The sale of .org was made public back in November of last year. ISOC probably thought that selling off PIR and the .org domain registry would be relatively simple and I sincerely doubt they expect the backlash that the announcement triggered. There have been thousands of articles written about the proposed sale. If you made the mistake of setting up an alert for mentions of … [Read more...] about ICANN and the Risk of Lobbying
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ICANN’s Government Group Wants to Slow Whois Work
Since ICANN woke up to the very large conflicts between its policies and contracts and privacy law there have been some groups that have been pushing for ICANN to find a swift resolution. One of the more vocal among them was the Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC), which is made up of representative of governments from around the world. Now, however, it's clear that … [Read more...] about ICANN’s Government Group Wants to Slow Whois Work
ICANN 68 Goes Virtual
Under normal circumstances ICANN holds three public face to face meetings per year. This year, as we all know, is not a normal year and the circumstances are anything but normal. So I sincerely doubt anyone will be surprised that the next ICANN meeting will not be held "in person" but solely online. ICANN's Board met yesterday and made the decision that many had been … [Read more...] about ICANN 68 Goes Virtual
Staff Changes in ICANN Executive Team
ICANN announced earlier today that there has been a change in their Executive team. Cyrus Namazi who headed up the Global Domains Division (GDD) has left the organisation. Theresa Swinehart, Senior Vice President, Multistakeholder Strategy & Strategic Initiatives, will be in charge of GDD for the interim. That sounds like they'll either be promoting someone … [Read more...] about Staff Changes in ICANN Executive Team
ICANN Cancels Paris Events
ICANN formally announced last night that both the GDD Summit and DNS Symposium scheduled to be held in Paris, France in May have been cancelled. The DNS OARC workshop which was slated to take place in the same venue the weekend after the ICANN events has also been cancelled. The GDD Summit is usually more business and operational focussed than the main ICANN meetings, so … [Read more...] about ICANN Cancels Paris Events
ICANN Hires New Head of Eastern Europe & Central Asia
While the COVID 19 virus has pretty much taken over the news in recent weeks, other things are still happening, albeit at a slower pace. ICANN announced Monday that they had hired Mikhail Anisimov to head up their activities in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. "Mikhail Anisimov is a well-known domain industry professional in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and a … [Read more...] about ICANN Hires New Head of Eastern Europe & Central Asia
ICANN Cancels Cancún Meeting Switches to Online Event
ICANN's Board of Directors met yesterday evening and decided to cancel the upcoming meeting in Cancún, Mexico. The meeting will be held instead online, though this has never been done before. "This is a decision that the ICANN Board has been considering since the outbreak was first announced and it is one that we haven't taken lightly," said Maarten Botterman, ICANN Board … [Read more...] about ICANN Cancels Cancún Meeting Switches to Online Event
ICANN Ban Staff Travel to China
Over the last few days the spread of the 2019-Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCOV) has been getting a lot of news coverage and WHO has issued multiple warnings. It's not surprising, therefore, that ICANN has joined many other companies in banning travel to China by its staff. The health and safety of ICANN’s global community is a top priority and ICANN org is closely monitoring the … [Read more...] about ICANN Ban Staff Travel to China
SaveDotOrg Protest Outside ICANN HQ
This morning's protest outside ICANN's headquarters is in full swing. I'm currently attending a meeting in the vicinity, but not close enough to actually see the protest. Fortunately a friend is there and sent me a couple of photos. As of around 945 am local there's about 15 to 20 people at the protest as well as a few onlookers including media. Apparently they're … [Read more...] about SaveDotOrg Protest Outside ICANN HQ
Save Dot Org Campaign to Picket ICANN HQ
One of the campaigns that has been working against the sale of PIR and the .org registry under the "Save dot Org" moniker is planning to picket ICANN's headquarters in LA. Save Dot Org are planning on picketing the Los Angeles' offices of ICANN on Friday January 24th: Date: Friday, January 24, 2020 Time: 9 am – 11 am Location: ICANN, 12025 Waterfront Dr., Los Angeles, … [Read more...] about Save Dot Org Campaign to Picket ICANN HQ