Narrow Mission, Consensus-Based Processes Critical to ICANN’s Future

CDT today laid out its most detailed roadmap yet for the transition to full independence of the body that oversees the Internet’s domain name system (DNS). Since its creation in 1998, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has operated under contract with the U.S. government. CDT has long argued that ICANN should be freed of U.S. control, but only if it is accountable to the global Internet community and protected from interference by other governments. In comments filed today with the Commerce Department, CDT set out five steps that must be taken before ICANN can become fully independent. Central among these is limiting ICANN’s mission solely to matters affecting competition, security and stability of the DNS and requiring consensus among affected stakeholders for the adoption of ICANN rules.