closed gTLD IDN Tables Review Process When Reference LGR is not available

Outcome

ICANN org appreciates the comments submitted by the community on the Proposed Process to Review gTLD Internationalized Domain Name (IDN) Tables Without Reference Label Generation Rules (the “proposal”). ICANN org received five comments on the proposal. The comments do not provide any opposing views to the proposed solution, and some comments suggest some possible enhancements to the process.

Based on the input received, ICANN org will finalize the Process to Review gTLD IDN Tables Without Reference Label Generation Rules and will proceed with the implementation.

What We Received Input On

Reference Label Generation Rules (Ref. LGRs) are developed by closely working with the relevant language and script community. Ref. LGRs are then used in reviewing IDN tables submitted by the gTLD registries through the IDN services or Registry System Testing (RST). ICANN org has also developed and launched the IDN Table Review Tool to further improve transparency and consistency of the gTLD IDN table review process.  This self-service tool allows Registry Operators (ROs) and Registry Service Providers (RSPs) to evaluate their IDN tables using the Ref. LGRs before submitting them to ICANN org for review.

Currently there are 26 script-based Ref. LGRs published and ICANN org is able to review IDN Tables in hundreds of languages written in these scripts. However, there are 161 scripts encoded in Unicode standard and many scripts do not have Ref. LGRs available. Feedback is requested on the Proposed Process to Review gTLD IDN Tables Without Reference Label Generation Rules.

Background

The rules defining which labels can be registered for a particular language or script under a top-level domain (TLD) must be defined by the RO. These rules are called IDN tables or Label Generation Rules (LGR). Depending on the business needs of the RO, these rules may vary by TLD, but must generate a secure and stable set of labels. If an RO intends to offer registrations in different languages and scripts under its gTLD, an IDN table for each language or script must be defined. All proposed IDN tables are reviewed and approved by ICANN org for security and stability considerations.

To assist the community, ICANN org has also developed reference IDN tables in machine-readable format, called Reference Label Generation Rules for the second level (Ref. LGRs). The Ref. LGRs are developed in consultation with the relevant script community and linguistic experts, while addressing technical security and stability concerns. However, there are multiple scripts that are not covered by the Ref. LGRs. Therefore, the Proposed Process to Review gTLD IDN Tables Without Reference Label Generation Rules is being published for further input from the broader ICANN community.

Supporting Information