[Infowarrior] - The Burr proposal: Beginning of the end of unilateral control of the DNS Root?

[Richard Forno]

The Burr proposal: Beginning of the end of unilateral control of the DNS
Root? - 18 July 06
http://internetgovernance.org/news.html#burrproposal_071806

The results of the recent NTIA consultation made it clear that there is no
real public or industry support for unilateral control of the DNS root by
the U.S. government. A global campaign orchestrated by IGP generated
comments from 32 countries in seven regions arguing against it. IGP¹s
official filing offered a detailed rationale for that position. Several
ccTLD operators incorporated similar positions into their comments. Even
those not so enthusiastic about internationalization, such as the
Washington-based, business-supported public interest group Center for
Democracy & Technology, damned US control with faintest of praise. But what
was perhaps most noteworthy was the almost complete absence of any strong or
extended comments in favor of the current oversight situation.
The latest and most interesting sign of the handwriting on the wall is a
proposal being circulated by G. Beckwith Burr, the former Commerce
Department official who mediated the creation of ICANN in 1998. Entitled,
"Steps the U.S. Government Can Take to Promote Responsible, Global, Private
Sector Management of the DNS," the four step proposal can be downloaded
here.
The well-thought out proposal asks the US to begin by "clearly articulating
the purpose of residual governmental authority over the root," and asks for
a commitment not to use that authority except to "preserve the technical
stability and security of the Internet and/or the DNS." It then proposes the
immediate creation of an international working group that would monitor
changes in the root. The composition of the proposed group and the
procedures by which it would organize consultation and intervention are
interesting and deserve careful scrutiny, as they are likely to be the
controversial elements of the plan. The proposal also asks the US to "lead
by example," eschewing intervention in ICANN and demonstrating commitment to
the principle of private sector and civil society governance with
governments in an advisory role. Finally, it calls for strengthening ICANN's
accountability mechanisms.
Burr is circulating the proposal and asking for endorsements. So far, she
has received at least one endorsement, from telecom industry lobbyist
Marilyn Cade. IGP has not endorsed the proposal at this time, but is
studying it and will issue an analysis later. However, the first, third and
fourth steps of the proposal correspond closely to what IGP has already
proposed in its NTIA comments.