Question: Currently, a board member from a very powerful new TLD applicant also sits on the Board of the DNSO. That TLD applicant has applied for a string of 3 new TLD's. HOW BAD IS THIS CONFLICT OF INTEREST? SHOULD THIS PERSON BE DECIDING WHOSE APPLICATION IS APPROVED?

Nominee Replies

Harris Miller - posted on 2000-10-08 09:07:13 I have not had a chance to review the applications in detail, so cannot comment on this specific question. But as the President of two not-for-profit associations and a Board Member of several others, I am highly sensitive to actual or perceived conflicts of interest influencing decisions taken by not-for-profits, and will be very sensitive to such concerns if I am elected to the ICANN Board. Barbara Simons - posted on 2000-10-05 16:53:11 This person should recuse himself or herself from the decision making process. I support the posting of conflicts of interest statements of all board members on the ICANN web site in an easily accessed location. Lyman Chapin - posted on 2000-10-05 09:11:16 ICANN, not the DNSO, will be making the decisions about the new TLD applications. I don't know what formal participation the DNSO will have; a DNSO names council member who is also affiliated with a TLD applicant might or might not have a conflict, depending on the role the NC will play. One of the ICANN directors (Amadeu Abril i Abril) has already recused himself (http://www.icann.org/tlds/tld-app-review-procedure-02oct00.htm) because he is affiliated with a new-TLD applicant; but then, ICANN has a conflicts of interest policy (http://www.icann.org/general/coi-policy.htm), and the DNSO does not. The current DNSO bylaws (http://www.dnso.org/dnso/aboutdnso.html) have just a place-holder (k) Reserved for conflicts of interest policy, if necessary. Since the DNSO is expected to represent the views of specific constituencies, including registrars, I'm not surprised to find a TLD applicant on names council - but there should definitely be a DNSO conflicts of interest policy, and any TLD applicant on the NC should recuse herself from any decisions about TLD applications. Emerson Tiller, J.D., Ph.D. - posted on 2000-10-03 21:35:17 Serious conflict of interest. This person should recuse himself/herself from any decision making over TLDs.