Karl Auerbach has written a quite long but very detailed and well thought out letter to Congress. It's not clear which members of Congress were sent the letter. Karl Auerbach is a former member of ICANN's board and is probably best remembered by many as having taken ICANN to court (and winning) in order to gain access to the organisation's financial records. The letter … [Read more...] about Former ICANN Board Member To Congress – ICANN Needs Oversight
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(Dot)Joburg Explained
As others have noted, the launch plans and policies of "geo" and "city" new TLDs vary quite a bit. Some will be heavily restricted and require "presence" in the region or city, while others are going to be fully "open". Neil Dundas, who is involved with the .joburg registry as well as that of .africa, posted this deck earlier today which explains their launch … [Read more...] about (Dot)Joburg Explained
Our NetMundial Brings Some Humour to Internet Governance
If you follow Internet Governance circles you'll know that most people involved in the internet policy and governance are either in Brazil or en route there this weekend. NetMundial is being held in São Paulo, Brazil on 23rd and 24th and it's pretty serious business if the agenda is anything to go by. However over on Our Netmundial there's a slightly different message … [Read more...] about Our NetMundial Brings Some Humour to Internet Governance
European Data Protection Supervisor Smacks ICANN Over Privacy Issues With 2013 RAA
ICANN has been sent a letter by the European Data Protection Supervisor calling them out with respect to both data collection, retention and privacy within the context of the 2013 Registrar contract (RAA). The letter is the first instance of one, to my knowledge, which makes reference to the ECJ's recent ruling that rendered the data retention directive null and … [Read more...] about European Data Protection Supervisor Smacks ICANN Over Privacy Issues With 2013 RAA
ICANN Rolling Out New Site
It's that time again - yet another new iteration of the ICANN website ... This time instead of simply "throwing the switch" ICANN are rolling out the site in phases .. According to ICANN's Chris Gift the new site is going to be a big improvement: "We had three objectives for the new site: improve transparency of ICANN by making information easier to find, make it … [Read more...] about ICANN Rolling Out New Site
Closed Generics The Final Battle?
Over the past couple of years I've posted several times on the issue of "closed generics". In essence these are new TLD applications where the string is a "generic term" AND the applicant wanted to keep all domains in the registry for their own use. The baseline registry agreement with ICANN now contains language that resolves the issue, or at least it would appear to do … [Read more...] about Closed Generics The Final Battle?
String Confusion Explained
Dirk from dotBerlin has posted a very funny, but also scarily accurate, graphic that illustrates how inconsistent some of the decisions handed down have been. You can read about the review process here Hat tip to Kevin who spotted this … [Read more...] about String Confusion Explained
Exclusive: Internet.bs Response to ICANN Breach Notice
I posted a couple of days about the breach notice ICANN had sent to Internet.bs. Earlier this evening Internet.bs' CEO Marco Rinaudo reached out to me and asked me to publish a public response to this. For the record I do not know Mr Rinaudo personally, but I think it is only fair to offer him a an opportunity to address this situation in public. Here's his statement … [Read more...] about Exclusive: Internet.bs Response to ICANN Breach Notice
The Road to São Paulo, and Beyond
ICANN's NCUC - the Non-Commercial Users Constituency is organising a full day event in Singapore right before the ICANN meeting. The event is focussed on Internet Governance with a focus on the Netmundial meeting in Brazil: The Road to São Paulo, and Beyond The purpose of this NCUC conference is to provide a first opportunity for intensive, F2F cross-community dialogue on … [Read more...] about The Road to São Paulo, and Beyond
ICANN Sends Breach Notice to Internet.bs
ICANN has sent out a number of breach notices to registrars today, however one does spring out - the one sent to Internet.bs. Internet.bs, which is based in the Bahamas, received quite a bit of negative press in the past from the InfoSec community. One article on Ars Technica, for example, called them out as being the registrar of record for a disproportionately high … [Read more...] about ICANN Sends Breach Notice to Internet.bs