Preliminary Report | Regular Meeting of the Board - Rio de Janeiro 27 March 2003

(Posted 28 March 2003)

ICANN's Transition Board of Directors held a meeting at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on 27 March 2003. Directors Vint Cerf (chairman) (joined the meeting while in progress), Amadeu Abril i Abril, Karl Auerbach, Ivan Moura Campos, Lyman Chapin, Jonathan Cohen (joined the meeting while in progress), Mouhamet Diop (joined the meeting while in progress), Masanobu Katoh, Hans Kraaijenbrink, Sang-Hyon Kyong, Stuart Lynn, Andy Mueller-Maguhn (departed during meeting), Alejandro Pisanty (chair of the meeting), Nii Quaynor, Helmut Schink, Francisco da Silva, and Linda S. Wilson participated. Alejandro Pisanty served as chair of the meeting. The Board adopted the following resolutions:

President's Standing Committee on Privacy

Whereas, ICANN's mission is to coordinate, at the overall level, the global Internet's systems of unique identifiers, and to ensure the stable and secure operation of the those systems, particularly domain names, Internet protocol addresses and autonomous system numbers; and protocol port and parameter numbers, as well as coordinating the operation and evolution of the DNS root name server system and policy development reasonably and appropriately related to these technical functions;

Whereas, although ICANN's mission does not encompass privacy issues generally, its existing policies and proposed policies being considered that relate to matters within the scope of its mission often have implications for personal privacy;

Whereas, the President and Board could benefit from the advice of a group responsible for monitoring the implications of existing and proposed ICANN policies on the handling of personal data;

Resolved [03.35] that the President is directed to appoint a President's Standing Committee on Privacy, to be responsible for monitoring the implications of existing and proposed ICANN policies on the handling of personal data. The President is directed, in consultation with the President's Standing Committee, to develop a detailed charter for the standing committee, and to submit it to the Board for its approval.

2004 ICANN Meetings

Whereas, the Board desires to give as much advance notice of the approximate time and place of its public meetings as is feasible,

Resolved [03.36] that the President is authorized to make arrangements for the March 2004 ICANN meeting to be held in Rome, Italy;

Resolved further [03.37] that the President is authorized to make arrangements for the June 2004 meeting to be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; and

Resolved further [03.38] that the President is authorized to make arrangements for the November/December 2004 meeting to be held in Cape Town, South Africa.

GNSO Recommendations on Transfers

Whereas, at its meeting on 20 February 2003, the GNSO Council voted unanimously to accept the Final Report of the GNSO Transfers Task Force and to forward it to the ICANN Board as a consensus-policy recommendation;

Whereas, the report was posted on the ICANN web site on 4 March 2003, with a call for public comment;

Whereas, various public comments were received and considered by the Board;

Whereas, the report was discussed at the ICANN Public Forum session held on Wednesday, 26 March 2003, with public comment received;

Whereas, Article XI, Section 2(1)(h) of the bylaws provides that the Board will notify the Chair of the Governmental Advisory Committee of proposals raising public-policy issues on which the ICANN Board seeks public comment;

Whereas, the Board believes that the GNSO Council recommendations may involve public-policy issues;

Resolved [03.39] that the President is instructed, on behalf of the Board, to notify the Chair of the Governmental Advisory Committee of its consideration of the policies recommended in the Final Report of the GNSO Transfers Task Force as proposed policies; and

Resolved further [03.40] that the Board expresses its intention to act on the GNSO Council's recommendation to adopt the recommendations in the Final Report of the GNSO Transfers Task Force at its next meeting, anticipated to be held by teleconference in late-April 2003.

GNSO Recommendation on Whois Accuracy and Bulk Access

Whereas, on 20 February 2003, the GNSO Council accepted a Final Report of the GNSO Council's Whois Task Force on Whois Data Accuracy and Bulk Access to Whois Data and forwarded it to the Board as a consensus-policy recommendation;

Whereas, the report was posted on the ICANN web site on 11 March 2003, with a call for public comment;

Whereas, various public comments were received and considered by the Board;

Whereas, the report was discussed at the ICANN Public Forum session held on Wednesday, 26 March 2003;

Whereas, the Board has considered the various comments by members of the Internet community at the Public Forum session;

Resolved [03.41] that the Board adopts the four consensus-policy recommendations contained in the Final Report of the GNSO Council's Whois Task Force on Whois Data Accuracy and Bulk Access to Whois Data;

Further resolved [03.42] that the President and General Counsel are authorized to take steps to implement those policy recommendations though amendments and notices, as appropriate, pursuant to ICANN's agreements with gTLD registry operators and registrars.

Delegation of Authority to Notify GAC Chair of Policies Being Considered

Whereas, Article XI, Section 2(1)(h) of the bylaws states:

The Board shall notify the Chair of the Governmental Advisory Committee in a timely manner of any proposal raising public policy issues on which it or any of ICANN's supporting organizations or advisory committees seeks public comment, and shall take duly into account any timely response to that notification prior to taking action;

Whereas, awaiting individual action by the Board in giving notice at each stage of public comment within the ICANN's process for adopting policies would result in significant delays in the process;

Resolved [03.43] that the Board delegates to the President the authority to give notice by the Board to the Chair of the Governmental Advisory Committee under Article XI, Section 2(1)(h) of the bylaws of proposals deemed to raise public-policy issues.

Board Governance Committee

Whereas, in resolution 03.23 the Board established a Board Governance Committee as a Committee of the Board as provided by Article XII, Section 1 of the bylaws;

Whereas, in resolution 03.24 Hans Kraaijenbrink was appointed as the initial chair of the Board Governance Committee and Amadeu Abril i Abril, Jonathan Cohen, Masanobu Katoh, Francisco da Silva, and Linda Wilson were appointed as additional members;

Whereas, in resolution 03.25 the Board Governance Committee was directed to evaluate what its charter should be, prepare a recommended charter and submit it to, and obtain approval of, the Board;

Whereas, the Board Governance Committee has prepared and circulated to the Board a recommended charter, and the Board agrees that this appropriately delineates the mission and responsibilities of the Board Governance Committee;

Resolved [03.44] that the Board approves and adopts the document attached as Appendix A as the charter of the Board Governance Committee;

Further resolved [03.45] that Mohamet Diop is appointed as a member of the Board Governance Committee.

Security Committee Membership

Whereas, in resolutions 02.63 and 02.65, the Security and Stability Advisory Committee was established as an advisory committee under Article VII, Section 3 [now Article XI, Section 1] of the bylaws, with Dr. Stephen Crocker as chair and the following persons as members: Alain Aina (Consultant), Jaap Akkerhuis (SIDN), Doug Barton (Yahoo!), Steve Bellovin (AT&T), Rob Blokzijl (RIPE), David Conrad (Nominum), Daniel Karrenberg (RIPE-NCC), Mark Kosters (VeriSign), Allison Mankin (ISI), Ram Mohan (Afilias), Russ Mundy (Network Associates Laboratories), Jun Murai (Keio University), Frederico Neves (registro.br), Ray Plzak (ARIN), Doron Shikmoni (ForeScout, ISOC-IL), Ken Silva (VeriSign), Bruce Tonkin (Melbourne IT), Paul Vixie (ISC), and Rick Wesson (Alice's Registry);

Whereas, from time to time it may be desirable to augment the membership of the committee;

Resolved [03.46], Johan Ihren is hereby appointed to serve as a member of the Security and Stability Advisory Committee.

Internationalized Domain Names

Whereas, the Board has repeatedly recognized the importance of adding to the domain-name system Internationalized Domain Name (IDN) capabilities to enhance the accessibility of the domain-name system to all those using non-Roman alphabets;

Whereas, ICANN's agreements with the operators and sponsors of top-level domain registries provide that ICANN authorization is required to begin accepting registrations of domain names with hyphens in the third and fourth positions;

Whereas, a broad range of registries, experts, and other stakeholders in the ICANN community have been working hard for several years to develop registry-level registration policies and rules, in anticipation of the completion of standards-track IDN protocols by the IETF;

Whereas, a three-part protocol suite defining a standard for internationalized domain names in applications was published as RFCs 3490, 3491, and 3492;

Whereas, the participants in the Internationalized Domain Name Registry Implementation Committee (IDN-RIC) have been working together with ICANN staff to develop a commonly agreed statement of Guidelines for the Implementation of Internationalized Domain Names, a draft of which was presented at the ICANN Public Forum on 26 March 2003;

Whereas, collaborative work on the draft Guidelines is continuing, with the affected registries under contract indicating their general agreement with the draft's approach, subject to further editing and communications with the Internet Architecture Board;

It is:

Resolved [03.47] that the ICANN Board endorses the IDN implementation approach set forth in the draft Guidelines for the Implementation of Internationalized Domain Names, as they may be amended in further consultation with registry operators or evolve in view of new technical standards, for implementation of IDNs;

Resolved further [03.48] that the President is authorized to implement the Guidelines by authorizing registration of IDNs in registries with agreements with ICANN on the basis of those Guidelines; and

Resolved further [03.49] that the Board recommends the Guidelines to other registries, and encourages broad participation by registries, language experts, and others in consultative, collaborative, community-based processes to study and develop appropriate language-specific IDN registration rules and policies.

Check-Signing Authority

Resolved [03.50] that the Vice President and General Counsel, Louis Touton, may authorize disbursements of the Corporation's funds, and sign checks of the Corporation, in amounts of US$ 10,000 or less;

Further resolved [03.51] that, upon his taking office as President of the Corporation, Paul Twomey may authorize disbursements of the Corporation's funds, and sign checks of the Corporation, in amounts of US$ 50,000 or less;

Further resolved [03.52] that, upon his taking office as President of the Corporation, Paul Twomey may authorize disbursements of the Corporation's funds, and sign checks of the Corporation, in amounts exceeding US$ 50,000, when so authorized by action of either the Board, the Finance Committee, or the Executive Committee. Such authorizations shall be given upon a showing that they are within the President's authority; and

Further resolved [03.53] that the authorizations to disburse funds and to sign checks as set forth in Board resolutions 01.30 through 01.33 shall cease to be effective as of the adoption of this resolution.

Thanks to Stuart Lynn

Whereas, Dr. Stuart Lynn was drafted to serve as President and CEO of ICANN in March 2001;

Whereas, Dr. Stuart Lynn has served in this position with energy, vision, and distinction,

Now therefore, the Board of ICANN resolves [03.54]:

(1) that the ICANN community has benefited enormously from and deeply appreciates the devoted service of Dr. Stuart Lynn as President and CEO over the last two years;

(2) that the foundation Dr. Lynn has laid for the reform of ICANN has set the organization on a constructive and progressive course for the benefit of the ICANN community;

(3) that Dr. Lynn has surely earned the opportunity to return to the retirement that service to ICANN interrupted; and

(4) that we wish for him continued success in all his endeavors, opportunity for relaxing and interesting travel, enjoyment of hobbies, family, and friends, long life, and all good things that bring satisfaction and peace.

Thanks to Joe Sims

Whereas:

In early 1998, before there was an ICANN, the University of Southern California sought legal advice in connection with the creation of a private, not-for-profit organization to manage the domain name system. For reasons never fully explained, Joe Sims thought this would be an interesting project. And, for reasons we have all come to understand and appreciate in the intervening years, Jon Postel thought Joe would be an interesting partner and guide in the undertaking.

Since that time, Joe Sims has worked in countless and tireless ways to support and promote this first experiment in global, private-sector management of the technical and administrative functions of the Internet domain name system. Joe has been a source of wise counsel, essential perspective, and humor (biting and otherwise) at every critical juncture in ICANN's development and his principled, pragmatic, and direct approach to problem solving has seen ICANN through crisis big and small. There have been many instances in which, without his determination and exhortation, progress would not have been made. The antithesis of a silver-tongued politician, Joe Sims has earned our respect, trust, admiration, gratitude, and friendship.

As we close this first formal year of evolution and reform, Joe has elected to turn his attentions elsewhere. We will miss Joe's day-to-day involvement in ICANN and pause to thank him for his crucial contribution to this undertaking. We may still have a lot to do in this interesting world we live in, but we owe much of what we've accomplished since 1998 to Joe Sims.

Resolved [03.55] that the Board expresses its gratitude to Joe Sims for his efforts above and beyond any reasonable expectation since 1998;

Resolved further [03.56] that the Board offers to him its sincere good wishes for success in his continuing work outside the ICANN focus; and

Resolved further [03.57] and that the Board expresses the hope that he will maintain contact with the Board so that on occasion his advice might still be available.

Thanks for Meeting Assistance

Whereas, ICANN has successfully completed its early 2003 meeting in Rio de Janeiro;

Whereas, the planning and execution of the meeting has been conducted in exemplary fashion;

Whereas, the gracious and warm hospitality, splendid facilities, strong support, and close attention to fulfilling the needs of participants have all been truly magnificent;

It is therefore resolved [03.58]:

The ICANN Board expresses its deep appreciation and thanks, on its own behalf and on behalf of all participants, to the Brazil Internet Steering Committee and its associates, especially: Antonio Tavares, Hartmut Richard Glaser, Vicente Landim de Macedo Filho, Jose Alexandre Bicalho, Luis Bonilha, and Raphael Mandarino Junior.

The Board also extends its thanks to all sponsors of the meeting, including Embratel, Intelig, VeriSign, LACNIC, Telemar, Itautec, Microsoft, Public Internet Registry (.org) and Nudomain.

The Board thankfully acknowledges the unstinting hard work of the staff of the following companies who have assisted the Brazil Internet Steering Committee in making this meeting such a great success: Multi-travel for event organization; Added for network and wireless infrastructure; Hoffman for audio-visual equipment; and the Hotel Sofitel for this magnificent facility.

The Board expresses its great appreciation to John Crain, Diane Schroeder, Theresa Swinehart, Mary Hewitt, Dan Halloran, Anne-Rachel Inne; Steve Conte; Barbara Roseman, Denise Michel, Michael Evans, Laura Brewer; and Terri Darrenougue and the rest of the ICANN staff (especially Stuart Lynn) for their dedicated efforts in ensuring the smooth operation of the meeting.