[Washington, DC and Geneva, Switzerland] – In a statement distributed to the Internet Society’s global community today, Internet Society President and CEO, Kathryn C. Brown has stressed the organization’s continued commitment to the stewardship transition of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) functions to the global Internet community, highlighting that this process is key to maintaining long-term value in the collaborative, multistakeholder model of Internet governance.
The statement follows the news today that Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) President and CEO, Fadi Chehadé, who has played an important role in leading ICANN in its efforts toward the globalization of the IANA functions to date, will step down from his post in March 2016.
Noting how the Internet Society is concerned with the health and wellbeing of the Internet for everyone, everywhere, Ms. Brown said, “Our community is deeply committed to seeing the transition through to completion. Indeed, there is no turning back. We have a responsibility to the users of the global Internet to maintain the momentum for a timely, orderly transition of the role of the United States Department of Commerce NTIA.”
Since 1998 the United States, through the NTIA, has contracted ICANN to perform the IANA functions, which involve management of the Internet’s Domain Name System’s root-zone. The NTIA announced its intention to transition its role and responsibilities with regards to the IANA functions on 14 March 2014.
As a directly affected party to the IANA contract, the Internet Society is focused on supporting the sustainable evolution of the Internet ecosystem. The organization remains strongly committed to the IANA Transition process and pledges its continued efforts and resources in support of the multistakeholder effort.
In conclusion, Ms. Brown said, “The community has done impressive work in elaborating a proposal for the transition of the IANA functions stewardship… I am most confident that the community, through its open and transparent processes, will submit a proposal in the very near future that meets the requirements set forward by the NTIA and that will enable a successful transition of the IANA functions to the global multistakeholder community.”
About the Internet Society
The Internet Society (http://www.internetsociety.org) is the trusted independent source for Internet information and thought leadership around the world. It is also the organizational home for the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). With its principled vision, substantial technological foundation and its global presence, the Internet Society promotes open dialogue on Internet policy, technology, and future development among users, companies, governments, and other organizations. Working with its members and Chapters around the world, the Internet Society enables the continued evolution and growth of the Internet for everyone.
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