Technical Liaison Group
The Technical Liaison Group (TLG) is a group within ICANN whose purpose is to provide the ICANN Board with appropriate sources of technical advice on specific matters related to ICANN's activities.[1]
Composition
The TLG is comprised of four organizations:
- The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI)
- The Internet Architecture Board (IAB)
- The World Wide Web Consortium or W3C
- The International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T).[2]
Each group elected a representative or two to serve in the TLG. The current representatives are:
- ETSI: Fernando Soriano & Bernardo Correia
- ITU-T: Reinhard Scholl
- W3C: Thomas Roessler
- IAB: tba
One representative from the TLG is elected to serve as a Non-Voting Liaison to the ICANN Board. For 2011, this is Reinhard Scholl.[3]
Role
The main role of the TLG organizations is to channel all the relevant and necessary technical information and act as a guide to the Board as well as other entities of ICANN. This role of the TLG has been divided into two components. Firstly, the TLG connects the Board and other Bodies of ICANN with the relevant sources that provide them with all the necessary technical expertise. And secondly, it also plays the role of a ‘watchdog’ and advises the Board about the latest technical developments and the impact they may have in the decision-making process of the Board of ICANN. [4]
Working
Each one of the four organizations of the TLG designates two individuals who are technical experts and are familiar with the technical standardization issues related to the activities of ICANN. These eight individuals need to be present as and when necessary.[5]
TLG and ICANN
The TLG has been granted a right to select one voting delegate to the Nominating Committee (NomCom) of ICANN. Any one of the TLG organization has the right to appoint a non-voting liaison to the Board. The TLG organizations do this on a rotational basis except for the Internet Architectural Board as the IETF appoints a non-voting liaison to the Board as well as selects the delegate to the Nominating Committee of ICANN. [6]