ICANN 81

Event
Process	ICANN
Date	Nov. 9, 2024
Region	AP
Country	Türkiye
City	Istanbul
Venue	Istanbul Congress Center
← ICANN 80 ICANN 82 →

ICANN 81 was the 26th ICANN Annual General Meeting (AGM). It took place from November 9-14, 2024 in Istanbul, Türkiye, at the Istanbul Congress Center (ICC), hosted by the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK).

Meeting Information

ICANN 81 was scheduled as a six-day AGM, with Prep Week webinars held online on October 28, 30 and 31, 2024, followed by the in-person and hybrid meeting in Istanbul from November 9-14, 2024.

A dedicated Policy Outlook Report and several pre-ICANN81 briefings framed the key issues expected to dominate the meeting, including the New gTLD Program: Next Round, registration data and DNS Abuse, and preparations for the WSIS+20 review and broader Internet governance debates.

Policy and Governance Themes

New gTLD Program: Next Round

The New gTLD Program: Next Round was the central cross-community theme of ICANN 81. The Policy Outlook Report highlighted the meeting as a key waypoint between the completion of GNSO policy work on Subsequent Procedures and the finalization of implementation details for the next application window. Sessions across SO/ACs, together with pre-ICANN81 briefings, focused on three clusters of issues:

• how to handle contention resolution in the Next Round, including whether any forms of private resolution or private auctions would be allowed;
• how to reflect GNSO Supplemental Recommendations (particularly on singular/plural strings) in the Applicant Guidebook; and
• how to operationalize applicant support mechanisms, including the Applicant Support Program (ASP) and the Support Applicant Review Panel (SARP).

At its Regular Meeting on November 14, 2024, held during ICANN 81, the ICANN Board took several decisions that directly shaped the Next Round:

• The Board decided that private resolutions of contention sets, including private auctions, will not be permitted in the Next Round, responding to long-standing community concerns and advice from both the GAC and ALAC about gaming and large monetary side-payments in the 2012 round.
• The Board directed ICANN org to implement an ascending-clock second-price auction mechanism as the method for ICANN’s Auction of Last Resort in the Next Round, providing clarity where there is no consensus GNSO policy recommendation on auction design.
• The Board adopted the GNSO’s Supplemental Recommendation 24.3 on singular and plural versions of the same word in the same language. The recommendation prohibits delegation of singular and plural versions of the same word in the same language in specified circumstances, and requires the creation of contention sets when both forms are applied for in the same round. This decision resolves a previously non-adopted element of the SubPro Final Report and ensures that singular/plural handling can be reflected in the forthcoming Applicant Guidebook.
• To prepare the programme operationally, the Board approved:
  • a multi-year contract to upgrade the Service Level Agreement Monitoring (SLA Monitoring) system so that it can absorb the expected load from roughly 1,200 additional gTLDs in the Next Round; and
  • a contract with an independent provider to assemble and manage Support Applicant Review Panels (SARP) for the Applicant Support Program, ensuring independent evaluation of support applications.

The GNSO Council’s work programme and wrap-up at ICANN 81 tracked the implications of these Board decisions for the SubPro implementation timeline and for coordination with the GNSO Small Team Plus that had developed Supplemental Recommendation 24.3.

External Internet Governance Environment

ICANN 81 took place in a period of intensified global Internet governance negotiations, including preparations for the WSIS+20 Review and the finalization of the UN Global Digital Compact. The Policy Outlook Report flagged these processes as an overarching theme for Istanbul, noting that they could influence how ICANN’s multistakeholder model is perceived and how DNS-related issues are handled in other fora.

Sessions across SO/ACs examined:

• the potential impact of the WSIS+20 outcome and the Global Digital Compact on ICANN’s role in global Internet governance;
• regulatory developments such as the EU NIS2 Directive and their implications for registries and registrars; and
• how ICANN community positions could be coordinated across Supporting Organizations and Advisory Committees ahead of key UN and ITU milestones.

Supporting Organizations and Advisory Committees

Address Supporting Organization (ASO)

The Policy Outlook Report’s ASO section framed the ICANN 81 ASO activities around operational and policy developments in the Regional Internet Registries (RIRs). Topics flagged for Istanbul included:

• management of IPv4 exhaustion and secondary-market transfers;
• trends in IPv6 deployment and incentives;
• deployment of Resource Public Key Infrastructure (RPKI) and routing security; and
• coordination between ICANN and the RIR system on reverse DNS and registry stability.

At ICANN 81, the ASO used its open session and joint meetings (including with the GAC and the Board) to brief the broader community on these regional policy developments and the status of global policy proposals under discussion in the RIRs.

ccNSO

The ccNSO’s work at ICANN 81 concentrated on two major policy development efforts and several governance matters identified in the Policy Outlook Report:

• The ccPDP3 on the retirement of ccTLDs and on a review mechanism for IANA decisions relating to ccTLD delegation, transfer, and revocation. Sessions in Istanbul focused on late-stage questions about how a future review mechanism would interact with existing accountability processes and on operational details for implementing the retirement policy.
• A cross-community discussion of the evolving role of ccTLDs in global Internet governance, particularly in light of WSIS+20 and increasing government interest in country-code policy. This was framed as an opportunity for ccTLD managers to articulate their expectations of ICANN and other institutions in the next governance cycle.

At its November 14, 2024 Council meeting held during ICANN 81, the ccNSO Council adopted resolutions including the publication of a more transparent list of territories participating in the Board Seat 12 nomination process, indicating which territories voted and to which ICANN region they belong.

GNSO

Council Work Programme and Wrap-Up

The GNSO Council's agenda in Istanbul followed a detailed draft schedule that concentrated its activities into Council working sessions, a formal Council meeting, and a wrap-up focused on Next Round implementation, registration data, and external engagement (including WSIS+20).

According to the GNSO Council wrap-up workspace, key topics included:

• updates from the Registration Data Policy IRT and discussion of the transition from the Temporary Specification to the new Registration Data Policy;
• the interplay between GNSO work and the Board’s ICANN 81 decisions on the Next Round, including contention resolution and singular/plural handling;
• planning for GNSO participation in the WSIS+20 processes and broader Internet governance discussions; and
• review of GNSO community requests and scheduling for ICANN 82 and ICANN 83.

Transfer Policy Review PDP

The Transfer Policy Review PDP Working Group continued to be a major GNSO policy vehicle at ICANN 81. The GNSO Policy Briefing for ICANN 81 outlined how the working group would use its in-person session to:

• review public comments received on the Phase 1(b) Initial Report;
• continue substantive deliberations on Phase 2 topics, including:
  • change of registrant procedures;
  • the use and expiry of transfer authorization codes; and
  • mechanisms for bulk transfers and consolidation; and
• prepare the path towards final recommendations to be sent to the GNSO Council.

The working group’s agenda in Istanbul was thus transitionary: closing out comment analysis and using face-to-face time to resolve remaining areas of disagreement before finalising recommendations.

Other GNSO work streams highlighted in the Policy Briefing and Outlook Report for ICANN 81 included ongoing monitoring of the RDRS, coordination on DNS abuse issues (including how GNSO policy intersects with OCTO’s DAAR work), and internal Council process improvements.

ALAC and RALOs

The At-Large community entered ICANN 81 with a substantial agenda centered on end-user perspectives on the Next Round, registration data, and external Internet governance processes.

The At-Large ICANN 81 workspace and agendas show that key sessions included:

• an At-Large development session series and a CPWG overview session, used to align regional policy contributors on the main ICANN 81 issues;
• a plenary session on the Next Round and the Applicant Support Program (ASP), focusing on how At-Large advice on contention resolution, ASP design, and end-user safeguards should be reflected in Board and implementation decisions;
• joint meetings with the ICANN Board and the GAC, where ALAC emphasised end-user expectations regarding DNS abuse mitigation, transparency in the Next Round, and access to registration data; and
• the APRALO AGM and a EURALO General Assembly held in hybrid format, using the Istanbul meeting as an anchor for regional governance and policy coordination.

The Policy Outlook Report also noted that At-Large would engage on wider Internet governance topics at ICANN 81, including the WSIS+20 process and the Global Digital Compact, with particular attention to how these could affect user rights and participation in DNS governance.

GAC

The GAC’s ICANN 81 schedule consisted of a dense programme of plenary discussions, bilateral meetings, and communiqué drafting sessions. Major components included:

• plenary sessions on the New gTLD Program: Next Round, DNS abuse mitigation, and registration data issues;
• bilateral meetings with the GNSO Council, the Contracted Parties House, the ASO, the SSAC, and the ICANN Board; and
• multiple sessions dedicated to drafting and reviewing the ICANN 81 GAC Communiqué (including stand-alone communiqué drafting sessions scheduled throughout the week).

The ICANN 81 GAC Communiqué, published shortly after the meeting, continued the committee’s focus on public-policy concerns in the Next Round, DNS abuse, and access to registration data, building on advice previously issued at ICANN 77 and ICANN 80 and on clarifying consultations with the Board.

RSSAC

The Policy Outlook Report indicated that, at ICANN 81, RSSAC would use its public session and joint meetings to update the community on ongoing implementation of past RSSAC advice and on work streams related to the root server system’s performance and governance. Topics included:

• measurement and reporting on the health and performance of the root server system;
• follow-up to RSSAC028 and other advice on the future governance of the Root Server System;
• interactions between root server operations and broader DNS security developments (such as DNSSEC deployment and resolver behaviour).

RSSAC also participated in bilateral meetings with the GAC and the Board, using the AGM setting to connect root operations work with policy concerns raised in other parts of the community.

SSAC

SSAC’s programme in Istanbul, as described in the Policy Outlook Report, included:

• updates on work related to DNSSEC and cryptographic agility, including considerations around algorithm transitions and long-term security of signed zones;
• ongoing work items such as the Name Collision Analysis Project (NCAP) and other studies examining DNS operational risks; and
• a public informational session with the ICANN Board during the November Board Workshop immediately preceding ICANN 81, used to explain SSAC’s role and current work plan to the broader community.

SSAC’s engagement with the Board and other groups at ICANN 81 was part of a broader effort to ensure that technical and security advice is understood and acted upon in the context of new policy initiatives such as the Next Round and DNS abuse mitigation frameworks.

Board and Leadership Actions

ICANN 81, as an AGM, was the setting for both substantive Board decisions and the formal reconfiguration of ICANN leadership.

Regular Board Meeting

Beyond the Next Round decisions described above, the Board’s regular meeting in Istanbul covered a broader set of items, including:

• the adoption of Supplemental Recommendation 24.3 and decisions banning private resolution of contention sets in the Next Round;
• approval of the auction method for ICANN’s Auction of Last Resort (ascending-clock second-price auctions);
• approval of a three-year contract to upgrade the SLA Monitoring System for registries and registrars, anticipating the additional load from the Next Round; and
• approval of a contract with a SARP provider for the Applicant Support Program.

These resolutions tied ICANN 81 directly to the operationalization of the New gTLD Program: Next Round, moving several contentious or previously unresolved implementation questions into a settled state ahead of the finalization of the Applicant Guidebook.

Organizational Meeting of the Board

In a separate Organizational Meeting on the same day, the Board elected its new leadership and confirmed ICANN’s senior officers:

• Tripti Sinha was elected Chair of the ICANN Board, and Chris Chapman was elected Vice-Chair.
• Membership and leadership of all Board Committees (including the Accountability Mechanisms Committee, Audit Committee, Compensation Committee, Executive Committee, Finance Committee, Governance Committee, Organizational Effectiveness Committee, Risk Committee, Strategic Planning Committee, and Technical Committee) were re-constituted.
• Sally Costerton was confirmed as Interim President and CEO through December 8, 2024, and Kurt Erik “Kurtis” Lindqvist was elected as President and CEO effective December 9, 2024.
• Other officers, including the General Counsel and Secretary, the Chief Financial Officer, and the Senior Vice President for Global Domains and Strategy, were confirmed.
• In its role as the sole member of Public Technical Identifiers (PTI), the Board held the PTI Member Meeting, confirming it as the PTI annual meeting and re-electing Kim Davies as PTI President.

These leadership decisions anchored ICANN 81 as a transition point between the period under the Interim CEO and the start of Lindqvist’s tenure, with the Board explicitly transferring outstanding CEO-directed actions to the new President and CEO.

Asia/Australia/Pacific, according to the ICANN Geographic Regions (ICANN Geographic Regions).

Annual General Meeting

Generic Top-level Domain

Generic Names Supporting Organization. Develops and recommends to the Board substantive policies relating to generic top-level domains and other responsibilities set forth in the Bylaws (ICANN Bylaws).

Governmental Advisory Committee. Considers and provides advice on the activities of ICANN as they relate to concerns of governments, particularly matters where there may be an interaction between ICANN's policies and various laws and international agreements or where they may affect public policy issues (ICANN Bylaws).

At-Large Advisory Committee. Considers and provides advice on the activities of ICANN related to the interests of individual Internet users (ICANN Bylaws). Not to be confused with the Non-Commercial Stakeholder Group.

Generic Top-level Domain

World Summit on the Information Society

Europe, according to the ICANN Geographic Regions (ICANN Geographic Regions).

International Telecommunication Union

Address Supporting Organization. Advises the Board with respect to policy issues relating to the operation, assignment, and management of Internet addresses (ICANN Bylaws).

Regional Internet Registry

Country Code Names Supporting Organization. Develops and recommends to the Board global policies relating to country-code top-level domains (ICANN Bylaws).

Country code top-level domain. Determined by "ISO 3166-1: Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions — Part 1: Country codes".

Internet Assigned Numbers Authority

Country code top-level domain. Determined by "ISO 3166-1: Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions — Part 1: Country codes".

Policy Development Process

Domain Abuse Activity Reporting

The Asia-Pacific Regional At-Large Organization

European Regional At-Large Organization

Security and Stability Advisory Committee. Advises the ICANN community and Board on matters relating to the security and integrity of the Internet's naming and address allocation systems (ICANN Bylaws).

Root Server System Advisory Committee. Advises the ICANN community and Board on matters relating to the operation, administration, security, and integrity of the Internet's Root Server System (ICANN Bylaws).

Domain Name System Security Extensions

Public Technical Identifiers