At-Large Advisory Committee

ALAC is the acronym for At-Large Advisory Committee, which is one of ICANN's advisory committees. The mission of ALAC is to function as an advocate the interests of individual Internet users.

Background

The ICANN Board adopted new bylaws on October 31st, 2002; which came in to effect on December 15th of that year. The creation of the ALAC was part of a larger reform effort within ICANN, now known as ICANN 2.0. The new bylaws established the ALAC and provided the support for At-Large Organizations. It stated that the ALAC should consist of ten members selected by Regional At-Large Organizations, with 5 supplementary members to be be selected by ICANN's Nominating Committee. The interim ALAC consisted of ten members, two from each of ICANN's 5 regions.

Esther Dyson, former ICANN Chair and ALAC member, has noted how difficult it is to truly represent the average Internet user within ICANN, even with the ALAC. Specific problems include difficulty recruiting members and having productive message boards and long-distance communications.

Recent News

As of December, 2011, ALAC is set to vote on a resolution calling for the ICANN Board to delay the launch of the New gTLD Program. The draft motion proposed that the program would be harmful to the interests of the public, and additionally that ICANN should complete the introduction of new gTLDs in phases consisting of no more than 25 TLDs every three months. Either recommendation would constitute a major u-turn in ALAC's position, and as such there has been a lot of opposition to the resolution.

At-Large Structures

Main article: ALS

The ALAC represents a network of regionally self-organized and self-supporting At-Large Structures, which represent individual Internet users throughout the world. The At-Large Structures are divided into five Regional At-Large Organizations (one in each ICANN region – Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America/Caribbean, and North America). These RALOs manage public involvement and represent their constituents to ICANN.

Through these At-Large Structures, individual internet users have been given a voice and a space whereby they can influence the policy decisions made by ICANN.

ALAC responsibilities

Besides following the provisions of ICANN's new bylaws, ALAC has also other responsibilities; such as assisting in the formation and qualification of other At-Large Structures and RALOs. Other responsibilities undertaken by ALAC and its organizations include:

• Evaluating the accreditation process for At-Large Structures
• Analyzing and publishing ICANN's policies and decisions
• Coordinating with the GNSO and other ICANN committees
• Providing guidance and advice to various organizations regarding ICANN's proposals and activities which are relevant for individual Internet users
• Analyzing and approving the applications of At-Large Structures
• Developing Internet-based processes and methods to enable and ease the communication process between At-Large structures

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.