Amity Law School

ICANN and DOMAIN NAME

Dr. Neha Susan Varghese
 Background of ICANN Amity Law School

• ICANN was established on September 18, 1998.

• In June 1998 the US Department of Commerce came out
with a white paper on the administration of internet name
and numbers.
• The main purpose of the white paper was to move
administration of internet domain names and IP addresses
out of the control of US federal government and vest it in a
non-profit, internationally representative organization.
 Functioning of ICANN: Self Regulatory Amity Law School

• In order to reach or connect to another computer on the internet, one has

to provide the address of the computer. Such an address must be unique
so that the computers are able to locate each other.
• ICANN is responsible for coordinating these unique identifiers across the
globe. ICANN, thus, plays a major role in internet governance.
• In technical terms ICANN coordinates the domain name system (DNS),
internet protocol (IP) addresses, space allocation, protocol identifier
assignment, generic (gTLD), country code (ccTLD) top level domain
name system management and root server system management functions.
• These functions were previously performed by the Internet Assigned
Number Authority (IANA) under a US Government contract.
 Amity Law School

• The main role of ICANN is to make the Internet run

smoothly all over the world. This is more commonly known
as “universal resolvability.”
• This term means that you get the same results when you
access the network, no matter where you are in the world.
This gives us one Internet, rather than an experience that
works differently depending on your location.
 Domain Name and IP Address Amity Law School

• While ICANN doesn’t control what content goes on the Internet,

meaning it cannot regulate Internet access or help to stop spam from
occurring, it does help keep the web safe by developing and enforcing
policy on the Internet’s unique identifiers.
• These unique identifiers are the name and number that you type into
the address bar when conducting a search for a given site.
• The address for that site has to be unique so computers know where
to find each other.
 Amity Law School

• An IP address is a complex series of numbers that each correlate to a

different device, however, it would be quite difficult for a human to
remember these long lists of numbers.
• The Domain Name System steps in to convert these numbers to a
series of letters instead. The IP address links this series of letters to
the precise series of numbers.
• When this conversion is done, you can find a given website with its
name, rather than a seemingly random series of numbers.
• The computers still communicate with each other and know the
address by these numbers, but for humans, we just need to remember
to Domain.com, for example.
 Amity Law School

• A domain is comprised of two elements, including what comes before

and after the dot.
• What comes to the right of the dot, such as a “com,” “org,” or “net,”
is what is known as a top-level domain, or TLD.
• For each particular TLD, there is one company, or registry, that is in
charge of all domains that end with that specific TLD.
• This registry has access to the full list of domains that are directly
under that name, in addition to any IP address with which those
names are associated.
 ICANN and Domain Names Amity Law School

• Domains are sold by registrars. There is no single registrar that rules

over all domains, but rather a vast network.
• These registrars can charge whatever they want for a domain, but
each registrar has to pay a set per-domain fee to the appropriate
registry in which the domain is being registered.
• ICANN has contracts with each of these registries and runs an
accreditation system for registrars.
• This system of checks and balances provides the stable domain name
environment, which gives us an open Internet.
 Amity Law School

• The relationship between ICANN and IP addresses is similar to that

of the domain names used by humans. Just as you cannot have two
domains of the same name, there also cannot be identical IP
addresses.
• ICANN does not run this system, but serves in an administrative rol
• It helps coordinate how IP addresses are handed out so no repetitions
occur.
• ICANN also serves as the central repository for IP addresses. In this
repository, ranges are supplied to regional registries, who then
distribute them to network providers.
 Governing Documents of ICANN Amity Law School

• Articles of Incorporation ICANN Articles of Incorporation was finalized on November 21, 1988. According
to the Article of Incorporation, the main function of the ICANN was laid down as the following:
• "In furtherance of the foregoing purposes, and in recognition of the fact that the Internet is an international
network of networks, owned by no single nation, individual or organization, the Corporation shall, except
as limited by Article 5 hereof, pursue the charitable and public purposes of lessening the burdens of
government and promoting the global public interest in the operational stability of the Internet by:
1.Coordinating the assignment of internet technical parameters as needed to maintain universal connectivity
on the Internet;
2.Performing and overseeing functions related to the coordination of the internet protocol ("IP") address
space;
3.Performing and overseeing functions related to the coordination of the internet domain name system
("DNS"), including the development of policies for determining the circumstances under which new top-
level domains are added to the DNS root system;
4.Overseeing operation of the authoritative internet DNS root server system; and
5.Engaging in any other related lawful activity in furtherance of items (i) through (iv).
 Structure of ICANN Amity Law School

• As per the structure of the ICANN, it has adopted a bottom-up,

consensus driven, multi-stakeholder approach.

• Board of Directors
• The Board of Directors comprises of 16 members ("Directors") who have voting rights.
• Additionally it has five non-voting liaisons. The five liaisons appointed by Governmental
Advisory Committee, Root Server and Stability Advisory Committee, Technical Liaison Group
and Internet Engineering Task Force. Each body appoints one liaison member.
• The Directors are expected to act in the best interest of ICANN rather than acting in the
best interest of the entity they have been selected from.
• The main function of the Board of Directors is to put to vote various policy
recommendation made by the Supporting Organizations and the Advisory Committees.
 Structure of ICANN Amity Law School

• ICANN as a whole is actually made up of several different groups,

which each represent a different section of the Internet.
• A) Supporting Organizations are Address Supporting Organization,
Country Code Name Supporting Organization and Generic Name
Supporting Organization.
• They are tasked with policy making on IP Addresses, country code
top level domain and generic top level domain respectively.
 Amity Law School

• B) four advisory committee teams that offer ICANN

advice. These advisory committee groups represent
government bodies and international treaty organizations,
root server operators, Internet privacy and security, and the
at-large community
• C) technical liaison group that works with organizations to
provide basic protocols for Internet technologies.

Each group contributes to any final decisions made by

ICANN.
 Amity Law School

• ICANN also has a President and CEO, who direct the

ICANN staff and its work.
• This staff is located all over the world in different countries
and coordinates their efforts with supporting organizations
and advisory committees.
 Working of the ICANN Administration Amity Law School

• The supporting organizations suggest changes to the current network,

or bring up any concerns that they or an advisory committee identifies.
• Each of these reviews is put into a single report that is put before the
ICANN Board of Directors, including a list of recommendations based
on the feedback. The Board then goes over the list, and either approves
or denies the changes.
• The Board can approve all changes, or approve some and deny others,
or even perhaps deny the entire proposal.
• Often, the issue is sent back to one of the supporting organizations
involved, with an explanation of what needs to be amended before the
matter can be approved.
 Legal Accountability of ICANN Amity Law School

• As far as external accountabilities are concerned, ICANN as

an organization is incorporated under the law of the State of
California. ICANN, therefore, must abide by United States’
law and can be taken to court by the U.S. judicial system. As
a public non-profit organization, ICANN and its directors
are also held legally responsible for upholding their duties
under corporate law.
 Conclusion Amity Law School

• ICANN serves a primary role in the efforts to keep the Internet open for all.
• It does this through its model of multi-stakeholder control, although some
have expressed concerns about ICANN operating as an independent body,
fearing that no single business, government, or individual should be in
control of the Internet.
• ICANN’s role is not to regulate content that appears online. There are
concerns over how ICANN handles controversial content, and other
matters, since domain-level takedowns could be viewed as violations of
freedom of speech and/or freedom of the press.
• The processes ICANN has incorporated serve to ensure that the Internet
remains open to all users, all over the world, on one connected network.
Structure of ICANN Amity Law School