<html><body><span style="font-family:Verdana; color:#000000; font-size:10pt;"> Even little things like what happens if Rome, Georgia gets .rome and someone in Italy cries foul? Are we going to have a TLD level UDRP and REALLY foul things up? It seems the only way to protect against that is to give cities a SLD under their respective ccTLDs and in some cases, a tertiary LD under their state or provincial SLD. Otherwise, just in the USA alone, how many Greenvilles will be contending for the ONE corresponding TLD and what rules would determine the right to it?<br> This is, at least, a slippery slope!!!<br>-Karl E. Peters, President<br>Top Level Domain Association, Inc.<br><br>
<blockquote webmail="1" style="border-left: 2px solid blue; margin-left: 8px; padding-left: 8px; font-size: 10pt; color: black; font-family: verdana;">
<div >
-------- Original Message --------<br>
Subject: [governance] Cities and Internet Governance<br>
From: "Thomas Lowenhaupt" <toml@communisphere.com><br>
Date: Mon, February 23, 2009 1:27 am<br>
To: <governance@lists.cpsr.org><br>
<br>
<style></style> <div><font size="2" face="Arial"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">With the ICANN having deemed cities eligible to develop TLDs, and with cities such as Barcelona, Berlin, New York, and Paris lining up for TLDs, it’s time to consider the place and impact city-TLDs will have on Internet governance.<o:p></o:p></font></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><o:p><font size="3"> </font></o:p></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">My presumption in presenting the following scenario is that cities will choose to put their TLDs to use for their long term development: to benefit city organization and governance, communities, neighborhoods, small businesses, residents, and their global “findability,” all toward the creation of economically viable and livable cities; and not merely treat their TLDs as monetization opportunities. Further, that cities will see their TLDs as community / civic resources, as vital as air, water, roads, and education systems are to their future. And we see the formation of conservator or trustee systems to assure their wise management. <o:p></o:p></font></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><o:p><font size="3"> </font></o:p></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">That said, let me review our experience developing a governance structure for the .nyc TLD, albeit a work in progress, and then project where cities might fit within the broader governance of the Net.<o:p></o:p></font></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><o:p><font size="3"> </font></o:p></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">Creating a governance structure for a city TLD is new territory and we’re still fashioning structures to facilitate the TLD’s efficacy. Since creating Connecting.nyc Inc. as a not-for-profit in 2006 we’ve seen governance as the critical factor in determining the TLD’s success: important both to the inclusion of a diversity of viewpoints in planning and directing the TLD’s operation, and to receiving the approval and cooperation of the city of New York whose support we deem essential.<o:p></o:p></font></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><o:p><font size="3"> </font></o:p></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font size="3"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial">To date we’ve recruited a great core for our board of directors, established a Resident Advisory Network, and are in discussions with city officials about adding several ex-officio seats. To gain a feel for the city's concerns about the TLD’s governance, read the transcript (<a href="http://www.openplans.org/projects/campaign-for.nyc/council-hearing-transcript" target="_blank" mce_href="http://www.openplans.org/projects/campaign-for.nyc/council-hearing-transcript">http://www.openplans.org/projects/campaign-for.nyc/council-hearing-transcript</a>) </font></font><font size="3"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial">of our October 17 hearing before the City Council, in particular our discussion with Council Member DeBlasio about his desire to place a “short leash” on our operation. <o:p></o:p></font></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><o:p><font size="3"> </font></o:p></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">On our governance page (<a href="http://www.openplans.org/projects/campaign-for.nyc/board-of-directors" target="_blank" mce_href="http://www.openplans.org/projects/campaign-for.nyc/board-of-directors">http://www.openplans.org/projects/campaign-for.nyc/board-of-directors</a>)</font><font size="3"> we discuss our intention to create space on our board of directors for public participation, with our Resident Advisory Network a first step in that direction. It’s a different structure than the ICANN’s current stakeholder model, destined to be local and more hands on.</font></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><o:p><font size="3"> </font></o:p></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">With city TLD governance structures of this sort in place, we see city-TLDs, each with a governance model reflective of the city it serves, providing a mechanism for broader public participation within ICANN’s structure. </font></font><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">It’s my expectation that, with their growing share of the world’s population, now 50% heading toward 70% in 2030, the Internet’s future governance form will reflect the participation of city-TLDs. And a<font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">s we create participatory and effective governance structures for city-TLDs, they will garner standing for a significant role in the Net’s governance. <o:p></o:p></font></font></font></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3"></font></font> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">Where are we today? </font></font>In June 2008 the developers of the Barcelona, Berlin, New York, and Paris TLDs met in Paris to discuss cooperation between city-TLDs and participation in Internet governance processes. </font></font><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">Last week a coalition of cities presented ICANN with a Notice of Intent to create a constituency within the GNSO. This is an appropriate first step, and within this newly developing sphere one begins to see an emergence of an engaged user community that will strongly influence governance of the Internet.<o:p></o:p></font></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><o:p><font size="3"> </font></o:p></font></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><font style="font-family: Arial;" face="Arial"><font size="3">There’s lots more work to be done here, and we would appreciate and benefit from the thoughts of those on this list.<o:p></o:p></font></font></p></font></div> <hr>____________________________________________________________<br>
You received this message as a subscriber on the list:<br>
governance@lists.cpsr.org<br>
To be removed from the list, send any message to:<br>
governance-unsubscribe@lists.cpsr.org<br>
<br>
For all list information and functions, see:<br>
<a href="http://lists.cpsr.org/lists/info/governance" target="_blank" mce_href="http://lists.cpsr.org/lists/info/governance">http://lists.cpsr.org/lists/info/governance</a><br>
</div>
</blockquote></span></body></html>