ICANN Historical Timeline
ICANN's history and the history of the Internet are interlinked, and the mission of ICANN was carried out prior to its formation by volunteers, governmental actors, and academic institutions. The following is an attempt to categorize the history (and prehistory) of ICANN and the Domain Name System into eras. Some eras are defined by technical and technological advances, while others are defined by policy initiatives, structural or operational changes to the ICANN org, or a broader thematic push. For instance, the present era involves the globalization of access to and use of the Internet; despite ICANN's commitment to the global Internet community from its inception, several trends have converged to make the present moment a fight for global and universal access and acceptance: Internet usage in BRIC will represent the vast majority of growth in the coming decade; Internationalized Domain Names are growing in prominence, and the effort to ensure universal acceptance of alternate language scripts is as well; efforts to provide [[Alternative Roots|alternatives to the DNS by China and Russia are forcing a broader conversation about the value and impact of a global, interoperable Internet; and ICANN itself is aggressively seeking to improve its presence in and outreach to under-represented parts of the world.
Overview
![](/images/timeline/386b4b6e57f51a487eafd7d045292955.png)
Eras
ICANN has grown and changed significantly over the years. Many people have made contributions throughout their lives to shaping how the Internet and ICANN work. The following is an abbreviated look at the birth of the Internet and the development of ICANN. It should not be taken as a canonical resource regarding ICANN's evolution. Technological and policy initiatives overlap. The boundaries for each era are necessarily fuzzy. Although the effort is to identify themes within the events and history of a given era, there is no guarantee that we have it "right," or that there is a "perfectly correct" representation of a given timeframe.
Mission & Values
ICANN's Core Mission and Values have also evolved over time. As the scope and breadth of ICANN's Mission have become more defined, the organization's bylaws have adapted as well: establishing new policy development mechanisms; integrating prior agreements into the bylaws; and more fully describing the purpose and goals of the organization. Within ICANN org, staffing and organizational changes have focused on implementing ICANN's mission as instructed by the board.
1968-1976: The Birth of the Internet
ARPANET
NLS System at Stanford, 1968[1]
The "Mother of All Demos," 1968[2]
Concept drawing of ARPANET, 1969[3]
Interface Message Processor, 1969[4]
Queen Elizabeth II sends an email, 1976[5]
1972
Events
- UCLA grad student Jon Postel proposes that a "numbers czar" be appointed to keep a record of addresses on the ARPANET and guard against address collisions. The research community agrees and elects Postel to the position of internet numbers coordinator (eventually to become known as the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority).[6] Ultimately, the ARPANET was a product of DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. MIT, the University of Southern California, UCLA, and the Stanford Research Institute, under contract with DARPA, were all instrumental in the development of technologies that are still used today in the modern Internet.[7] Jon Postel, Vint Cerf, Steve Crocker, and other Internet pioneers were first connected with ARPANET projects and innovations.
1983-1988: Birth of the DNS
![](/images/8/87/NSFNET_logo.png)
1983
Events
- Postel officially establishes IANA
1986
Events
- NSF launches NSFNet
1987
Events
- Over 20,000 servers online hosting websites
1988-1995: Legitimization
1988
Documents & RFCs
![](/images/9/99/IAB.png)
* RFC 1083 - Internet Activities Board Official Protocol Standards (first mention of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) in the RFC Index)[8]
1992
- Internet goes commercial/ gains a public/ officially becomes marketplace
Documents & RFCs
- RFC 1358 - Original Charter of the Internet Architecture Board (the Internet Activities Board gets a new name and charter document)[9]
- RFC 1386 - The .us Domain (Jon Postel explains structure and use of the .US ccTLD and second-level domains for states)[10]
1993
Events
- Network Solutions enters into a five-year contract with the NSF to provide domain name registration and network number assignment services.
Documents & RFCs
- RFC 1436 - Internet Gopher Protocol[11]
- RFC 1527 - What Should We Plan Given the Dilemma of the Network? (Gordon Cook presents his thoughts and proposals, developed during his time with the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment, on the possible regulatory and policy needs of the National Research and Education Network and the "American" internet, as they become a noncommercial part of the global internet)[12]
1994
Events
- Postel publishes what will become a canonical resource for the management of (and debates regarding) the domain name system.
Documents & RFCs
- RFC 1591 - Domain Name System Structure and Delegation
1996-1997: Internet Governance in Broad Strokes
![](/images/2/25/IAHC_Original_Members.jpg)
1997
Events
- In May 1997, the ISOC and IANA form the International Ad Hoc Committee (IAHC) concerning the development of a new governance model for TLDs following the expansion and commercialization of the Internet.
- June 1997, the Clinton administration commits to the privatization of DNS management.
Documents
1998: Birth of ICANN
Events
- In February 1998, the National Telecommunications Information Administration (NTIA) creates a Proposal to Improve the Technical Management of Internet Names and Addresses.
![](/images/thumb/4/4c/Headquarters-ICANN-Marina-del-Rey-Calif.jpg/300px-Headquarters-ICANN-Marina-del-Rey-Calif.jpg)
* In September 1998, ICANN files its Articles of Incorporation with the California Secretary of State.
- In October 1998, ICANN’s first board meeting is held in New York, at which Esther Dyson is named Chairman and Mike Roberts is designated President of ICANN.
- In November 1998, a Memorandum of Understanding between the United States Department of Commerce and ICANN is signed.[13] Contemporaneously with the signing of the MoU, ICANN amends its Articles of Incorporation to include a broader statement of public benefit that conforms to the expectations of the MoU.
- The U.S. Department of Commerce releases the “Management of Internet Names and Addresses” outlining the objectives of ensuring DNS stability, maintaining competition, keeping Internet Governance in the private sector, relying on bottom-up coordination, and encouraging diverse and global representation.
- In December 1998, the University of Southern California (USC) and ICANN enter into the IANA functions transition agreement.
Documents
- The Green Paper
- The White Paper
1999-2002: ICANN's Ad Hoc Era
1999
Events
- DNSO comes into existence
- In March,
- the ICANN Board adopts the Statement of Registrar Accreditation Policy for .com, .net, and .org, allowing for competition among domain name registrars for the first time ever, and establish the bylaws for the formation of the DNSO; and
- ICANN 1 takes place in Singapore, where the (GAC) and the RSSAC hold their inaugural meetings.
- In October,
2000
Events
2001-2003: ICANN Reform
2002
Events
- The ICANN Board launches the Evolution and Reform Process, which will bring sweeping change to ICANN constituency structures, processes, and bylaws.[17]
Documents
- M. Stuart Lynn: "President's Report: ICANN -- The Case for Reform"[18]
- ICANN Bylaws, as revised in December 2002 in response to the Evolution & Reform Process and the ERC's recommendations.
2002-2006:Expansion of ICANN Community
2002
Events
2003
Events
- The ccNSO is created for and by ccTLD managers
- ICANN launches the second new gTLD expansion round, which runs until 2011 and during which .asia, .cat, .jobs, .mobi, .tel, .travel, .xxx are delegated.
- NomCom is formed
- ALAC is established
2004
Events
- ICANN gets its first Ombudsman
2005
Events
- ICANNWiki is founded to foster and grow knowledge and community ties among ICANN's diverse constituencies.
- AFRINIC joins the ASO
2007-2009: Seemingly Infinite Reviewing Cycle
The ICANN Bylaws call for two different types of review - organizational reviews (Article 4.4) and specific reviews (Article 4.6). Article 4.4 reviews were born from the 2002 Evolution and Reform Process, and require periodic review of ICANN's supporting organizations and advisory committees. Article 4.6 reviews originated in the Affirmation of Commitments, and the first round of "specific" reviews occurred before these reviews were enshrined in the bylaws. The amendment to the bylaws came about as a result of the IANA Functions Stewardship Transition, when it was recommended that the bylaws be revised to incorporate ICANN's obligations under the Affirmation of Commitments.
As the organizational reviews began, ICANN was in the process of entering into the Affirmation of Commitments with the United States Department of Commerce. As a result, the first specific reviews were launched in 2010, while most of the organizational reviews were still in progress or only recently completed. Many community members since that date have commented on what seems to be a relentless cycle of reviews of one aspect of ICANN or another (or many others at the same time).
ATRT 3 addressed this issue head-on, suggesting that organizational reviews be replaced by "continuous improvement programs," the results of which could feed into a single, "holistic" review of the organization and its constituent parts, to be performed on a periodic basis. In addition, the ATRT 3 team recommended suspending the next cycle of specific reviews until the completion of the next Accountability and Transparency Review. These recommendations were met with varying levels of enthusiasm. The ICANN Board approved the recommendations in the fall of 2020, with caveats. On the specific review side, the board noted that community approval would be required to amend the bylaws around specific reviews. In the organizational review reforms, the board agreed to implement pilot projects testing both the "holistic" review model and a continuous improvement model.
2007
Events
- The First NomCom Organizational Review is launched.
2008
Events
- The first GNSO Organizational Review results in the creation of the bicameral structure of the GNSO Council, and the creation of the GNSO Houses.
2009-2012: Defining Accountability and Transparency at ICANN
![](/images/thumb/d/d0/ATRT1_Process.png/300px-ATRT1_Process.png)
2009
Events
- The Affirmation of Commitments between ICANN and the United States Department of Commerce establishes the requirement for specific reviews of ICANN's core commitments.
- RSSAC and SSAC jointly commission a Root Scaling Study as part of ICANN's preparations for the New gTLD Program.[19]
2010
Events
- The First Accountability and Transparency Review (ATRT1) was conducted between 2010 and 2011, with the implementation of recommendations from the review stretching into 2013.[20]
Documents
- "Scaling the Root: Report on the Impact on the DNS Root System of Increasing the Size and Volatility of the Root Zone"[21]
2012-2017: Scaling the Root
2012
- The third round of new gTLD expansion is launched with the New gTLD Program.
2014
Events
- The NTIA announces its intention to transition responsibility for IANA functions to the global multistakeholder community, and instructs ICANN to develop a transition plan.[22]
Documents
RFC 7282 - On Consensus and Humming in the IETF: Pete Resnick describes the process of gathering opinion and reaching "at least rough" consensus in decision making at the IETF.[23]
2015-Present: Toward Universality
2015
Events
- The Universal Acceptance Steering Group is formed
2017
Events
- ICANN and NTIA formally end their contract for the IANA functions, completing the transition of the IANA functions stewardship from NTIA to ICANN.[24]
References
- ↑ DARPA.mil - NLS
- ↑ DARPA.mil - the MOAD
- ↑ DARPA.mil - Paving the Way to the Modern Internet
- ↑ DARPA.mil - The ARPANET
- ↑ Malvern Radar and Technology History Society - HM Queen Elizabeth II sends Email
- ↑ Internet Society - IANA Timeline
- ↑ LiveScience.com - ARPANET to the World Wide Web, published June 2017
- ↑ RFC 1083 - IAB Official Protocol Standards, December 1988
- ↑ RFC 1358 - Charter of the Internet Architecture Board (IAB), August 1992
- ↑ RFC 1386 - The .US Domain, December 1992
- ↑ RFC 1436 - Internet Gopher Protocol, March 1993
- ↑ RFC 1527 - What Should We Plan Given the Dilemma of the Network?, September 1993
- ↑ ICANN.org Archive - Memorandum of Understanding, November 25, 1998
- ↑ ICANN.org - New TLD Application Process Archive, last updated November 13, 2000
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ [2]
- ↑ ICANN.org Archive - Committee on Evolution and Reform
- ↑ ICANN: The Case for Reform, February 24, 2002
- ↑ Resolution of the Board, February 3, 2009
- ↑ ICANN.org - ATRT1 Dashboard, last updated August 6, 2019
- ↑ Root Scaling Study Report, August 31, 2009 (PDF)
- ↑ NTIA.gov - NTIA Announces Intent to Transition Key Internet DNS Functions, March 14, 2014
- ↑ IETF Datatracker - RFC 7282, published June 2014
- ↑ History of the Domain Name Industry, Internetx