February 5, 1999
 

Ms. Esther Dyson
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
 

Today we are pleased to submit the attached application to be recognized as the
Address Supporting Organization (ASO) for the Internet Corporation for
Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).

The ASO will have responsibility for administering and managing a critical
Internet public resource - the Internet address space. This resource is, in some
ways, even more valuable and essential than the name space as it is limited and
finite until we move to IPV6.

Our basic goal in filing this proposal is to reflect the division of responsibilities
that existed prior to the most recent privatization step, which involved the DNS
more than IP addressing. Under that organizational schema, the Internet Assigned
Numbers Authority (IANA) designated the regional registries and set substantive
policies after consultation with the relevant stakeholders. The three regional
registries then implemented these policies as they determined appropriate to their
particular regions. The separation of legal, i.e., policymaking, authority and
implementing, i.e., executive, authority worked well and is worthy of emulation.
Day-to-day operational authority will remain in the hands of the regional
registries, which function like the executive branches of democratic governments.

We are currently working to coordinate submissions with the regional address
registries. We would have preferred a delay in the final submission and selection
deadlines until after the March APRICOT meeting in Singapore. A delay would
give APIA and other Internet stakeholders gathered in Singapore an opportunity
to further discuss and submit their proposals for the ASO and the DNSO. It is
still our hope that the ICANN board will solicit APRICOT participants' views and
incorporate them into the final decision.

In addition to the signatories below, other national ISP trade associations may join
us but have not been able to communicate with us prior to this submission.

Commercial Internet eXchange Association (CIX)
EuroISPA
Federacion de LatinoAmerica y el Caribe Para Internet y el Comercio Electronico
(eCOM-LAC)

cc: Mr. Michael Roberts
ICANN President and CEO

Attachment


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