Cybertelecom Federal Internet Law & Policy An Educational Project

DNS: ICANN

The success of the domain name system created two problems: who controls the domain name system and who has the right to a domain name. While trademark law attempts to answer in part who has the right to a domain name, the establishment of ICANN was US Government's attempt to answer in part who controls the DNS.

For a history of the domain name system and the formation of ICANN, see the History page.

The authority of ICANN is derived from its contract with the US Government and from the participation of the representative Internet stakeholders (ie., generally no one can force the Regional Internet Registries or the country code top level domain holders to work with ICANN except through mutual agreement).

Derived From: Lennard Kruger, Internet Domain Names: Background and Policy Issues, Congressional Research Service p 3 (Oct. 28, 2009)

ICANN is a not-for-profit public benefit corporation headquartered in Marina del Rey, CA, and incorporated under the laws of the state of California. ICANN is organized under the California Nonprofit Public Benefit Law for charitable and public purposes, and as such, is subject to legal oversight by the California attorney general. ICANN has been granted tax-exempt status by the federal government and the state of California.

ICANN's organizational structure consists of a Board of Directors (BOD) advised by a network of supporting organizations and advisory committees that represent various Internet constituencies and interests (see Figure 1). Policies are developed and issues are researched by these subgroups, who in turn advise the Board of Directors, which is responsible for making all final policy and operational decisions. The Board of Directors consists of 15 international and geographically diverse members, composed of one president, eight members selected by a Nominating Committee, two selected by the Generic Names Supporting Organization, two selected by the Address Supporting Organization, and two selected by the Country-Code Names Supporting Organization. Additionally, there are six non-voting liaisons representing other advisory committees.

The explosive growth of the Internet and domain name registration, along with increasing responsibilities in managing and operating the DNS, has led to marked growth of the ICANN budget, from revenues of about $6 million and a staff of 14 in 2000, to revenues of $60 million and a staff of 110 in 2009. ICANN is funded primarily through fees paid to ICANN by registrars and registry operators. Registrars are companies (e.g., GoDaddy, Google, Network Solutions) with which consumers register domain names.5 Registry operators are companies and organizations who operate and administer the master database of all domain names registered in each top level domain (for example VeriSign, Inc. operates .com and .net, Public Interest Registry operates .org, and Neustar, Inc. operates .biz).6 In 2009, ICANN is receiving 92% of its total revenues from registry and registrar fees (41% from registry fees, 51% from registrar fees).7

ICANN’s Relationship with the U.S. Government

The Department of Commerce (DOC) has no statutory authority over ICANN or the DNS. However, because the Internet evolved from a network infrastructure created by the Department of Defense, the U.S. government originally owned and operated (primarily through private contractors such as the University of Southern California, SRI International, and Network Solutions Inc.) the key components of network architecture that enable the domain name system to function. The 1998 Memorandum of Understanding between ICANN and the Department of Commerce initiated a process intended to transition technical DNS coordination and management functions to a private-sector not-for-profit entity. While the DOC plays no role in the internal governance or day-to-day operations of ICANN, the U.S. government, through the DOC, retains a role with respect to the DNS via three separate contractual agreements. These are:

• the Affirmation of Commitments (AoC) between DOC and ICANN, which was signed on September 30, 2009;
• the contract between IANA/ICANN and DOC to perform various technical functions such as allocating IP address blocks, editing the root zone file, and coordinating the assignment of unique protocol numbers; and
• the cooperative agreement between DOC and VeriSign to manage and maintain the official DNS root zone file.

Affirmation of Commitments

On September 30, 2009, DOC and ICANN announced agreement on an Affirmation of Commitments (AoC) to "institutionalize and memorialize" the technical coordination of the DNS globally and by a private-sector-led organization.8 The AoC succeeds the concluded Joint Project Agreement (which in turn succeeded the Memorandum of Understanding between DOC and ICANN). The AoC has no expiration date and would conclude only if one of the two parties decided to terminate the agreement.

Buildup to the AoC

Various Internet stakeholders disagreed as to whether DOC should maintain control over ICANN after the impending JPA expiration on September 30, 2009. Many U.S. industry and public interest groups argued that ICANN was not yet sufficiently transparent and accountable, that U.S. government oversight and authority (e.g., DOC acting as a "steward" or "backstop" to ICANN) was necessary to prevent undue control of the DNS by international or foreign governmental bodies, and that continued DOC oversight was needed until full privatization is warranted. On the other hand, many international entities and groups from countries outside the United States argued that ICANN had sufficiently met conditions for privatization, and that continued U.S. government control over an international organization was not appropriate. In the 110th Congress, Senator Snowe introduced S.Res. 564 which stated the sense of the Senate that although ICANN had made progress in achieving the goals of accountability and transparency as directed by the JPA, more progress was needed.

On April 24, 2009, NTIA issued a Notice of Inquiry (NOI) seeking public comment on the upcoming expiration of the JPA between DOC and ICANN.10 According to NTIA, a mid-term review showed that while some progress had been made, there remained key areas where further work was required to increase institutional confidence in ICANN. These areas included long-term stability, accountability, responsiveness, continued private-sector leadership, stakeholder participation, increased contract compliance, and enhanced competition. NTIA asked for public comments regarding the progress of transition of the technical coordination and management of the DNS to the private sector, as well as the model of private-sector leadership and bottom-up policy development which ICANN represents. Specifically, the NOI asked whether sufficient progress had been achieved for the transition to take place by September 30, 2009, and if not, what should be done.

On June 4, 2009, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet, held a hearing examining the expiration of the JPA and other issues. Most Members of the Committee expressed the view that the JPA (or a similar agreement between DOC and ICANN) should be extended. Subsequently, on August 4, 2009, Majority Leadership and Majority Members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce sent a letter to the Secretary of Commerce urging that rather than replacing the JPA with additional JPAs, the DOC and ICANN should agree on a "permanent instrument" to "ensure that ICANN remains perpetually accountable to the public and to all of its global stakeholders." According to the committee letter, the instrument should: ensure the permanent continuance of the present DOC-ICANN relationship; provide for periodic reviews of ICANN performance; outline steps ICANN will take to maintain and improve its accountability; create a mechanism for implementation of the addition of new gTLDs and internationalized domain names; ensure that ICANN will adopt measures to maintain timely and public access to accurate and complete WHOIS information; and include commitments that ICANN will remain a not-for-profit corporation headquartered in the United States.

Critical Elements of the AoC

Under the AoC, ICANN commits to remain a not-for-profit corporation "headquartered in the United States of America with offices around the world to meet the needs of a global community." According to the AoC, "ICANN is a private organization and nothing in this Affirmation should be construed as control by any one entity."

Specifically, the AoC calls for the establishment of review panels which will periodically make recommendations to the ICANN Board in four areas:

• Ensuring accountability, transparency and the interests of global Internet users-the panel will evaluate ICANN governance and assess transparency, accountability, and responsiveness with respect to the public and the global Internet community. The panel will be composed of the Chair of ICANN's Government Advisory Committee (GAC), the Chair of the Board of ICANN, the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information of the Department of Commerce (i.e., the head of NTIA), representatives of the relevant ICANN Advisory Committees and Supporting Organizations, and independent experts. Composition of the panel will be agreed to jointly by the Chair of the GAC and the Chair of ICANN.
• Preserving security, stability, and resiliency-the panel will review ICANN's plan to enhance the operational stability, reliability, resiliency, security, and global interoperability of the DNS. The panel will be composed of the Chair of the GAC, the CEO of ICANN, representatives of the relevant Advisory Committees and Supporting Organizations, and independent experts. Composition of the panel will be agreed to jointly by the Chair of the GAC and the CEO of ICANN.
• Impact of new gTLDs-starting one year after the introduction of new gTLDs, the panel will periodically examine the extent to which the introduction or expansion of gTLDs promotes competition, consumer trust, and consumer choice. The panel will be composed of the Chair of the GAC, the CEO of ICANN, representatives of the relevant Advisory Committees and Supporting Organizations, and independent experts. Composition of the panel will be agreed to jointly by the Chair of the GAC and the CEO of ICANN.
• WHOIS policy-the panel will review existing WHOIS policy and assess the extent to which that policy is effective and its implementation meets the legitimate needs of law enforcement and promotes consumer trust. The panel will be composed of the Chair of the GAC, the CEO of ICANN, representatives of the relevant Advisory Committees and Supporting Organizations, independent experts, representatives of the global law enforcement community, and global privacy experts. Composition of the panel will be agreed to jointly by the Chair of the GAC and the CEO of ICANN.

DOC Agreements with IANA and VeriSign

A contract between DOC and ICANN, which currently extends through September 30, 2011, authorizes the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) to perform various technical functions such as allocating IP address blocks, editing the root zone file, and coordinating the assignment of unique protocol numbers. Additionally, a cooperative agreement between DOCand VeriSign (operator of the .com and .net registries) authorizes VeriSign to manage and maintain the official root zone file that is contained in the Internet's root servers that underlie the functioning of the DNS.11

By virtue of these legal agreements, the DOC has policy authority over the root zone file,12 meaning that the U.S. government can approve or deny any changes or modifications made to the root zone file (changes, for example, such as adding a new top level domain). The June 30, 2005, U.S. government principles on the Internet's domain name system stated the intention to "preserve the security and stability" of the DNS, and asserted that "the United States is committed to taking no action that would have the potential to adversely impact the effective and efficient operation of the DNS and will therefore maintain its historic role in authorizing changes or modifications to the authoritative root zone file."13

The JPA is separate and distinct from the DOC legal agreements with ICANN and VeriSign. As such, the expiration of the JPA would not directly affect U.S. government authority over the DNS root zone file. Although ICANN has not advocated ending U.S. government authority over the root zone file, foreign governmental bodies have argued that it is inappropriate for the U.S. government to maintain exclusive authority over the DNS.

ICANN and the International Community

Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy 

Note that the UDRP has undergone significant criticism. See ICANNWatch <www.icannwatch.org>; Milton Mueller, Rough Justice: A Statistical Assessment of ICANN's Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy, The Information Society (2001).

• FCC Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas, SA v. "FCC.COM", Case No. D2007-0770 (WIPO October 7, 2007), WIPO 10/18/2007

Federal courts are not bound by findings of the WIPO panel. See Barcelona.com, Inc. v. Excelentisimo Ayuntamiento de Barcelona, 330 F.3d 617, 624-26 (4th Cir.2003) (noting that a WIPO Panel decision regarding the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy ("UDRP") was not entitled to deference in a federal court proceeding; stating "[b]ecause the administrative process prescribed by the UDRP is `adjudication lite' as a result of its streamlined nature and its loose rules regarding applicable law, the UDRP itself contemplates judicial intervention, which can occur before, during, or after the UDRP's dispute resolution process is invoked.... Moreover, any decision made by a panel under the UDRP is no more than an agreed-upon administration that is not given any deference under the ACPA."); Eurotech, Inc. v. Cosmos European Travels Aktiengesellschaft, 213 F.Supp.2d 612, 617 n. 10 (E.D.Va.2002) (in considering motions for summary judgment, the court evaluated UDRP decision and findings but noted that the decision was not admissible on the merits of the liability issues). SUPER-KRETE INTERN., INC. v. SADLEIR, 712 F. Supp. 2d 1023 - Dist. Court, CD California 2010. Sullen (UDRP non binding); Parisi (court review is de novo).

See also ACPA :: Cybersquatters Personal Names .

Papers

• Milton L. Mueller, John Mathiason and Hans Klein, "The Internet and Global Governance: Principles and Norms for a New Regime." Global Governance 13:2 (April-June, 2007).
• Klein and Mueller: What to do About ICANN: A Proposal for Structural Reform. (April 2005), Internet Governance 7/22/2005
• "ICANN Reform: Establishing the Rule of Law," policy analysis prepared for the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), 3 November 2005.
• Jay Kesan, Andres Gallo, The Market for Private Dispute Resolution Services - An Empirical Re-Assessment of ICANN-UDRP Performance, SSRN 3/25/2005
• Krishna P. Jayakar, The Internet Domain Name System: Private Property or Public Resource?, TPRC 10/2/2004
• Milton L. Mueller and Lee McKnight, "The post-.COM internet: toward regular and objective procedures for internet governance." Telecommunications Policy 28 (7/8), 487-502 (2004).
• Emmanuel A. Caral, Lessons From ICANN: Is Self-Regulation of The Internet Fundamentally Flawed? Int’l.J.L.& Info.Tech. (Mar. 2004)
• A Study On The Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), EU Info Society November 2003
• Milton Mueller, Lee McKnight , The Post-.COM Internet: Toward Regular and Objective Procedures for Internet Governance, TPRC 9/13/03
• Kim G. vonArx, Now And Then: Icann's Reform And Its Problems, 2003 Duke L. & Tech. Rev. 7 (recounting ICANN reform difficulties).
• Paper, Dan Hunter, ICANN and the Concept of Democratic Deficit, SSRN 6/24/03
• Simson Garfinkle, “The Net’s Faltering Democracy,” Technology Review, Vol. 106 (2) 30, March 2003
• Jonathan Weinberg, “ICANN, Internet Stability, and New Top Level Domains,” 2002,
• Milton L. Mueller, "Competing DNS Roots: Creative Destruction or Just Plain Destruction?" Journal of Network Industries , 3(3) (Summer 2002).
• Tamar Frankel: Accountability and Oversight of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) SSRN 10/30/02
• "ICANN and Internet Governance: Leveraging Technical Coordination to Make Global Public Policy," The Information Society, Vol. 18, No. 3, 2002, 193-207.
• Bret Fausett, “A Discussion Paper on the Introduction of new TLDs,” Version 1.0, October 17, 2002.
• Regional Internet Registry Joint Statement on ICANN Evolution and Reform
• ICANN & Anti-Trust Michael Froomkin Mark Lemley TPRC Fall 2001; ICANN and Antitrust , SSRN 1/17/02
• ICANN as Regulator  Jonathan Weinberg TPRC Fall 2001
• Milton L. Mueller, "Rough justice: A Statistical assessment of ICANN's Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy." The Information Society, 17(3), (2001) 153-163.
• ICANN and the Problem of Legitimacy, 50 Duke L.J. 187 (2000)
• A. Michael Froomkin, “Wrong Turn in Cyberspace: Using ICANN to Route Around the APA and the Constitution,” 50 Duke L.J. 17 (2000)
• Jason M. Osborn, Effective And Complementary Solutions To Domain Name Disputes: ICANN's Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy And The Federal Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act Of 1999, 76 Notre Dame L.Rev. 209 (2000).
• Milton Mueller, An Analysis of ICANN's Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy (2000)
• Jean Camp, "Internet Governance, From Meritocracy to Adhocracy to Bureaucracy" Presentation. CPSR 1999
• Geeks and Greeks -- a draft paper on ICANN's at-large membership (7/24/01 version)
• Sharon Eisner Gillett, Mitchell Kapor, The Self-Governing Internet: Coordination by Design.   In Brian Kahin and James H. Keller, eds., Coordinating the Internet, Cambridge: MIT Press, 1997.

Caselaw

• Coalition for ICANN Transparency, Inc. v. VeriSign, Inc., 464 F.Supp.2d 948, 951-53 (N.D.Cal.2006), reversed by 567 F.3d 1084 (9th Cir.2009) .

Links

• ICANN Government Advisory Committee

News & Blogs

• Guest blog: ICANN needs to follow its own bylaws on UDRP review, IGP 7/20/2011
• ICANN approves plan to vastly expand top-level domains, Ars Technica 6/22/2011
• Global Internet body ICANN unleashes domain names, Globe and Mail 6/22/2011
• Verisign and Coalition for ICANN Transparency, Inc. ("CFIT") Resolve Litigation, Verisign 5/12/2011
• US House Subcommittee to Hold Hearing for ICANN's New TLD Rollout, Circleid 4/28/2011
• U.S. seeks veto powers over new domain names, CNET 2/9/2011
• The UN Wants to Fix The Internet, Circleid 9/22/2010
• VeriSign Marks 25 Years of .Com, verisign 3/15/2010
• Top Internet engineers get ready for the IANA contract rebid, IGP 8/16/2010
• Open letter to the U.S. Goverment on domain name censorship, IGP 7/21/2010
• NAF Panelists and Complainants Caught Systematically Copying/Pasting Nonsense Into UDRP Decisions, Circleid 4/23/2010
• Internet Society Attacks Beckstrom's DNS "sky is falling" talk, IGP 4/16/2010
• Study of Domain Name Dispute Cases Reveals Concern Over Panelist Appointment, Circleid 3/24/2010
• ICANN president criticized for remarks on DNS security, CW 3/12/2010
• US relaxes grip on the internet, BBC 10/1/2009
• ICANN, US Government Affirm Private Sector Lead in Domain Name Governance, CDT 10/1/2009
• The House Committee Letter on ICANN: All politics is local, IGP 8/11/2009
• ITU Stealthily Proposes Takeover of ICANN, PFF 8/7/2009
• Key Members of Congress Call for Permanent ICANN-US Tie, CircleID 8/7/2009
• Remembering Jon: Looking Beyond the Decade, CircleID 10/2/2008
• Icann Hires Former Cybersecurity Chief as New C.E.O., NYT 6/30/2009
• Will ICANN Drop Its Most Revolutionary Idea?, Ecommerce Times 6/5/2009
• A Closer Look at China's Call for an End to the Internet Governance Forum, CircleID 5/21/2009
• ISOC posts report of Internet Governance survey, ISOC 5/13/2009
• Cyber-safety, or global censorship?, IGP 3/18/2009
• Yarro, Anti-Porn Crusaders Want More ICANN Clout - So they can push 'ports for porn' idea harder..., dslreports 3/18/2009
• ICANN Asked to Remake the Internet in Joseph Smith's Image?, CircleID 3/18/2009
• CEO of Internet oversight group to step down, CNET 3/3/2009
• ITU and the Increasing Controversy Over Internet Governance, CircleID 11/18/2008
• ICANN faces questions over accountability, control, CW 10/2/2008
• Internet Governance Consultations in Geneva, IGP 9/16/2008
• Internet Governance Consultations in Geneva, IGP 9/16/2008
• ICANN loses own addresses, Globe and Mail 7/8/2008
• If ICANN Can't Even Control Its Own Domain Names., Techdirt 7/8/2008
• New Flavors for Addresses on the Web Are on the Way, NYT 6/30/2008
• ICANN Board Approves Sweeping Overhaul of Top-level Domains, CircleID 6/27/2008
• Launch of .PARIS, CircleID 6/27/2008
• Direct From ICANN Paris Meeting: Surprise! The Money is What Matters!, Lauren Weinstein 6/27/2008
• ICANN to vote on new Internet domain names, CNET 6/24/2008
• ICANN GNSO Votes to Kill Domain Tasting, CircleID 4/21/2008
• ICANN Posts Draft FY09 Operating Plan and Budget, ICANN 5/20/2008
• Public Comment Period Now Open for Domain Tasting Motion, ICANN 5/9/2008
• ICANN's Unaudited Gift to Verisign of over $500,000 Dollars per Year, Cook's Collaborative Edge 4/17/2008
• Groups Insist ICANN Must Maintain Ties with U.S. Department of Commerce after 2009 Expiration Date, CircleID 3/10/2008
• ITIF Comments on the Midterm Review of the Joint Project Agreement between NTIA and ICANN, ITIF 2/15/2008
• ICANN Opens 31st International Public Meeting in New Delhi, ICANN 2/11/2008
• ICANN Finally Realizes Domain Tasting Is A Problem, Might Fix It Sometime This Decade, Techdirt 1/10/2008
• Personal name must have trademark significance for protection under ACPA, Internet Cases 1/24/2008
• ICANN Opens 31st International Public Meeting in New Delhi, ICANN 2/11/2008
• Comment Sought on DNS Root Zone Glue Policy, ICANN 2/7/2008
• Public Comments Requested on DNS Stability: The Effect of New gTLDs on the Internet Domain Name System, ICANN 2/7/2008
• Reforming ICANN Oversight: A Historic Opportunity, IGP 2/7/2008
• ICANN Actually Does Something About Domain Tasting, eweek 2/1/2008
• ICANN Has Submitted Plea to be Freed from U.S. Government Control, CircleID 1/24/2008
• Oxford Internet Institute to Hold Forum on History and Future of DNS, CircleID 1/24/2008
• GNSO Initial Report on Domain Tasting, ICANN 1/8/2008
• US Internet Control Discussed in Brazil, Wash Post 11/13/2007
• U.S. control over Internet debated, Globe and Mail 11/9/2007
• New Chairman of ICANN Elected Unanimously, ICANN 11/5/2007
• ICANN Investigating "Domain Name Front Running", CircleID 10/26/2007
• ICANN as Fake Institution: WHOIS, Privacy and Credible Commitment, IGP 10/26/2007
• ICANN Meeting Will Proceed Despite Fires, Tech Daily Dose 10/26/2007
• ICANN to Face Major Transition as Vint Cerf Steps Down, CircleID 7/5/2007
• Discussion at the Internet Governance Forum in Geneva, CircleID 6/1/2007
• New domain names coming in mid-2008, says ICANN, America's Network 5/15/2007
• Vint Cerf Speaking Candidly as ICANN Chairmanship Ends, CircleID 5/8/2007
• ICANN is the USSR of the internet - Karl Auerbach speaks out, Register 4/24/2007
• ICANN may be looking for immunity from U.S. law, CNET 4/3/2007
• ICANN reviews domain name sellers, Globe and Mail 3/27/2007
• Who is ICANN and Where Does it Fit With Internet Governance?, CircleID 3/8/2007
• ICANN approves domain for Asia-Pacific, Globe and Mail 10/20/2006
• ICANN Sacrifices Privacy for Shot at Independence, CircleID 10/11/2006
• U.S. to allow ICANN independence by 2009, MSNBC 10/3/2006
• ICANN Joint Project Agreement:, NTIA 9/29/2006
• Tiering, It's Not Just For Telcos Anymore, Tales from the Sausage Factory 9/1/2006
• ICANN to Cut U.S. Apron Strings?, BWO 7/28/2006
• U.S. Still Has Keys to ICANN, Internet News 7/28/2006
• Hearing looks at Internet name privatization plan, Reuters 7/25/2006
• Time to loosen your grip on the net, US is told, Guardian 7/21/2006
• ICANN needs to clamp down on domain name abuse, CNET 6/21/2006
• Domain Wars Rage On, BWO 5/23/2006
• Internet regulator approves .tel domain, Globe and Mail 5/16/2006
• A Web Address for a Phone Number? Do .Tel, eWeek 5/16/2006
• Why ICANN Nominating Committee Has Difficulty Finding Directors, CircleID 5/19/2006
• Internet regulator approves .tel domain, Globe and Mail 5/16/2006
• A Web Address for a Phone Number? Do .Tel, eWeek 5/16/2006
• ICANN Meets To Hash Out Internet's Problems, Newsfactor 3/28/2006
• Revised ICANN, VeriSign Deal Still Uncertain, Internet news 2/17/2006
• February meeting on future of internet, Register 1/13/2006
• US net body challenged over .com, BBC 11/29/2005
• Trade group challenges ICANN-VeriSign settlement, CNET 11/29/2005
• ICANN Considers Freeing Up Single-Letter Domains, Information Week 11/29/2005
• Welcome to the Root, .MOBI, CircleID 11/1/2005
• Internet Body in Settlement With VeriSign, Wash Post 10/24/2005
• Verisign Gets .COM Forever, But ICANN Gets a Lobbyist, CircleID 10/24/2005
• Travel industry gets its own dedicated domain on Internet, Taipei Times 10/5/2005
• Public Policy Questions for Internet, CircleID 9/19/2005
• To Meow or not to Meow: .CAT TLD approved by ICANN, CircleID 9/19/2005
• Strategies to deal with homographs in Internationalized Domain Names, ITU 7/26/2005
• Travel oriented entities to have own address on Internet, Hindu Business Linie 8/30/2005
• ICANN Concludes 23rd International Meeting with Action on Domain Name Security and Global Addressing Policy, ICANN 7/22/2005
• ICANN president delivers internet vision, Register 7/19/2005
• ICANN Delays Non-English Letters, Wired 7/19/2005
• Putting Multiple Root Nameserver Issue to Rest, CircleID 6/29/2005
• ICANN Nominating Committee Extends Deadline for Submissions to 20 July 2005, ICANN 6/14/2005
• ICANN Board Designates VeriSign to Retain Control of .NET Registry, ICANN 6/10/2005
• A battle for the soul of the Internet, ZDNet 6/10/2005
• WIPO Recommends Uniform Mechanism to Regulate Domain Name Registrations, ITU 6/3/2005
• ICANN Posts Proposed FY 2005-06 Budget, ICANN 5/21/2005
• ICANN Call for Submissions of Interest for Leadership, CircleID 5/17/2005
• Working Group on Internet Governance Questionnaire Posted for Comment, ITU 5/13/2005
• Revised Strategic Plan Posted for Public Comment, ICANN 5/13/2005
• Global poker game for the internet goes on, Register 5/3/2005
• Opinion: ICANN, the ITU, WSIS, and Internet Governance by Geoff Huston, APNIC, IP Journal 4/22/2005
• ICANN Completes Negotiations with Applicants for .JOBS and .TRAVEL, ICANN 3/25/2005
• ICANN Officially Designates .JOBS & .TRAVEL, ICANN 4/11/2005
• ICANN Concludes 22nd Meeting with Major Announcements on AfriNIC, sTLDs & IPv4, ICANN 4/11/2005
• U.N. Must Earn Net Role, eweek 4/11/2005
• ICANN approval moves .eu domain forward, Standard 3/25/2005
• Unnoticed fee could raise Internet domain costs, UNDP 12/21/2004
• ICANN Gives Preliminary OK to 2 Domains, eweek 12/14/2004
• After Years of Battle, Some '.md' Web Sites Are Going Online, NYT 12/14/2004
• The space warrior, the witch and ICANN, CNET 12/7/2004
• ICANN selects its wardens, Register 12/3/2004
• ICANN domain transfer policy takes effect, NW Fusion 11/12/2004
• U.N. creates Internet governance working group, NW Fusion 11/12/2004
• A Kink in .Travel Plans, InternetNews 11/3/2004
• Domain Apps Progress Through ICANN, InternetNews 10/29/2004
• ICANN breaks budget impasse, CNET 10/15/2004
• Internet Governance: The State Of Play, UN ICT 9/14/2004
• UN 'off track on Internet ' - Cerf, Qlinks 7/23/2004
• Why ICANN('t) pay the bill, IDG 6/14/2004
• ICANN Committee Calls for Permanent End to SiteFinder, eWeek 7/13/2004
• VeriSign Amends ICANN Suit, eWeek 6/17/2004
• ICANN wins round in Internet suit, CNET 5/20/2004
• Internet Governance: The Way from Geneva to Tunis, ITU 5/7/2004
• ICANN - External forces chip away at Internet&rsquo;s overseer, IHT 3/11/2004
• Internet Regulator OKs Wait-Listing Service, Wash Post 3/8/2004
• ICANN Fleshes Out Global Ambitions, Internet News 3/4/2004
• ICANN 'disappointed' in VeriSign, CNET 3/1/2004
• Can A Lawsuit Fix The Domain Name Mess?, Forbes 3/1/2004
• Decision Nears on Contentious Domain Name Service, eweek 2/26/2004
• Suit Challenges Powers of Key Internet Authority, Wash Post 2/26/2004
• Court rules in favor of ICANN, CNET 11/17/2003
• ICANN to Open Office in Brussels, ICANN 10/31/2003
• Cerf: ICANN finally working on 'substantive issues', InfoWorld 10/27/2003
• VeriSign Won't Suspend SiteFinder, Wash Post 9/29/03
• VeriSign Suspends SiteFinder Service, TechNewsWorld 10/6/03
• ICANN Stands Tall, Wash Post 10/6/03
• ICANN Demands VeriSign Shut Down SiteFinder, Internet News 10/3/03
• VeriSign Sticks To Its Guns On Site Finder Battle, CMP 9/26/03
• With Site Finder, VeriSign Sparks Internet-wide Criticism, Wash Post 9/26/03
• Senators to Quiz New ICANN Leader, Wash Post 8/4/03
• ICANN Makes Peace, Forms ccNSO, Internet News 6/27/03
• ICANN approves framework for greater public input, InfoWorld 6/27/03
• Bill challenges ICANN, VeriSign, CNET 6/20/03
• Bill challenges ICANN, VeriSign, CNET 6/20/03
• Australian Tapped To Run Internet Group, Wash Post 3/19/03
• The Net's Faltering Democracy, Newsfactor 3/19/03
• Europe Threatens To Invade ICANN, Register 2/10/03
• Malaysia Elected Unopposed As Chair of GAC, Burmana 1/21/03
• ICANN Board Okays Plan For New TLDs, Info World 12/16/02
• ICANN to approve new domains, CNET 12/16/02
• Preliminary Report - Fourth Annual Meeting of the ICANN Board in Amsterdam, ICANN 12/16/02
• New Net names coming, USA Today 12/16/02
• ICANN plays safe with new domain plans Register 11/12/02
• Will Big Business Dictate Public Interest? Internet News 10/15/02
• Größere Rolle der EU im ICANN-Regierungsbeirat Heise 11/5/02
• ICANN Nixes At-Large Reps Wired 11/1/02
• ICANN votes to remove direct elections Electronicnews 11/1/02
• ICANN drops elected board seats MSNBC 11/1/02
• Lowering the Veil of Secrecy? CNET 11/1/02
• ICANN approves election reform plan CNET 11/1/02
• ICANN Threatens VeriSign, Wash Post 9/6/02
• Domain Retailers Back ICANN, Wash Post 8/16/02
• Internet Registry Giants Want ICANN Heeled, Wash Post 8/2/02
• ICANN Ordered To Open Books, Internet News 7/31/02
• ICANN statement on court decision, ICANN 7/31/02
• Karl Wins, Blog 7/29/02
• .ORG Decision Looms Large, Wash Post 7/29/02
• ICANN Delays Naming .org Successor, Internet News 7/26/02
• ICANN Board Adopts Reform Plan, Ditches Elections, Register 7/1/02
• ICANN Critics Consider Options, Wash Post 7/1/02
• ICANN Hearing Real Audio, U Oregon 6/28/02
• Board Takes Feedback On ICANN Reform, Internet News 6/28/02
• Internet Group Leaves Ordinary Surfer High and Dry, Reuters 6/28/02
• ICANN board approves reform agenda, NW Fusion 6/28/02
• ICANN Squeezes Out Regular Folk, Wired 6/28/02
• ICANN to Net users: No, you can't, CNET 6/28/02
• Directors Approve Lynn Reform, Internet News 6/28/02
• ITAA Calls for Continued Private Sector Leadership of Reformed ICANN; Membership Adopts Principles for Reform, ITAA 6/26/02
• Internet name body set for landmark vote, CNN 6/26/02
• ICANN Outlines Its Evolution, Wired 6/24/02
• ICANN, Dotted With Doubts, Wash Post 6/20/02
• International management of the Internet and ICANN reform, Consilium 6/5/02
• Overhaul of Net body ahead?, CNN 6/3/02
• Opinion: ICANN Cannibalizes Self, MSNBC 5/31/02
• Critics: ICANN Experiment Has Failed, Internet News 5/31/02
• ICANN President Announces Retirement, Internet News 5/29/02
• ICANN chief to step down, CNN 5/29/02
• INTA releases responses to studies critical of ICANN'S UDRP, INTA 5/15/02
• UK - ICANN and the management of the Internet domain name system, DTI 5/15/02
• Regional Internet Registry Joint Statement on ICANN Evolution and Reform 4/23/2, 5/3/02
• ICANN Seeks Out Dot-Org Operator, Wash Tech 4/24/02
• ICANN warns of domain-dispute scam, CNN 4/15/02
• Computing Group Asks ICANN To Scale Back Mission, Wash Tech 4/3/02
• ICANN re-enacts domain battles, CNET 4/1/02
• Tilting At ICANN, Salon 3/19/02
• ICANN Director Sues For Access To Records, Reuters 3/19/02
• ICANN Be Reformed, ISP Planet 3/19/02
• ICANN Director Sues ICANN Over Financial Record, Wash Tech 3/19/02
• ICANN Has Final Say On Dot-EU Internet Domain, Wash Tech 3/27/02
• ICANN Abolishes Net Democracy, Register 3/15/02
• ICANN fails to resolve at-large election question, cw 3/15/02
• Net oversight body rejects elections, MSNBC 3/15/02
• Should Geeks, Or Governments, Run the Net?, Wash Tech 3/15/02
• Internet overseers reject board member elections, Nando 3/15/02
• ICANN Chief's Proposal Prompts Debate In Ghana, Wash Tech 3/13/02
• Japanese Groups Blast ICANN Restructuring Proposal, Wash Tech 3/13/02
• Net Addressing Authorities Face Governance Decisions, Wash Tech 3/11/02
• ICANN President: Reforms Not Set In Stone, Wash Tech 3/4/02
• ICANN Stepping Up Hunt For New 'Dot-Org' Operator, Wash Tech 3/4/02
• Response to the ICANN reform proposal document, RIPE 3/4/02
• ICANN Chief Calls For Overhaul, Internet News 2/25/02
• ICANN chief seeks major overhaul, MSNBC 2/25/02
• ICANN president calls for major overhaul, CW 2/25/02
• ICANN President Proposes Sweeping Governance Changes, Wash Tech 2/25/02
• Appeals Court Quashes Domain-Name Ban , Newsbytes 2/20/02
• ICANN Board Members Plan Washington Retreat , Wash Tech 2/22/02
• ICANN's Take On New TLDs, ISP Planet 1/24/02
• Net name registrars contest ICANN fees, CNET 1/22/02
• ICANN and Antitrust, SSRN 12/18/01
• ICANN: U.S. Official Says Govt Should Stay Out Of Internet, Wash Tech 11/15/01
• ICANN's Lynn: No New Domains Anytime Soon, IDG 11/23/01
• ICANN Ponders Domain Woes, BWO 11/16/01
• Is ICANN Finding Itself Again?, INews 11/16/01
• ICANN Stifling Public's Voice?, Internet News 10/30/01
• ICANN Finalizes Contract For .Museum Domain, Washtech 10/18/01
• ALSC Chair Defends ICANN Report, Inews 09/01/01
• Public Interest Groups Clash With ICANN, Newsbytes 09/01/01
• Colombia Challenges ICANN For Domain, Newsfactor 6/15/01
• Froomkin: ICANN Survey Is Biased, Register 6/15/01
• ICANN Wraps Up Stockholm Meetings, InternetNews 6/4/01
• ICANN members say Internet not ready for non-English domain names, NAndo 6/4/01
• Defections at ICANN's Support Organization, Standard 6/4/01
• ICANN Struggles With Internet Names, Washtech 6/4/01
• Report Urges ICANN To Broaden Leadership Ranks, Washtech 06/01/01
• ICANN, under fire, targets alternate top-level domains, CW 06/01/01
• ICANN's I Can't Attitude Alienating Internet Community, Internetnews 06/01/01
• Advocates Upset Over Verisign/ICANN Flipflop, InternetNews 5/16/01
• ICANN Gives OK To .Biz, .Info, InternetNEws 5/16/01
• ICANN Proposed Budget Leaked On The Web, InternetNews 5/11/01
• ICANN Approves VeriSign Extension, InternetNews 4/2/01
• ICANN Gives .Com To VeriSign, Newsbytes 4/2/01
• ICANN: We're Ready - New Domain Operators, Newsbytes 3/12/01
• ICANN: Ticking VeriSign Deal Explodes, Newsbytes 3/12/01
• The ICANN meeting in a nutshell, Register 3/14/01
• Start-up will sell Web addresses to bypass Internet bureaucracy, WSJ 3/5/01
• ICANN: Launch Of New Domains Behind Schedule, Reuters 3/5/01
• Fury At ICANN/ VeriSign On .org Domains, Register 3/2/01
• VeriSign sidesteps split-up with ICANN agreement, NWFusion 3/2/01
• Markle Backs ICANN Governance Study, Newsbytes 2/23/01
• ICANN Board Member Seeks More Regulation, Washtech 2/15/01
• ICANN Tethered, IW 2/12/01
• Got a Feeling Inside - ICANN Explain, Ecomm Times 2/12/01
• ACLU calls for public hearings on new top-level domains Jan 19 computerworld
• ACLU Press Release: Citing Free Speech Concerns, Cyber-Rights Groups Call for Hearings on Internet Domain Name Decisions Jan 19 aclu
• ACLU Letter calling for hearings Jan 19 aclu
• The Hacker Who Will Help Steer The Net Nov 3, 2000 infoworld
• Domain Rules To Shield Trademark Holders Oct 31, 2000 ecompany
• Karl Auerbach: ICANN-oclast Oct 16, 2000 salon
• ICANN: The Election Is Over Oct 16, 2000
• Hacker elected to ICANN Oct 16, 2000 usatoday
• Cisco Researcher Elected To Net Panel Oct 12, 2000 sfgate
• ICANN Elects Iconoclasts Oct 12, 2000 wired
• ICANN Adds Democracy To Internet Governance Oct 12, 2000 techweb
• ICANN Elections Under Way Oct 2, 2000 wired
• Voting Begins In ICANN Global Election Oct 2, 2000 newsbytes
• Dyson To Leave, Will Be ICANN's Best Critic newsbytes
• Numeric Domain Name System Launched July 20, 2000 The Register
• GAO Clears ICANN's Legal Underbrush July 7, 2000 The Standard
• Domain Name Solution Causes New Problems, IEEE Computer Oct. 1999 (noting $100 Netsol registration fee)