The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the body responsible for managing the core mechanisms of the internet, has recently gained some independence from the US control. ICANN was originally created in 1998 through a Memorandum of Understanding between the US Department of Commerce and ICANN with the purpose of transitioning management of the Domain Name System (DNS) from the US government to the global community. Although ICANN is a private not-for-profit organization where policies are developed from the bottom up, through global constituencies often representing competing interests, it was ultimately accountable only to the US government. At the end of September, the Department of Commerce allowed the last MOU to expire, thereby declaring that ICANN is mature enough to move on to the next stage of its global development. However, the US has retained some minimal control through a new agreement called an Affirmation of Commitments.
The Affirmation of Commitments commits ICANN to remaining a private not-for-profit organization, but declares that ICANN is independent and not controlled by any one entity. It further commits ICANN to reviews performed by the entire multi-stakeholder global community, such as constituencies representing registries, registrars, registrants, trademark owners, and other commercial and non-commercial interests. The agreement is intended to be long-standing and gives ICANN some autonomy. However, it also reaffirms the role of the Government Advisory Committee, which is a key participant in selecting the membership of the review teams. Rather than ICANN being reviewed by just the US government, under the new relationship, these reviews will be developed by an international committee of parties representing over 100 countries around the world, with the US government still having a seat at the table. All of these reviews will also be submitted for public comment, thereby creating accountability to the full international community.
Vol. 53, June 2010