose. For now, enjoy a few scenic photos.

Continue reading "ICANN Meets In La-La Land" »

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ICANN Meeting Will Proceed Despite Fires

Next week's meeting of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers in Los Angeles will go on as planned, despite the massive wildfires in southern California, officials said this week on the conference Web site.

"These fires are on the outskirts of the city and are distant from the meeting venue. There is no likelihood of an impact," organizers wrote after being contacted by a number of meeting attendees. "We understand the challenges, personal stress, and loss these fires are causing in the region, and our thoughts are with our neighbors."

ICANN's 30th international meeting will take place at the Hilton Los Angeles Airport and I'll be there filing reports for Technology Daily's PM Edition and Tech Daily Dose. Stay tuned...

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ICANN Says 'Hello, New Delhi'

New Delhi will host a February meeting of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the group announced Tuesday. The body, which administers the Web-addressing system, will first converge later this month in Los Angeles (and yours truly will be on the scene).

"Growth of Internet activity in India is extraordinary so it's fitting that the ICANN community is gathering there to discuss major Internet issues like internationalized domain names and new generic top-level domains," said ICANN Vice President Paul Levins.

ICANN received four bids to host the ICANN meeting slated for the Asia-Pacific region and picked the proposal put forward by India's Department of Information Technology and the National Internet Exchange of India. Australia, Hong Kong, and the United Arab Emirates were also contenders.

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A Domain Name For NYC?

A grassroots movement is growing in support of the creation of a ".nyc" Web address for New York City, Newsday reported recently. Backers say the domain name would let the city's small businesses distinguish themselves in the crowded online marketplace.

"When Ford introduced their first car 100 years ago, no one thought to start building roads for it," said Tom Lowenhaupt of Connecting.nyc, the group leading the effort. "We ended up having to tear down miles of the Bronx to build freeways to start accommodating them all. It's the same thing now. We have the opportunity now to plan for the future and start organizing ourselves and our resources in a responsible way."

To get a top-level domain, interested parties must apply to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. In 2008, it will for the first time take applications from cities for domain names, the newspaper said.

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ICANN Says 'Oui' To Paris

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers will meet in Paris, France in June 2008, the group announced on Friday. At its Aug. 14 meeting, the ICANN Board accepted the proposal put forward by Association pour la Gouvernance de l’Internet en France, en Europe, et dans le monde.

“ICANN is looking forward to working with AGIFEM and welcoming the global Internet community to Paris,” ICANN Vice President Paul Levins said in a press release. “We had two highly competitive proposals to host the meeting slated for ICANN’s European region -- a testament to the great local Internet communities in France and Serbia.”

ICANN holds three meetings per year in different regions around the world. The group's next conference will be in Los Angeles in late October.

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ICANN Tackles 'Domain Tasting'

The organization that manages the Internet-addressing system is taking on "domain tasting" -- the exploitation of its five-day add/drop grace period for Web addresses. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is now collecting public comments on the topic, officials said Friday.

An ad hoc group within ICANN is inviting both qualitative and quantitative input, with a particular focus on statistical and other empirical evidence to support the statements received. The deadline for submissions to rfi-domaintasting@icann.org is Sept. 15, 2007. Comments can be viewed on this Web page.

Read Technology Daily's recent coverage of this issue here and here.

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ICANN Unveils Web 'Zine

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which manages the Web-addressing system, launched a new monthly magazine last week that will provide the latest news and developments within the organization to online subscribers.

Each issue will review developments in policy topics and provide details of recent board meetings as well as relay ICANN news from around the world. "We want people to understand what issues are pending before ICANN, how interested stakeholders can contribute and when decisions will be made. This magazine will help that understanding," said ICANN Vice President Paul Levins.

The publication is the latest in a series of enhancements to ICANN's accountability and transparency. Other changes included improved board reporting, a blog, an annual report and an improved Web site. Read more about the magazine here.

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Zittrain Ponders ICANN Petition

Over at the Concurring Opinions blog, Oxford University Web expert Jonathan Zittrain ponders whether the global petition for the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers to "keep the core neutral" petition is something worth signing.

Technology Daily reported on the new campaign on Thursday. Organizers want ICANN to resist efforts to evaluate proposed domain suffixes based on non-technical criteria such as ideas about morality and competing national political objectives.

Zittrain said he thinks the petition "reads a bit vague" and he finds it "hard to really care if ICANN wants to allow some names and deny others." "I don't see how a willingness to have some content-based process for determining new TLDs can become 'a convenient lever of global control by those seeking to censor unpopular or controversial expression on the Internet,'" he said.

IP Justice fellow Dan Krimm, who is spearheading the effort, responded to Zittrain's "who cares" attitude by arguing that the issue poses a slippery slope: "Allowing ICANN to establish a procedural and jurisdictional precedent in the area of domain names where non-technical public policy can be formulated on a global basis may provide a very attractive venue to expand beyond DNS to matters of more general public policy in Internet governance."

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ICANN Fueled By Rum?

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers wrapped up its conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Friday with a board meeting and a briefing with reporters. ICANN President Paul Twomey said this meeting was "very intense" and "very busy," thanks in part to the tropical surroundings.

"People were more relaxed and they got more done," he said on an afternoon conference call. ICANN Board Chairman Vint Cerf joked that the group's good spirits could be attributed to one of the U.S. territory's most important economic engines -- rum.

"I can't confirm that, but I still can't remember what happened last night," Twomey laughed, hinting that the potent alcoholic beverage was prominently featured at after-hours social gatherings.

Meanwhile, ICANN made progress this week on the issue of domain name "tasting" and "kiting." Read more in Technology Daily's PM Edition.

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ICANN Draws New Global Attendees

This week's Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico drew 33 more international voices than previous gatherings, thanks to the group's trial global fellowships program.

The fellows were chosen from 125 applicants (65 percent of the fellows and 68 percent of applicants had never attended an ICANN meeting), the group said in a press release. Ten more fellows were approved but opted to take part in ICANN's upcoming Los Angeles meeting instead.

Fellows have their hotel rooms and airfare to the meeting paid for, as well as a $300 stipend to cover incidental expenses. According to ICANN, the cost of the fellowship project for San Juan was roughly $95,000 -- but I'm sure the opportunity to witness Internet policy being shaped was priceless.

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ICANN $$$ Update

Doug Brent, chief operating officer for the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, shared some impressive budget statistics at the group's meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Monday.

He said ICANN has net revenue of $46.6 million and expenses of $41 million -- but it looks as if revenue will actually be more like $50 million, ICANN board member Susan Crawford pointed out on her blog. Click here to see Brent's presentation.

But what's driving spending? About $1.6 million on new generic top-level domains; $1 million on the At-Large Advisory Committee and outreach; almost $1 million on internationalized domain names; roughly $800,000 on compliance; $700,000 on legal; $530,000 on registrar data escrow; $400,000 on economic assistance, Crawford wrote.

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Maps Needed To Navigate ICANN?

Might a series of maps make the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers more transparent? The group, which oversees the administration of Web addresses announced it is in the process of illustrating some basic geographic details.

The data being mapped includes: the number of accredited registrars and the countries in which they are located; board and staff representation by nationality; country-code top-level-domain (ccTLD) agreements; the general location of root servers based on publicly available information; root zone "Whois" information; support for internationalized domain names at TLD registries and more.

"This is a further example of making information about ICANN more accessible so that people can understand clearly how, why and what we do," ICANN Vice President Paul Levins said in a press release.

The ICANN community is meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico this week. Read more in Technology Daily's PM Edition.

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Cybersquatting Petition Gains Steam

An online petition aimed at the head of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is generating some buzz on YouChoose.net, a new cause-oriented social-networking site. The letter urges ICANN President Paul Twomey to crack down on "cybersquatting." Nearly 600 users had signed the petition as of Friday morning.

The letter begins: "We, the undersigned, are concerned about domain name parking abuse and request that ICANN revisit the Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act and the Trademark Cyberpiracy Prevention Act to ensure that a domain names that are parked would be available for sale at a price tag that would not be considered extortion."

Read more about the campaign here. Meanwhile, ICANN will host a meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico next week. Click here for the conference site.

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ICANN Inks Deal With African Registrar

The organization that administers the Internet addressing system signed its first accreditation agreement with a Senegal-based registrar this week. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers has similar deals with 890 firms across the globe and this is only the second in Africa, ICANN's Anne-Rachel Inné said.

Kheweul.com has been accredited to register domain names from the .biz, .com, .info, .name, .net, .org, and .pro top-level domains, the group said in a press release. CEO Mouhamet Diop said his company will work hard to "provide domain name services to local African communities." He also plans to promote the digitalization of African cultural heritage and preservation of African multimedia content.

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Nasty Notes Close ICANN Forum

The governmental advisory committee for the agency that sets Internet addressing guidelines has taken its online public forum offline. The Internet Corporation for Names and Numbers panel decided to shut down the discussion board "due to obscenity and other abuse," according to a note posted on the site's homepage. ICANN watcher Bret Fausett pointed out the change on his Internet Pro Radio blog earlier this week. There has been no word on whether the forum, which was launched in 2005, will reopen.

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ICANN: .XXX Rejected

A divided ICANN board voted against a proposed .xxx ending for domain names that publish pornography on Friday. Nine board members, including Chairman Vint Cerf, voted to reject ICM Registry's latest offer, and five members voted for it. ICANN President Paul Twomey abstained from the roll-call vote. Read the full story in Technology Daily's PM edition.

Reactions were plentiful and a number of perspectives did not make it into the story, so here are a few:

Internet Commerce Association counsel Phil Corwin lauded ICANN's action. He told us immediately after the board's vote that his group opposed the deal because it would inevitably involve ICANN in "content regulation and other public policy responsibilities far beyond its narrow technical mandate."

Lauren Weinstein, co-founder of People For Internet Responsibility, strongly endorsed the decision to reject the top-level domain and commended ICANN for its work on the issue. Weinstein added that "controversies regarding 'adult entertainment' content on the Internet aren't going to vanish as a result of this vote."

Continue reading "ICANN: .XXX Rejected" »

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ICANN: Tech Daily 'Overdose' On .XXX

The group that oversees the Internet-addressing system has been meeting in Lisbon, Portugal this week on a variety of interesting issues but the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers has saved the hottest topic for the last day of the conference.

The ICANN board on Friday plans to decide the fate of a proposed .xxx ending for Web addresses that publish pornography. On Thursday, the organization held a public forum where fans and foes of the plan spoke out.

Free Speech Coalition Executive Director Diane Duke skewered ICM Registry and its president Stuart Lawley, who first proposed the domain suffix in 2000. She said the adult entertainment community, whom FSC represents, not only opposes ICM's plan "but it actively opposes the creation of a .xxx top-level domain."

ICANN board member Peter Dengate Thrush asked why members of the adult content sector who want to be a part of .xxx form a subset of FSC's community. Duke said she has not yet found anyone in her constituency who favors the virtual red-light district.

Continue reading "ICANN: Tech Daily 'Overdose' On .XXX" »

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ICANN: One World Trust Report

As reported in Monday’s Technology Daily PM edition, ICANN hired London-based consultancy One World Trust to conduct an independent review of the organization’s accountability and transparency. The trust’s report, which was released Thursday, concludes that ICANN is “very transparent” -- probably more so than any other global entity.

The 68-page document also identifies areas for improvement. All the details are available here. ICANN welcomes comment and feedback on the study via e-mail (transparency-2007@icann.org) or on its blog. The comment period closes April 27, ahead of the group’s June meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

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ICANN: New RALOs, Rejoice!

Internet users from three of ICANN's five global regions will now have direct input to the organization thanks to the creation of three Regional At-Large Organizations, officials announced Thursday.

Memorandums of understanding creating RALOs for Africa and Europe were signed in a special ceremony at ICANN's meeting in Lisbon, Portugal. The third RALO (for Asia-Australia-Pacific) was announced and will be formally signed later this year.

"The creation of RALOs gives average Internet users the chance to influence decisions that shape the security and stability of the Internet," ICANN President Paul Twomey said in a press release. The first RALO, which encompassed the Latin America-Caribbean region, was created at ICANN's São Paulo meeting in December 2006.

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ICANN: Gala Gets High Marks

The Internet Governance Project's Milton Mueller filed an amusing dispatch after ICANN's gala on Tuesday night, a lavish dinner that has become a much anticipated part of the organization's meetings:

"My perspective on this was best encapsulated by a remark made by John Berryhill, a domain name lawyer, at the Marrakesh, Morocco meeting. As we finished a huge meal and moved on to see dozens of Berber horsemen shooting rifles, setting off fireworks and rustling camels he deadpanned, "Yeah. This is the proper way to run a computer addressing system."

Mueller goes on to write that the policy-forming aspect of the Lisbon, Portugal conference "has been anything but fun." Read more here.

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ICANN: Domain Deals - Côte d'Ivoire & Russia

ICANN formalized relationships with country code top level domain (ccTLD) managers for .ci (Côte d'Ivoire) and .ru (Russia) at its meeting in Lisbon, Portugal on Wednesday.

The relationship with Côte d'Ivoire is an accountability framework, while the Russian deal took the form of an exchange of letters, ICANN said. They represent the 20th and 21st formalized relationships between ccTLD managers and ICANN, according to a press release.

Accountability framework and exchange of letters documents can be found here. ICANN signed a similar agreement over the weekend with Libya.

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ICANN: Question Of The Day - Whois?

A handful of constituency discussions centering on the debate over public databases that store Web address owners' information were scheduled to take place at ICANN's meeting in Lisbon, Portugal on Tuesday. The conversations come on the heels of a recent proposal to cloak "Whois" data, (including names, organizations, postal and e-mail addresses and telephone numbers). Groups representing commercial and business users; Internet service providers; and intellectual property interests were slated to take on the issue (among others). Technology Daily's recent coverage of the Whois debate can be found here.

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ICANN: No Hints On .XXX

One of the most anticipated announcements to come out of ICANN's Lisbon meeting may have to wait until the end of the week. ICANN's board will meet Friday to decide the fate of a proposed .xxx ending for Web addresses that publish pornography, ICANN President Paul Twomey told reporters on a Monday teleconference.

The board is divided and he is uncertain how it will rule. Twomey said the issue has been "clearly controversial and clearly polarizing" within the Internet community and the degree of feedback has been "extensive" and overwhelmingly unsupportive of the virtual red-light district.

Board members are still in "active consultation" on the topic that Twomey characterized as "the most excitement we've had at an ICANN board meeting in a little while."

Read more about the ICANN meeting in Technology Daily's PM edition.

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ICANN: Odds & Ends

A few remaining thoughts from ICANN President Paul Twomey's Monday address:

• International domain names laboratory tests have been completed but two ICANN constituencies -- the Country Code Names Supporting Organization (ccNSO) and the Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO) -- have raised concerns that need to be addressed. Twomey said he remains hopeful that ICANN can begin deploying the Internet addresses at the end of this year or in early 2008.

• ICANN unveiled a minor redesign of its Web site on Monday. The index page revamp is part of the organization's ongoing effort to improve the online interface based on public comments. Be sure to check out the changes and give ICANN feedback.

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ICANN: New RALO Agreements

This week's ICANN meeting in Lisbon may see the signing of three new agreements with Regional At-Large Organizations to provide Internet users in those geographical areas increased representation, ICANN Paul Twomey said during his plenary speech on Monday. Deals with the African Telecommunications Union, Pacific Islands Telecommunications Association and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia are nearing completion. Those agreements build on the model and the success of the Latin American and Caribbean accords signed at ICANN's last meeting in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

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ICANN: Portuguese IT Minister Speaks

Portuguese IT minister José Mariano Gago on Monday called ICANN an "innovative concept" and lauded the group for being able to facilitate tremendous Internet growth despite numerous technological and administrative challenges. He spoke at the ICANN meeting's opening ceremony in Lisbon.

Gago said the ICANN model "tends to emerge in many other global domains" and has "renewed the international debate on the contribution of the Internet to human and social development." He said Portugal is "fully committed to those goals and values" and supports Web growth as "an urgent national priority."

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ICANN: ITU Chief To Attend

Hamadoun Touré, secretary general of the International Telecommunication Union, will attend ICANN's Lisbon meeting, officials announced Monday. This is the first time that the head of the ITU has attended such a gathering. ICANN President Paul Twomey said he was "delighted" that Touré is reaching out to his group "especially so early in his term."

Touré, who will attend ICANN's meeting on Friday, assumed his position in January after serving as the director of the ITU's telecommunications development bureau. He previously worked for satellite behemoth Intelsat in Washington, D.C. Touré succeeded Yoshio Utsumi, who served two terms as ITU secretary general.

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ICANN: IPv6 - Chicken And Egg Problem

Stakeholders involved in the transition to Internet protocol version 6, or IPv6, have "a chicken and egg problem," ICANN's Leo Vegoda said on Sunday. "There is little motivation or ROI [return-on-investment] for being an early deployer since there are few IPv6 peers to communicate with." Meanwhile, he senses increased interest in the platform, especially since the start of this year.

A couple of factors have informed his belief, he told attendees at an IPv6 tutorial. The first is the recognition that Internet addresses under the current regime (IPv4) will be exhausted soon, he said. Secondly, the U.S. government has required that all federal agencies have operational IPv6 networks by June 2008. A third element is the general availability of Microsoft's new Vista operating system, which is IPv6-enabled out of the box, Vegoda said.

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