ICANN 42

Dates:	October 23-28, 2011
Location:	Dakar
Host:	MICOMTELTIC ARTP
Venue:	Pointe des Almadies
Website:	dakar42.icann.org

ICANN 42 was held in Dakar, Senegal, between October 23rd and 28th, 2011. It was hosted by Senegal's Ministry of Communication, Telecommunications and Information Technology and Communication (MICOMTELTIC) and Agence de Regulation des Telecoms et Postes.

Major Events

IDN

A draft version of Guidelines for Implementation of Internationalized Domain Names was modified and approved during ICANN 42 by the ICANN Board. The document was developed by the IDN Guidelines Revision Working Group, and contains some of the following provisions.

Batching

Popularized during ICANN 42 was batching, the term for dividing new gTLD applications into manageable batches of 500. During a GNSO working session in Dakar, ICANN Senior Vice President Kurt Pritz announced that the date of submission during an application window will not be a factor in determining placement, meaning all applicants who filed between January 12th and April 12th would have an equal opportunity of being in any batch. ICANN did not detail how the batches would be processed, though a "charity auction" method has been ruled out and a random selection seems preferred, if workable under proper laws. It was also stated that applicants may be able to "opt out" of the first batch if not concerned about time-to-market.

AFRALO Capacity Building Sessions

An extension of a 2009 document outlining the capacity building needs of AFRALO to inform and educate its representatives on ICANN activities, AFRALO held a series of capacity building sessions at ICANN 42. More than 20 representatives from each of the African At-Large Structure joined the meetings, which had about 300 people in attendance. The five-day program, conducted by ICANN officers and staff, aimed to provide ALS representatives with briefs on key policies, issues, and facets of ICANN.

Elected Officials

• Chairman of the Board: Steve Crocker
• Vice-Chairman of the Board: Bruce Tonkin
• Board Committee Members
  • Audit: Erika Mann (Chair), Bill Graham, Gonzalo Navarro, Judith Vazquez
  • Compensation: R. Ramaraj (Chair), Steve Crocker, George Sadowsky, Bruce Tonkin
  • Executive: Steve Crocker (Chair), Rod Beckstrom, Cherine Chalaby, Bruce Tonkin
  • Finance: Cherine Chalaby (Chair), Sébastien Bachollet, Chris Disspain, George Sadowsky
  • Governance: Bruce Tonkin (Chair), Cherine Chalaby, Bill Graham, Ram Mohan (Liaison), Ray Plzak, R. Ramaraj, Mike Silber
  • Global Relationships: Gonzalo Navarro (Chair), Chris Disspain, Bertrand de La Chapelle, Erika Mann, George Sadowsky, Kuo-Wei Wu
  • IANA: Kuo-Wei Wu (Chair), Bill Graham, Bretrand de La Chapelle, Thomas Narten (Liaison), Suzanne Woolf (Liaison)
  • Public Participation: Sébastien Bachollet (Chair), Chris Disspain, Thomas Narten (Liaison), Gonzalo Navarro, Mike Silber, Kuo-Wei Wu
  • Risk: Mike Silber (Chair), Steve Crocker, Ray Plzak, R. Ramaraj, Thomas Roessler (Liaison), Bruce Tonkin, Judith Vazquez, Suzanne Woolf (Liaison)
  • Structural Improvements: Ray Plzak (Chair), Sébastien Bachollet, Bertrand de La Chapelle, Thomas Roessler (Liaison), Judith Vazquez

Confirmed

• President & Chief Executive Officer: Rod Beckstrom
• Chief Operating Officer: Akram Atallah
• General Counsel & Secretary: John Jeffrey
• Chief Strategy Officer: Kurt Pritz
• Chief Financial Officer: Xavier Calvez

Sessions

October 22

• GNSO working session, open to all
• Possible Supporting Organisations (SO) and Advisory Committee (AC) Meetings

October 23

• Newcomer sessions, open to all
• GNSO working session, open to all
• ALAC and Regional Leadership Working Session
• GAC Working Group Sessions
• Welcome Cocktail Event

October 24 - Welcome Ceremony

• Formal opening of the meeting
• Public Workshops
• Joint SO Meetings

October 25 - Stakeholder Day / Constituency Day

• GNSO Stakeholder Group and Constituency Meetings
• ALAC Policy Discussions
• GAC Meetings
• Joint SO/AC Meeting
• ccNSO Meetings
• Music Night

October 26 - Workshop Day

• GNSO Council Meeting
• Various Workshops
• Reviews
• ccNSO Meetings
• Gala Event

October 27 - Public Forum

• Morning Workshops
• Reports
• Public Forum
• Board Wrap-up/Dakar Review

October 28 - ICANN Board Meeting

• ICANN Board meeting, open to all

Sponsors

Platinum: Verisign, PIR, Orange Brand Services Limited

Gold: Afilias, Neustar

Silver: InterNetX, CNNIC, Siter.com, CORE, GMO Registry, AFNIC, TANGO REGISTRY SERVICES, ARC, DotConnectAfrica

Bronze: IronDNS, RU-CENTER, Iron Mountain

Local: Senecatours, AfriNIC, Tigo, Loment, NIC.sn, La Fracophonie, NEXT Global Solutions

External Links

• ICANN42 Website

Internationalized Domain Name

Internet Assigned Numbers Authority

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).

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.

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).

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