Transcript Document
ccTLD Management,
ICANN,
and the Public Interest
July 26, 2001
ccTLD Timeline
• February 1985 – .us (first ccTLD) created at USC
• March 1994 – RFC 1591 describes ccTLD delegation
policies
• October 1998 – Death of Jon Postel
• December 1998 – ICANN assumes the IANA
function
• March 1999 – ICANN/IANA publishes ICP-1
• May 1999 – ICANN formally recognizes ccTLD
constituency
• February 2000 – GAC publishes ccTLD Principles
• May 2000 – ICANN requests voluntary contributions
from ccTLD managers; collects 48% of invoiced total
ICANN
IANA function
Root zone file
(ISO-3166)
.eg .nz
.ng .cn
.ru .us
.cg .uy
.com
.net
.org
.name
.coop
.museum
.gov
.mil
.edu
.biz
.info
.aero
.pro
.int
The root server system
ICANN
IANA
Root zone file
B
H
C
I
D
J
A
E
K
F
L
G
M
ICANN’s relationships with .com/.net/.org/… v. ccTLDs
Item
.com/.net/.org/…
ccTLDs
Registry
Contracts
Yes
No
Required
Contributions
Yes
No
Policy Authority
Yes (through
contract)
No
Registrar
Accreditation
Authority
Yes
No
UDRP
(Yes)
No
Redelegation
Authority
Yes
(No)
Must provide
IANA function
Yes
Yes
ICP-1
Internet Domain Name System Structure and Delegation
(ccTLD Administration and Delegation)
Principles for Delegation:
• Desires of the government “taken very seriously”
• “Significantly interested parties in the domain should
agree that the proposed TLD manager is the appropriate
party.”
• Operational capability
• Administrative/technical contact; administrative must
reside in the country at issue
• Fair treatment to all groups in the domain, under publiclyposted policies
• Duty to serve the community as a trustee; concerns
about “rights” and domain “ownership” inappropriate
<http://www.icann.org/icp/icp-1.htm>
GAC Principles for ccTLD Delegation/Administration
• ICANN should redelegate ccTLD management
immediately, where terms exist between the TLD
manager and government, upon breach of those terms
• ICANN should redelegate ccTLD management
immediately, where manager-government communication
does not exist, upon a government showing and request
• All future ccTLD re/delegations should occur only in
cooperation with relevant governments
• Delegees should not be subject to discriminatory
practices by ICANN or by governments
<http://www.icann.org/committees/gac/gac-cctldprinciples-23feb00.htm>
CDT Policy Principles for ccTLD Administration
• Obligation to the needs of users, current and future
• Open, transparent decision-making
• Mechanisms for public outreach, effective representation,
and accountability to user interests
• Support public service objectives—e.g., encourage Internet
access, accessibility, diversity, usability, education,
affordability, etc.
• Promote human rights, civil liberties, and democratic
potential of the Internet
• Non-discriminative, publicly posted policies
Present Models of ccTLD Management
• “.com competitor” -- .tv, .ws, .cd -- Operated for global use
by an offshore vendor, through contract with national
governments
• Private association -- .jp, .uk, .de -- Operated for national
use by an association of technical stakeholders
• Non-profit administrator -- .ca, .nz -- Operated for national
use by a non-profit association of individual members
• Direct government operation -- .ng, .ar, .kh -- Operated by
a government agency/ministry
• Academic/public service operation -- .us, .uy, .be -Operated by a university, or by university volunteers
• Private contractor -- .gh, .mn, .ae -- Run on a national
basis as a for-profit business
CDT and the .us redelegation
US Government
Registry
operator
.us
ICANN
IANA
Root zone file
Non-profit
policy corp.