ICANN|ARCHIVES

Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers

>>KURT PRITZ: TEST, TEST, TEST, TEST.
ARE WE OKAY?
GREAT, ONE ANNOUNCEMENT I'D LIKE TO MAKE BEFORE WE START, AMADEU -- CAN YOU CLOSE THE DOOR, PLEASE.
ONE ANNOUNCEMENT I'D LIKE TO MAKE IS THAT WE'RE FORTUNATE TO HAVE MANY BOARD MEMBERS HERE WITH US THIS AFTERNOON. AND IN ORDER TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE COMMUNITY NATURE OF THE DISCUSSION WE'D LIKE TO HAVE THERE'S -- UP ON THE DAIS, THEY'RE SITTING UP AMONGST US ALL.
SO YOU MIGHT RECOGNIZE THEM SITTING AROUND.
I THANK THEM FOR THEIR PRESENCE.
BRUCE.
OKAY.
THE PURPOSE OF THE MEETING IS TO, ONE, OUTLINE ICANN'S APPROACH TO FORMULATING ANNUAL OPERATIONAL PROCESS, A LIST OF ANNUAL OPERATING OBJECTIVES.
AND WHAT WE'RE DOING TO IMPROVE THAT PROCESS.
SECOND, WE WANT TO REVIEW SOME OF THE PLANS FOR THIS YEAR.
AND THEN WE WANT TO LOOK FORWARD TO THE FUTURE.
SO IF YOU -- UNLESS, BRUCE, WOULD YOU LIKE TO MAKE SOME OPENING COMMENTS?
>>BRUCE TONKIN: THANKS, KURT.
I GUESS I WAS ASKED JUST TO MAKE A COUPLE OF COMMENTS IN RELATION TO THIS SESSION.
AND THE SESSION REALLY WAS AN OUTCOME OF LOOKING AT THE PROCESS THAT OCCURRED DURING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN, WHERE WE HAD A DOCUMENT THAT WAS PRESENTED LAST YEAR.
AND THEN WE WERE SORT OF SCRAMBLING AROUND TO REVIEW THAT DOCUMENT AND PROVIDE INPUT.
AND IT'S BEEN MY OBJECTION THAT IN PREVIOUS YEARS, WE HAVE HAD SEVERAL SITUATIONS WITH THE ICANN BUDGET DOCUMENT, IN THAT OFTEN MANY OF US GET TO SEE THAT LATE AND THERE'S LIMITED TIME TO START THINKING ABOUT OUR INPUT TO THAT PROCESS.
AND BY THAT PROCESS.
THEY'RE DEALING WITH HAVING PRODUCED A BUDGET THAT NEEDS TO BE APPROVED WITHIN A FEW WEEKS.
AND THEN PEOPLE PUT IN SOME MORE IDEAS.
IT'S PRETTY HARD TO REACT TO THAT SITUATION.
SO I ASKED KURT IF HE COULD ORGANIZE THIS SESSION TO LOOK AT WHAT HAVE WE GOT TO DO -- WHAT'S ICANN AS AN ORGANIZATION GOING TO DO FOR THE NEXT 12 MONTHS AND GET INPUT FROM THE COMMUNITY AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE.
BUT I JUST WANTED TO MAKE IT VERY CLEAR THAT THIS HAS BEEN DONE AT FAIRLY LATE NOTICE, AND SO I'D LIKE TO BE VERY CLEAR THAT THE ICANN STAFF HAVEN'T REALLY HAD A CHANCE TO PREPARE A VERY THOROUGH OR EVEN A DETAILED DRAFT OF AN OPERATIONAL PLAN.
AND I ACCEPT THAT BECAUSE THEY HAVE HAD LOTS OF OTHER THINGS TO DO.
BUT IN FUTURE YEARS, I WOULD HOPE THAT WE COULD START THE OPERATIONAL PLANNING PROCESS WELL IN ADVANCE, YOU KNOW, BACK IN JANUARY, WHERE I WOULD ACTUALLY SEE DRAFTS.
AND THEN BY THE TIME WE HAVE A MEETING IN, SAY, MARCH, WE WOULD HAVE HAD THREE MONTHS TO REVIEW A DRAFT OPERATIONAL PLAN.
THE MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY WOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO REALLY THINK ABOUT IT AND HAVE INPUT READY SO THAT THIS SESSION, IN FUTURE, SAY, NEXT YEAR -- SO IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MARCH 2006, I HOPE THIS WILL BE A LOT MORE STRUCTURED WHERE THE ICANN STAFF WOULD HAVE A FAIRLY CLEAR IDEA OF WHAT THEY THINK WE NEED TO DO FOR THE NEXT 12 MONTHS; WE'LL HAVE A FAIRLY CLEAR IDEA OF WHAT OUR INPUT FOR THAT WILL BE.
AND THEN THE SUFFICIENT TIME, THEN, FOR THE STAFF TO TAKE THAT INTO ACCOUNT AND REVISE IT BEFORE THE BOARD THEN APPROVES IT IN SORT OF JUNE/JULY.
I JUST KIND OF WANTED TO SET THE CONTEXT, THAT WE'RE RECOGNIZING THIS IS NOT IDEAL. AND MOST OF US HERE, YOU KNOW, DON'T HAVE PROBABLY A LOT TO SAY.
I'D JUST ENCOURAGE TO YOU STEP FORWARD WHEN KURT DOES DISCUSS THE OPERATIONAL PLAN, EVEN IF IT'S JUST VERY EARLY IDEAS ON YOUR PART.
BECAUSE I THINK THOSE EARLY IDEAS WILL CERTAINLY HELP INFORM THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLAN FOR THE NEXT 12 MONTHS AND THE BUDGET FOR THE NEXT 12 MONTHS.
SO I THANK KURT AND THE ICANN STAFF FOR, YOU KNOW, MAKING THIS OPPORTUNITY AVAILABLE.
>>KURT PRITZ: OKAY.
THANK YOU.
STEVE.
SO THE AGENDA FOR THIS MEETING IS THAT, FIRST, WE WANT TO LOOK AT THE PRESENT PROCESS.
AND THAT IS THE PRESENT PROCESS FOR DEVELOPING ANNUAL WORK OBJECTIVES FOR THE UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR.
OKAY?
SO WE'LL LOOK AT THE PLAN FOR THAT.
AND THEN WE'LL WANT TO REVIEW OUR OBJECTIVES FROM LAST YEAR VERY BRIEFLY, MORE TO DEMONSTRATE THE LEVEL OF DETAIL THAT WE TRADITIONALLY GO TO.
AND YOU'LL SEE SOME WORDS ABOUT THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS AGAINST THOSE OBJECTIVES.
BUT THERE'S MANY OF THEM.
SO I DON'T WANT TO TAKE UP YOUR TIME WITH THEM.
BUT WE'LL LOOK AT THEM.
AND WE CAN REVIEW THEM, I'M WILLING TO REVIEW ANY OF THEM LATER IN DETAIL.
SO WE'LL GO THROUGH THAT PERFORMANCE AGAINST OBJECTIVES.
CAN YOU GO BACK, PLEASE.
THANKS.
AND THEN WE'LL TALK ABOUT THE PROCESS FOR GOING FORWARD.
AND THAT IS THE PROCESS THAT'S FALLEN OUT OF THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS AND THE CONSULTATION PROCESS YEAR TO DATE AND HOW THAT HAS FED INTO THE AND HAS INFORMED THE OPERATIONAL PLANNING PROCESS.
SO WE'LL TALK ABOUT THE NEW PROCESS; WE'LL HAVE AN OPEN DISCUSSION, I HOPE, ABOUT OBJECTIVES FOR THE UPCOMING YEAR.
WE HAVE DEFINED SOME OF THEM HERE, NOT ALL OF THEM THAT WE HAVE LAID OUT SO FAR.
AND THEN AFTER THAT, WE'LL TALK ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO MEASURE OURSELVES ON A GOING-FORWARD BASIS, AND THAT IS, HOW THESE OBJECTIVES ARE MEASURABLE, HOW WE'RE GOING TO MEASURE OURSELVES AGAINST THEM, AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO REPORT AGAINST THAT. AND THEN WE'LL CLOSE WITH NEXT STEPS.
SO, STEVE, THIS IS PRETTY MUCH THE PROCESS THIS YEAR.
THERE'S A WHOLE BUNCH OF STAFF WORK THAT GOES ON IN FORMULATING A BUDGET.
WE DEVELOP AN OPERATIONAL PLAN, WE DEVELOP OBJECTIVES FOR THE UPCOMING YEAR AND THEN DOLLARIZE THOSE OR PUT MONEY TO THOSE OBJECTIVES, EITHER FOR THOSE OBJECTIVES SPECIFICALLY OR, ESSENTIALLY, FOR THE CARE AND FEEDING OF THE FACILITY AND STAFF THAT'S ESSENTIALLY OVERHEAD.
AND YOU CAN SEE THUS FAR -- AND THIS ISN'T THE FULL CONSULTATIVE PROCESS.
BUT THUS FAR, IT'S A FAIRLY ITERATIVE PROCESS.
WE'VE HAD CONSULTATIONS WITH THE ICANN BOARD, FINANCE COMMITTEE; WE'VE HAD ONE BRIEF MEETING WITH THE BUDGET ADVISORY GROUP.
BUT THERE'S ANOTHER MEETING SCHEDULED OF THE BUDGET ADVISORY GROUP TOMORROW WHERE THEY WILL BE BROUGHT UP TO SPEED ON THE DETAILS OF THE OPERATIONAL PLAN, AND ESPECIALLY WITH THE BUDGET.
AND THEN THERE WILL BE A PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD AFTER THE POSTING OF THE BUDGET.
THE ICANN BYLAWS REQUIRE THE PROPOSED BUDGET BE POSTED NO LATER THAN MAY 17TH, 45 DAYS BEFORE WE ASK FOR BUDGET APPROVAL.
SO THAT'S ESSENTIALLY THE PROCESS RIGHT NOW.
GO AHEAD.
THE STATUS OF THE OBJECTIVES -- I WANT TO DISCUSS THE STATUS AGAINST OUR OBJECTIVES OF THIS CURRENT FISCAL YEAR, IN OTHER WORDS, THE OBJECTIVES AGAINST WHICH WE'RE PERFORMING RIGHT NOW.
JUST LIKE THIS YEAR, WE FORMULATED A SET OF OBJECTIVES LAST YEAR.
THEY WERE ESSENTIALLY INCLUDED IN THE BUDGET.
AND IF YOU KNOW ALL THAT PROSE THAT HAPPENS IN THE ICANN BUDGET, THAT INCLUDES ALL THE MAJOR OBJECTIVES THAT HAPPEN IN A YEAR.
IT'S NOT WRITTEN IN A VERY SUCCINCT STYLE OR IN A WAY THAT IT'S CLEARLY MEASURABLE.
WHAT WE WANT TO GET TO THIS YEAR IS SOMETHING AS FAR AS THE OPERATIONAL PLAN, ALL THOSE WORDS THAT YOU READ BEFORE YOU GET TO THE FINAL BUDGET, THE SPREADSHEETS AND THE NOTES.
AND THEN THE OBJECTIVES LAST YEAR, YOU KNOW, IN THIS CURRENT FISCAL YEAR, AS WELL AS THE YEAR GOING FORWARD, AND THE STRATEGIC PLAN, WERE ALL WRITTEN AROUND THESE FOUR AREAS OF THE ICANN MISSION, THESE FOUR AREAS OF FOCUS THAT ARE ENSURING STABILITY AND SECURITY OF THE INTERNET, PROMOTING COMPETITION, PROMOTING THE PROCESS DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.
AND ENSURING THERE'S FULL -- IF WE WANT -- IN THE SPIRIT OF TRUE ICANN TRANSPARENCY, I'D LIKE EVERYBODY TO TAKE JUST A SECOND. AND IF NOBODY HAS ANY QUESTIONS, THEN WE'LL GO ON TO THE NEXT PART OF THE PRESENTATION.
(LAUGHTER.)
>>KURT PRITZ: YEAH, AMADEU.
SERIOUSLY, THE NEXT --
>>AMADEU ABRIL I ABRIL: THERE'S A TYPO!
>>KURT PRITZ: THERE IS, ISN'T THERE.
THE NEXT SEVERAL SLIDES WILL SHOW MANY OBJECTIVES THAT WE'VE UNDERTAKEN IN THE FISCAL YEAR.
AND THEN THE SUBBULLETS ARE PROGRESS AGAINST THOSE.
AND I'M NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH EACH OF THEM.
BUT, FOR EXAMPLE, THERE'S A COUPLE PAGES HERE THAT ENSURE THE ONGOING STABILITY AND SECURITY OF THE INTERNET.
AND IF WE LOOK AT THE FIRST ONE, IN THE ROLLOUT OF IPV6 IN PARTICULAR, I'D GIVE ICANN STAFF A PRETTY GOOD GRADE ON THAT.
WE WERE PRETTY SUCCESSFUL IN THAT AREA.
IF WE SKIP DOWN A COUPLE AND TALK ABOUT PROVIDING INFRASTRUCTURE FOR DATA ESCROW.
WITHOUT MAKING EXCUSES, THAT REQUIRES SOME SERIOUS CAPITAL INVESTMENTS, SO WHILE WE HAVE MADE PLANS, I WOULDN'T GIVE A HIGH GRADE FOR MOVING THAT FORWARD, OTHER THAN IDENTIFYING THAT THAT NEEDS TO BE PUT FORWARD.
IMPLEMENTING TRACKING MECHANISMS FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE ISSUES WAS ANOTHER AREA WHERE I THINK WE HAVE DONE PRETTY WELL WHERE WE HAVE IMPLEMENTED SOME TICKETING AND TRACKING SYSTEMS.
BUT WE'LL HAVE TO GO THROUGH THESE.
IF ANYBODY SEES ANYTHING THEY WANT TO DISCUSS IN PARTICULAR, I'D INVITE YOU TO -- BRUCE.
>>BRUCE TONKIN: I JUST WANT TO CLARIFY YOUR USE OF THE TERMINOLOGY -- IS THIS MICROPHONE ON?
I JUST WANT TO CLARIFY YOUR USE OF THE TERM "CUSTOMER SERVICE" HERE.
BECAUSE ONE OF THE ISSUES, I CAN SEE THAT IANA, FOR EXAMPLE, THE FUNCTION OF IANA WOULD BE DEALING WITH REQUESTS FOR REDELEGATION AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
AND IT MIGHT -- I SUSPECT THAT THERE HAVE BEEN SYSTEMS PUT IN PLACE IN THAT AREA.
MY QUESTION, ESSENTIALLY, IS MORE RELATED TO JUST THE GENERAL TRAFFIC OF PHONE CALLS AND E-MAILS THAT ICANN GETS AND WHETHER YOU HAVE MECHANISMS FOR TRACKING THOSE, BECAUSE FROM -- AND I'M NOW KIND OF WEARING MY HAT AS GNSO CHAIR.
ONE OF THE THINGS WE LIKE TO SEE WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT POLICIES THAT WE'RE PUTTING IN PLACE, WHETHER IT'S TRANSFERS OR DELETES OR WHOIS, WE WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE IMPACT OF THOSE POLICIES IS.
AND PROBABLY YOU HAVE -- YOU'RE KIND OF A CENTRAL POINT FOR CERTAINLY WHERE A LOT OF THE COMPLAINTS MIGHT END UP AT LEAST.
SO I'M JUST WONDERING WHAT PROGRESS YOU HAVE MADE IN TRACKING IN THAT AREA.
>>KURT PRITZ: DURING THE FISCAL YEAR, WE HAVE MADE IMPROVEMENTS IN THE STAFFING OF THOSE FUNCTIONS AND THE MECHANISMS FOR RESPONDING TO REQUESTS.
SO WE'VE DEVELOPED AN INTERNAL TICKETING SYSTEM.
WE'VE AUGMENTED OUR STAFF TO HANDLE PHONE CALLS AND DO A BETTER JOB OF ANSWERING E-MAILS.
SOMETHING WE'RE LOOKING AT MORE LATELY IS THE DEVELOPMENT OF STATISTICS SO WE CAN FEEDBACK ALL THAT INFORMATION INTO SOME SORT OF CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT.
AND, ACTUALLY, THAT WAS BORN OUT OF A GNSO CALL OR TWO AGO WHERE I THINK YOU BROUGHT UP -- YOU ASKED US TO REPORT ON SOME STATISTICS. AND WE DID GENERATE SOME STATISTICS FOR THE NEXT MEETING THAT WERE ALREADY AVAILABLE FOR DIFFERENT MEETINGS.
BUT WHAT THAT CAUSED AND WHAT WE'VE STARTED DOING IS TAKING BETTER DATA FROM CALLS SO WE CAN DO THAT.
SO I THINK THE ANSWER IS, WE DID THE FIRST PART OF IT AS PART OF OUR NORMAL PROCESS, AND WE TOOK YOUR CUE.
BUT WE'RE TAKING DATA NOW AND NOT READY TO REPORT ON THAT.
IS THAT A GOOD ANSWER?
>>MARILYN CADE: KURT, I HAVE A QUESTION AS WELL ABOUT THE DEFINITION OF CUSTOMER SERVICE IN ICANN'S MIND.
AND LET ME JUST SAY THAT WHEN I FIRST READ THE TERM IN THE PREVIOUS PLAN, I WAS VERY CONCERNED THAT WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO ICANN OR CAN HAPPEN TO ICANN IS THAT YOU BECOME THE REPOSITORY OF EVERY QUESTION PEOPLE CANNOT GET ANSWERED ELSEWHERE.
AND WHEN I WAS THE CHAIR OF BOTH THE TRANSFERS TASK FORCE AND THE CO-CHAIR OF THE WHOIS TASK FORCE, I WAS SOMETIMES THE PERSON WHO GOT TO ANSWER THE QUESTION PEOPLE COULDN'T GET ANSWERED ANYWHERE ELSE.
BUT I KEPT BEING ABLE TO LOB IT OVER THE FENCE TO YOU GUYS.
IT SEEMS TO ME THAT THE STATISTICS YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT ARE VERY IMPORTANT.
THE FEEDBACK IS VERY IMPORTANT.
BECAUSE OVER TIME, I WOULD HOPE THAT WE WOULD GET SOME IDEA OF WHAT THE PREVENTIVE MEDICINE IS TO THE INFORMATION THAT CAN BE PROVIDED THAT PULLS THE EXTRANEOUS QUESTIONS THAT ARE NOT REALLY ABOUT A FAILURE OF SERVICE DELIVERY BY THOSE WITH WHOM YOU ARE CONTRACTED, BUT IS A SEARCH FOR INFORMATION OR THE -- ARE YOU LOOKING AT THAT AS WELL?
IS THAT WHAT THE STATISTICS WILL DO, TO HELP YOU SAY, OKAY, WE GET 19,000 CALLS, AND 17,000 OF THEM ARE A SEARCH FOR INFORMATION OR HOW DO I FIND A REGISTRAR OR A COMPLAINT ABOUT SOMETHING THAT REALLY ISN'T AN ICANN FUNCTION?
>>KURT PRITZ: YES.
(LAUGHTER.)
>>MARILYN CADE: OR.
>>KURT PRITZ: I THINK CHUCK GOMES BROUGHT UP A SERIOUS -- SIMILAR CONCERN WHEN WE WERE REVIEWING THE ICANN BUDGET, I THINK, IF I UNDERSTAND YOU FULLY.
AND THAT IS BY ESTABLISHING IMPROVED CUSTOMER SERVICE, IT CAN BECOME A SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECY THAT IT BECOMES A CUSTOMER SERVICE FUNCTION THAT GROWS AND GROWS AND DOESN'T BECOME EFFECTIVE IN NOT ONLY ANSWERING QUESTIONS, BUT ANSWERING THE ROOT CAUSE OF THE QUESTIONS SO THAT FUTURE QUESTIONS WILL BE PREVENTED.
SO I THINK IN IMPLEMENTING IMPROVED CUSTOMER SERVICE -- AND I DEFINE A CUSTOMER AS JUST ABOUT EVERYBODY THAT WE INTERACT WITH -- THAT DEFINITION MUST INCLUDE A WAY TO TAILOR OR NARROW THE QUESTIONS THAT BECOME -- THAT COME TO ICANN AND THOSE THAT ARE, THEN, WITH EDUCATION AND KNOWLEDGE, DIVERTED TO THE PROPER AREA.
THAT WAS GOOD.
SO, LET'S MOVE ON.
IANA PERFORMANCE WAS CERTAINLY A KEY AREA OF CONCERN FOR US THIS YEAR.
THIS ISN'T WORKING OUT FOR ME, IS IT?
OKAY.
A KEY AREA OF CONCERN FOR US THIS YEAR.
WE TOOK MAJOR STEPS IN STAFFING AND THE LIKE.
CONTINGENCY PLANNING WAS WRAPPED AROUND AN MOU DELIVERABLE THAT WE SPENT CONSIDERABLE TIME ON.
WE THINK WE HAVE A VERY VALID AND COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
WE NEED SOME CAPITAL TO IMPLEMENT IT FULLY IN TERMS OF THAT WHICH IS CONTEMPLATED BY THE DOC AND SOUND BUSINESS PRACTICES.
WE THINK WE GOT A PRETTY GOOD MARK WITH OUR COMPLETION OF THE MOU DELIVERABLES.
WE HAVE DELIVERED 17 DELIVERABLES ALL ON TIME SO FAR.
AND THE -- IS SUSAN HERE?
SO WE FEEL THAT WE'RE DOING A FAIRLY GOOD JOB THERE.
IF YOU CAN GO ON, STEVE.
WE WANT TO INTERACT WITH THE OTHER ROOT SERVER MANAGERS TO ARRIVE AT EITHER AGREEMENTS OR SOME STRUCTURE THAT ENSURE THE WORLD OF THE STABILITY AND SECURITY OF THAT OPERATION.
AND WE WANT TO DEVELOP A MULTILINGUAL -- WELL, WE WANT TO WORK TOWARDS THE INTRODUCTION OF CAPABLE, COMPETENT IDNS.
AND WE'RE DOING SOME WORK THERE NOW, TOO.
SO THOSE ARE JUST THE DELIVERABLES ASSOCIATED THIS YEAR WITH THE ONE AREA OF THE MISSION.
GO AHEAD, STEVE.
OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
CERTAINLY A MAJOR AREA OF FOCUS AND AN AREA OF A LOT OF THE DISCUSSION HAS BEEN OUR CONTRACTUAL COMPLIANCE PLAN.
AND WE'VE RECENTLY PUBLISHED A COMPLIANCE POLICY THAT WE'RE SOLICITING INPUT ON.
IT'S STRICTLY A FIRST STEP, BUT WE WANT TO TAKE INPUT ON THE POLICY, WHERE WE CAN NOW STAFF THAT FUNCTION, SO WE'RE STARTING TO DO THAT.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE HECK "ADD STAFF TO PERFORM CONTRACT MANAGEMENT" IS, AND I JUST WROTE IT IN THE LAST COUPLE OF HOURS.
BUT AUGMENT STAFF FOR HANDLING OF THE ACCREDITATIONS.
WE'RE WORKING TO STREAMLINE THE ACCREDITATION PROCESS.
WE'VE TAKEN A LOT OF THE NONVALUE-ADDED STEPS OUT OF THAT.
AND NOW WE'RE WORKING TO AUTOMATE THAT PROCESS AND STREAMLINE IT FURTHER.
CERTAINLY IMPROVING WHOIS ACCURACY IS A MAJOR FOCUS.
WE'VE PUBLISHED THREE REPORTS TO THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE SO FAR ON OUR EFFORTS IN THAT REGARD.
THEY'RE VERY TARGETED REPORTS.
BUT AS A RESULT OF DOING THOSE REPORTS, WE ESSENTIALLY REVAMPED THE WHOIS DATA PROBLEM REPORTING POLICY.
AND REINVENTED THAT.
AND WE'RE GETTING SOME BETTER STATISTICS OUT OF THAT THAN WE USED TO.
WE ARE WORKING THE -- THE GNSO IS WORKING THROUGH A PDP, AND WE'RE DEVELOPING GOOD GUIDELINES FOR A MORE TRANSPARENT, PREDICTABLE PROCESS FOR THE EVALUATION OF NEW REGISTRY SERVICES.
WE HAVE TO MANAGE LITIGATION.
AND, YES, WE'VE DONE THAT.
WE ARE WORKING TO DEVELOP A PROCESS FOR INTRODUCING NEW GTLDS TO THE MARKET.
THAT'S A VERY COMPLEX PROCESS.
WE PUBLISHED THE STRATEGY FOR DOING THAT.
WE'VE UNDERTAKEN THE STLD PROCESS.
WE'RE LEARNING A LOT THERE. AND THAT'S INFORMING THAT PROCESS.
AND WE'RE SOLICITING SCHOLARLY AND BUSINESS AND LEGAL PAPERS, AS WELL AS TECHNICAL PAPERS, ON HOW TO DO THAT.
THAT'S AN AREA I WOULDN'T GIVE ICANN A HIGH GRADE IN YET.
WE WISH TO CREATE A RESERVE FUND IN ORDER TO PRESERVE OUR BUSINESS STABILITY.
AND WE HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO DO THAT YET. AND WE WANT TO STRENGTHEN SERVICES TO GTLD REGISTRARS AND REGISTRIES.
AND TINA DAM HAS PUT TOGETHER A PLAN TO AUGMENT HER ORGANIZATION TO MEET THE NUMBER OF -- THE INCREASED NUMBER OF TLDS AND TO PROVIDE BETTER SERVICES AND TO ENFORCE NEW POLICIES.
AND TIM COLE HAS DONE LIKEWISE, GIVEN THE LARGE NUMBER OF NEW REGISTRARS AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A COMPLIANCE PROGRAM.
SO BOTH TIM AND TINA HAVE DEVELOPED FAIRLY COMPREHENSIVE PLANS FOR MEETING OUR OBJECTIVES IN THE MOU AND THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
NEXT.
AND WE GET TO A SET OF OBJECTIVES THAT GO AROUND SUPPORTING POLICY DEVELOPMENT.
SOME OF OUR SIGNIFICANT HIRES HAVE BEEN IN THE POLICY SUPPORT AREA, WHERE WE'VE MARIA FARRELL AND OLOF NORDLING AND DONNA AUSTIN.
AND NOT IN THOSE POSITIONS RESPECTIVELY, BUT IF YOU SWITCH THEM AROUND A LITTLE BIT.
SO THOSE ARE WELCOME MEMBERS TO THE STAFF.
AND AT THIS MEETING, WE CAN ALREADY SEE THE ABILITY TO ACCOMPLISH WORK WE NEED TO ACCOMPLISH, AND NEED NOT TO RUN SO FAST, SO HARD, ALTHOUGH WE'RE STILL DOING THAT.
AND THEN WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS CUSTOMER SERVICE ASPECT.
IT POPPED UP IN ANOTHER AREA.
AND THEN, FINALLY, THERE'S A SET OF OBJECTIVES THAT ENSURES PARTICIPATION BY ALL, OR WHOEVER WANTS TO PARTICIPATE, IN THE ICANN PROCESS.
EXCUSE ME.
FIRST, THE DEVELOPMENT OF MECHANISMS TO HELP DISPUTE RESOLUTION.
AND THERE, THERE'S ESSENTIALLY THREE PLACES CUSTOMERS CAN TAKE COMPLAINTS NOW.
WE'VE RETAINED THE SERVICES OF AN INDEPENDENT REVIEW PANEL SERVICE, THE INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR DISPUTE RESOLUTION.
WE'VE HIRED AN OMBUDSMAN, WHO HAS PUT TOGETHER A VERY EFFECTIVE OMBUDS PROGRAM, AND REPORTED ON PERFORMANCE TO DATE TO THE BOARD VERY EFFECTIVELY.
AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE THE RECONSIDERATION PROCESS.
SO WE HAVE A FAIRLY COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW PROCESS THAT WE'VE DEVELOPED.
AND WE'VE DONE ONE REVAMPING OF THE WEB SITE.
BUT WE FEEL THAT'S NOT SUFFICIENT.
WE REALLY NEED TO CREATE A WEB SITE THAT'S MORE USER FRIENDLY TO THOSE OF US WHO AREN'T REAL FAMILIAR WITH IT.
I'M STILL NOT REAL FAMILIAR WITH IT.
WE'RE WATCHING OR MONITORING WSIS.
WE'RE USING IT AS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR EDUCATION.
WE'RE LEARNING FROM IT AND BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS THERE.
WE'RE USING CONTACTS TO ECONOMICALLY MONITOR THAT PROCESS RATHER THAN TO ATTEND ALL FUNCTIONS.
AND THEN WE ARE PROMOTING CONSUMER INTEREST.
WE'RE ALSO DEVELOPING OUR MULTILINGUAL COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAM. AND THUS FAR, WE'VE TRANSLATED OUR BROCHURE AND SOME OTHER DOCUMENTS INTO UP TO 17 LANGUAGES.
WHEN I STARTED WITH ICANN ABOUT 18 OR 19 MONTHS AGO -- I FORGET, SEEMS LIKE LONGER THAN THAT -- WE PUBLISHED EVERYTHING IN ONE LANGUAGE.
SO THERE'S BEEN SOME SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS THERE.
SO I THINK THAT'S KIND OF IT; RIGHT?
NO, THERE'S ONE MORE.
WELL, THAT GOES TO -- THAT'S WHERE I THOUGHT IT WAS.
OKAY.
SO THAT GOES TO OUR MULTILINGUAL PROGRAM.
SO THIS IS THE FAMILY OF OBJECTIVES THAT WE PUBLISHED ALONG WITH OUR BUDGET LAST YEAR.
I THINK IT HELPS US IF WE PUBLISH THEM IN A MORE BULLET-LIKE STYLE AND THEY'RE MEASURABLE AND WE CAN REPORT ON PROGRESS AGAINST THEM, AND SO THAT WE CAN ALL AGREE PRETTY MUCH BY READING THAT SORT OF PROSE WHETHER WE'RE SORT OF SUCCEEDING OR FAILING IN PROSECUTING THOSE OBJECTIVES THAT WE'VE IDENTIFIED THAT ARE MEANINGFUL TO OUR MISSION.
SO WHAT'S THE NEXT PART?
SO GOING FORWARD, IN THE STRATEGIC PLANNING CONSULTATION MEETING THAT MARILYN AND GRANT AND -- WHO ELSE, MARILYN?
WHO?
YEP.
SEVERAL.
OKAY.
THANK YOU.
-- PUT TOGETHER IN AMSTERDAM, WE TALKED ABOUT THE STRATEGIC PLAN IN PARTICULAR.
BUT WE ALSO TALKED ABOUT THE ICANN PLANNING PROCESS IN GENERAL.
AND SO WE SORT OF GENERALLY HIT ON TWO SIX-MONTH PLANNING CYCLES THAT ICANN WOULD MANAGE ITSELF TO IN THE FUTURE.
AND THAT IS A STRATEGIC PLANNING CYCLE THAT WOULD BE SIX MONTHS LONG AT THE BEGINNING OF THE FISCAL YEAR.
AND AT THE BEGINNING OF OUR FISCAL YEAR IS JULY, SO JULY THROUGH DECEMBER.
AND THEN AT THE END OF THAT PERIOD, WHICH WOULD INCLUDE -- WELL, THIS IS ALL TO BE DETERMINED, BUT UPDATES TO THE STRATEGIC PLAN THROUGH SOME SORT OF CONSULTATIVE PROCESS AND REVIEW PROCESS, AND THEN THE PUBLICATION OF THE ROLLING THREE-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN FOR THAT YEAR.
THEN WE'LL GO INTO OUR OPERATIONS AND BUDGETING CYCLE.
AND THE FORM THAT TAKES IS ACTUALLY GOING TO BE THE SUBJECT FOR A MEETING ON WEDNESDAY.
SO WE PRETTY MUCH HIT ON THESE TWO PLANNING CYCLES THAT WE CAN CALENDAR WITH REGULARITY.
SO, BRUCE, I DIDN'T KNOW HOW YOU WANTED TO RUN THIS FIRST.
STAFF HAS AS PART OF ITS PLANNING PROCESS FORMULATED A SET OF MANY OBJECTIVES.
WE'VE HIGHLIGHTED MANY OF THEM HERE AFTER THIS SLIDE.
BUT I DIDN'T KNOW IF YOU WANT TO HAVE SOME SORT OF DISCUSSION ABOUT WHAT ICANN IS DOING IN THE UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR GIVEN THE STATE OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN OR IF WE WANTED TO PRESENT THE OBJECTIVES WE HAD SO FAR.
>>BRUCE TONKIN: CAN I JUST CLARIFY HOW MUCH TIME WE HAVE LEFT?
FOR THIS SESSION.
IS IT --
>>BARBARA ROSEMAN: UNTIL 7:00.
>>BRUCE TONKIN: I AM JUST -- I WANT TO MAKE SURE THERE'S TIME SO PEOPLE CAN COMMENT AND IT WON'T BE A ONE-WAY PRESENTATION.
I THINK WHAT WOULD BE USEFUL UNDER EACH OF THOSE HEADINGS, IF YOU PERHAPS JUST IDENTIFY WHAT YOU THINK THE TWO OR THREE MAJOR PRIORITIES ARE WITHOUT GOING INTO THE DETAIL OF HOW YOU'RE GOING TO ACHIEVE THEM, BUT JUST KIND OF AT A HIGH LEVEL.
AND THEN REALLY TRY AND USE MOST OF THE TIME AVAILABLE FOR PEOPLE TO ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, OFFER COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS.
>>KURT PRITZ: OKAY.
THERE'S JUST A COUPLE SLIDES HERE.
IS THAT TOO SMALL?
IN SECURITY AND STABILITY -- AND THERE'S MORE OBJECTIVES THAN THESE, BUT WE THINK THESE ARE KEY -- WE WANT TO WORK -- YES.
>>VINT CERF: JUST ONE OBSERVATION YOU MIGHT REPEAT.
BE SURE THAT EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS THAT THE TOP-LEVEL ITEMS DON'T NECESSARILY REFLECT IN AN OBVIOUS WAY ALL THE THINGS THAT ARE IN THERE.
I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT....
>>KURT PRITZ: RIGHT.
WE STRIVE TO CAPTURE OUR OBJECTIVES UNDER ONE OF THE FOUR MAJOR HEADINGS.
THERE'S ACTUALLY AN ADDITIONAL HEADING THIS YEAR THAT'S -- THAT GOES TO ICANN ADMINISTRATION AND OFFICE STAFF.
BUT SOME OF THOSE WE CAPTURED THAT DON'T NECESSARILY SEEM TO BE APPLICABLE TO CONSUMER AND CHOICE BECAUSE OF THE CONSTITUENCY GROUPS THEY ADDRESS OR FOR SOME OTHER REASON, WE GROUPED THEM UNDER THESE FOUR HEADINGS THAT ARE THE FOUR AREAS OF OUR MISSION IN THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
SO THE FIRST ONE IS WORDED IN SHORTHAND, BUT IT'S REALLY FOR ICANN TO WORK WITH THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY IN ORDER TO FACILITATE THE DEPLOYMENT OF IDNS.
NOW, THE FIRST STEP IN THIS THAT'S BEEN SHORT CUT HERE FOR BREVITY'S SAKE IS THAT WE'RE ALREADY WORKING WITH THE IAB IN IDENTIFYING ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH THE CURRENT DEPLOYMENT OF IDNS AND HOW THAT CAN BE APPROVED.
BUT THAT FIRST BULLET THERE REALLY GOES TO WORKING NOT JUST WITH THE IAB, BUT WORKING WITH THE ORGANIZATIONS AND CERTAINLY ORGANIZATIONS WORLDWIDE IN ORDER TO FACILITATE THE DEPLOYMENT OF IDNS.
AND THEY COVER BUSINESS ISSUES, TECHNICAL ISSUES.
BUT THE COMPETENT INTRODUCTION OF IDNS IS A STABILITY ISSUE FOR THE DNS.
IF YOU'VE READ THE PROPOSED DOT NET, DOT JOB OR DOT TRAVEL AGREEMENT, IT CALLS FOR THE CREATION OF A STANDING PANEL IN ORDER TO FACILITATE THE CONSIDERATION OF NEW REGISTRY SERVICES. SO ONE OF ICANN'S GOALS, AS FAR AS BEING A GOOD PARTNER IS TO CONSIDER THESE APPLICATIONS FOR NEW SERVICES IN A RAPID BUT COMPETENT FASHION. AND WE THINK THAT REQUIRES THE RETAINING OF A SET OF INDEPENDENT TECHNICAL EXPERTS THAT ARE INDEPENDENTLY CHOSEN THAT CAN BE ON CALL TO DEDICATE TIME TO THESE QUESTIONS SO THEY GET ANSWERED IN A STRAIGHTFORWARD AND TIMELY MANNER.
AND THEN THE THIRD GOAL WE HAVE UP HERE FOR STABILITY AND SECURITY IS IMPLEMENTATION OF DNSSEC. STEVE CROCKER IS GOING TO MAKE A PRESENTATION ON THAT TOMORROW IN THE ICANN WORKSHOP. BUT CERTAINLY THAT REQUIRES SOME INVESTMENT NOT JUST BY ICANN BUT BY OTHERS WHO WILL JOINTLY INVEST IN AN EFFORT TO BRING IMPLEMENTATION OF DNSSEC FORTH.
THERE ARE SEVERAL CATEGORIES HERE FOR COMPETITION AND CHOICE. CERTAINLY IDN FALLS UNDER COMPETITION AND CHOICE, TOO, BECAUSE WE THINK IT'S GOING TO OPEN UP NEW MARKETS FOR REGISTRIES AND REGISTRARS. AND NEW REGISTRIES.

CERTAINLY THE CONTRACTUAL COMPLIANCE PROGRAM, WE TALK ABOUT THAT IN SHORTHAND NOW BECAUSE IT'S SUCH AN IMPORTANT PART OF OUR FOCUS, THAT WE SAY THOSE THREE WORDS AND PRETTY MUCH EVERYBODY AT ICANN KNOWS, -- A FLOWCHART GOES OUT FROM EVERYBODY IN ICANN'S BRAIN ABOUT EVERYBODY WE'RE DOING IN THAT REGARD.
WE WANT TO FINISH THE STRATEGY FOR THE NEW IMPLEMENTATION OF TLDS AND IT'S CERTAINLY A REQUIREMENT FOR THE MOU WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE.
WE WANT TO DISCUSS AND MOVE FORWARD ON REDEMPTION GRACE PERIOD II FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE FAMILIAR WITH THAT. WE WANT TO FACILITATE -- CONTINUE TO FACILITATE AND CONTINUALLY IMPROVE THE INTER-REGISTRAR TRANSFER POLICY.
FINALLY COMPLETE THE EVALUATION OF OUR TEN STLD APPLICATIONS THAT SHOULD DRAW TO A CLOSE MAYBE BEFORE THE END OF THIS FISCAL YEAR.
CREATE A CUSTOMER SERVICE PROGRAM, ALONG THE LINES WE DISCUSSED EARLIER TODAY. AND THEN AGAIN, DEVELOP THIS PROCESS FOR CONSIDERATION OF NEW REGISTRY SERVICES, NOT JUST THE TECHNICAL ASPECTS OF IT THAT ARE JUST BY THE STANDING PANEL BUT BY -- FOR COMPETITION OR FOR OTHER CONSIDERATIONS OF OTHER REGISTRY SERVICES.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF POLICY, WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE OUR WORKING ARRANGEMENT WITH THE GAC TO MAKE US BOTH MORE EFFECTIVE IN HOW TO WORK IN THIS COMMUNITY, WE WANT TO DO THE SAME THING WITH THE AT-LARGE COMMUNITY.
WE WANT TO WORK WITH THE GNSO IN THE SAME REGARD. THEY RECENTLY FINISHED AN EVALUATION PROCESS. WE WANT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT IN ORDER TO DO CORRECTION AND SELF-IMPROVEMENT, NOT JUST IN THE GNSO BUT IN OUR WORKING RELATIONSHIP AND THE RESULTS OF OUR WORKING RELATIONSHIP WITH THEM.
WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO PROMULGATE POLICIES ON IPV6 AND FINISH OUR POLICY DEVELOPMENT ON IPV4, ACTUALLY, AND THEN WE'RE LOOKING TOWARD EXECUTING AGREEMENTS WITH THE RIRS, PERHAPS, THAT FLOW OUT OF OUR AGREEMENT WITH THE NRO.
AND THEN FINALLY, IN THE LAST AREA, WE WANT TO PROVIDE TRAINING AND EDUCATION FOR IANA SERVICES, CCTLDS.
WE WANT TO DO THAT EDUCATION NOT NECESSARILY BY INVESTING IN ICANN STAFF BUT IN ICANN INVESTING IN OTHERS TO DO OUR TRAINING FOR US, TAKING ADVANTAGE OF LOCAL TECHNICAL AND EDUCATIONAL EXPERTISE. AND ALSO LOCAL -- SEE IF I'VE GOT IT HERE. WELL, WE'VE HAD OFFERS OF STAFFING OR INFRASTRUCTURE OR LOGISTICS OR FACILITIES AT VARIOUS REGIONAL LOCATIONS FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF PRESENCES IN VARIOUS AREAS AROUND THE WORLD. AND WE WANT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT, BECAUSE IT'S A VERY ECONOMICAL WAY TO PROVIDE OUTREACH.
AND WE WILL LOOK TOWARDS GROWING THE REGIONAL AT-LARGE ORGANIZATIONS, THE RALOS, AND FORMING THEM.
WE WILL CONTINUE TO REBUILD THE ICANN WEB SITE. I THINK THERE WILL BE A QUANTUM CHANGE THERE IN THE WEB SITE.
AND THEN WE'LL INCREASE OUR EFFORTS IN TRANSLATION. AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, TRANSLATION IS VERY, VERY EXPENSIVE. WE'RE LOOKING AT WAYS TO DO THAT ECONOMICALLY, BUT ALSO VERY ACCURATELY. AND I THINK 60% OF THE EMPLOYEES AT THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION ARE TRANSLATORS, AREN'T THEY?
SO THAT BECOMES VERY EXPENSIVE. SO WE'RE LOOKING TO DO THAT IN A SMART WAY. OF COURSE, IF YOU'RE NOT BEING UNDERSTOOD, YOU'RE NOT COMMUNICATING.
SO BRUCE, THAT'S A BRIEF OUTLINE OF OBJECTIVES FOR THE YEAR, IF I DIDN'T TALK TOO MUCH.
RAUL HAS A QUESTION.
>>RAUL ECHEBERRIA: THANK YOU, KURT. I THINK WE HAVE HEARD THE IDEA TRANSLATION IS VERY EXPENSIVE, AND AS YOU KNOW, I HAVE A VERY DIFFERENT OPINION. I KNOW IT IS MY FORTE TO SHARE WITH YOU SOME NUMBERS, AND SO I WILL DO THAT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
I AM A LITTLE BUSY WITH THE WORKGROUP ON INTERNET GOVERNANCE NOW. BUT I THINK IT'S EXPENSIVE IF WE HIRE TRANSLATION SERVICES IN MARINA DEL REY, BUT WE CAN HIGHER TRANSLATION SERVICES IN OTHER REGIONS. AND THANKS TO THE INTERNET, WE CAN DO THAT.
IN LACNIC, WE SPEND A VERY MINOR PERCENTAGE OF OUR BUDGET TO KEEP UPDATED IN ALL THE INFORMATION THAT WE OFFER TO THE COMMUNITY IN THREE LANGUAGE. I THINK MAYBE IN THE CASE OF -- IN ICANN'S CASE, IT WOULD BE MORE EXPENSIVE BECAUSE, FIRST OF ALL, WE SHOULD IDENTIFY WHICH LANGUAGE -- TO WHICH LANGUAGE SHOULD WE TRANSLATE ALL THE INFORMATION. MAYBE SIX OR SEVEN. BUT MAYBE THE U.N. LANGUAGE IS THE FIRST REFERENCE. BUT I HAD HEARD THE U.N. LANGUAGES ARE NOT APPROPRIATE FOR SOME PEOPLE, BECAUSE THE SELECTION OF RUSSIAN IS -- WAS MADE BECAUSE THE ROLE THAT RUSSIA HAS PLAYED WHEN THE U.N. WAS CREATED IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE LAST CENTURY, AND MAYBE THERE ARE OTHER LANGUAGES MORE APPROPRIATE THAN RUSSIAN.
BUT IF WE SELECT SIX OR SEVEN LANGUAGES, THEN SURELY IT WILL BE MORE EXPENSIVE THAN IN THE CASE OF LACNIC, BUT I STILL THINK THAT IT SHOULD NOT BE VERY EXPENSIVE AND IT IS PERFECTLY AFFORDABLE AND IT SHOULD BE ONE OF THE PRIORITIES FOR THE NEXT YEAR TO HAVE THE WHOLE ICANN WEB SITE TRANSLATED TO GOOD SET OF LANGUAGE. I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHICH NUMBER.
THANK YOU.
>>KURT PRITZ: OKAY. THANK YOU. RAUL, I AGREE AND I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ON THAT.
TWO CAVEATS ARE WHEN -- THAT WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT, AND I THINK WE CAN GO ABOUT THIS IN A WAY THAT'S GOOD, IF WE TRANSLATE INTO SIX OR SEVEN LANGUAGES, WE'D PROBABLY HAVE TO CHANGE THOSE LANGUAGES ON A CASE-BY-CASE BASIS OR ELSE, AS ICANN ALWAYS DOES, IT WILL TICK SOMEBODY OFF.
AND SECOND, WE STRUGGLE WITH LEGALISTIC OR TECHNICAL DOCUMENTS, AND WHERE WE MIGHT EMPLOY THE GRATIS SERVICES OF SOMEBODY THAT MIGHT HAVE A STAKE IN THE GAME, WE HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL THAT DOCUMENTS ARE TRANSLATED IN A WAY THAT THEY'RE NOT STEERED IN ANY DIRECTION. BUT ASIDE FROM THAT, ONE OF THE THINGS I ALWAYS TALK ABOUT WITH ICANN STAFF IS WORKING WITH PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY TO DO THESE THINGS FOR FREE.
>>HAGEN HULTZSCH: WOULD YOU ALLOW ME TO ADD ESPECIALLY TO THE LANGUAGE ISSUE? BECAUSE I THINK IT HAS -- I GO TO THE MICROPHONE.
I'M WORKING IN AN INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR A WHILE, AND I VERY MUCH SHARE YOUR VIEW, BECAUSE I STARTED FIRST TO WORK IN AN INTERNATIONAL COMPUTER ORGANIZATION, I HAD THE SAME THOUGHTS AND VIEW, BECAUSE I HAD DIFFICULTIES TO UNDERSTAND -- TO DIFFERENTIATE THE GUYS FROM WASHINGTON AND THOSE FROM UK AND THOSE FROM CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS. AND I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE MORE CONVENIENT TO TRANSLATE.
BECAUSE THE DECISION WAS, IT WAS TOO EXPENSIVE TO TRANSLATION, I LEARNED TO BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THIS ENVIRONMENT. AND I THINK IT WAS HIGHLY PRODUCTIVE, BECAUSE HAVING THESE COSTS AND DIFFICULTIES OF TRANSLATION, COMPARED TO THE, LET'S SAY, COST OF EVERYBODY WHO IS PARTICIPATING IN THIS COMMUNITY TO BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THIS LANGUAGE, WHICH IS OUR COMMUNICATION PLATFORM, IS, LET'S SAY, VERY MUCH IN FAVOR OF HAVING TO BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THIS LANGUAGE ENVIRONMENT.
YOU HAVE SHOWN THAT YOU DO IT VERY WELL.
SO I WOULD REALLY, LET'S SAY, SUPPORT THE IDEA THAT WE AVOID TOO MUCH TRANSLATION, EVEN THOUGH WE SHOULD HAVE AUTOMATIC TRANSLATION FACILITIES IF SOMEBODY WANTS A TRANSLATOR, HE SHOULD HAVE IT, AND SOME OF OUR DOCUMENTS ARE EVEN DISTRIBUTED WITH A HINT FOR AUTOMATIC TRANSLATION.
SO I WOULD REALLY MAKE A POINT THAT WE SHOULD TRY TO AVOID NOT ONLY THIS COST FACTOR, BUT ALSO THIS INEFFICIENCY FACTOR.
THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING. THANK YOU, MARILYN.
>>MARILYN CADE: I WILL PROBABLY HAVE MORE TO SAY ON ONE OF THESE TOPICS TOMORROW WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE STRATEGIC PLAN, BUT I'M GOING TO TOUCH ON THREE POINTS.
ONE, I SUPPORT THE IDEA THAT IN DOING TRANSLATION OF LEGAL DOCUMENTS THAT WE DO NEED TO USE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. I WOULD SAY, HOWEVER, THAT EVEN THE U.N. WAS ABLE TO AGREE ON SIX LANGUAGES. MAYBE RUSSIAN DOESN'T HAVE TO BE THE SIXTH FOR ICANN, BUT I THINK THAT THE IDEA THAT ICANN COULD AFFORD OR SHOULD AFFORD TO TRANSLATE INTO DOZENS OF LANGUAGES IS A BURDEN THAT I'M NOT SURE THE COMMUNITY IS PREPARED FOR.
BUT MY POINT ABOUT THAT REALLY ADDRESSES A DIFFERENT POINT, AND THAT IS THAT IN THE REDO OF THE WEB SITE AND IN THE TRANSLATIONS OF DOCUMENTS, TODAY WE ARE MERELY TRANSLATING DOCUMENTS THAT ARE A BIT UNCOMPREHENSIBLE TO THOSE WHO SEEK TO UNDERSTAND THEM. EVEN FOR SOMEONE WHO SPENDS A GOOD DEAL OF TIME AT ICANN, WITH ICANN, AND AROUND ICANN, I HAVE DIFFICULTY FINDING THE EASY-TO-UNDERSTAND, EASY-TO-DISTRIBUTE TO MY COMMUNITY OR TO MY CONSTITUENCY INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT ICANN DOES, WHAT ITS POLICIES ARE, WHAT ITS POLICY TOPICS ARE, HOW TO PARTICIPATE, THOSE KINDS OF THINGS.
SO WHEN WE THINK ABOUT OUTREACH, I HAVE A STRONG CONCERN THAT BEFORE WE GO PHYSICALLY INTO REGIONS TOO FAR, AND UNTIL WE CREATE NEW MECHANISMS, THAT WE STOP AND FOCUS ON, FIRST OF ALL, MAKING SURE WE HAVE MATERIALS THAT ARE USABLE, THAT SUPPORT THE WORK THAT IS BEING DONE ALREADY, AND THAT ADVANCES UNDERSTANDING.
WE HAD A BRIEF CONVERSATION TODAY WITH -- BETWEEN THE BUSINESS CONSTITUENCY -- BETWEEN THE CROSS-CONSTITUENCY AND THE ALAC ABOUT OUR COMMON NEED FOR THAT KIND OF INFORMATION, AND I FIND IT IN THE WORK I'M DOING IN THE WSIS AND OTHER SETTINGS.
AND I'LL HAVE MORE TO SAY ABOUT THAT TOMORROW, BUT I'M GOING TO SAY SOMETHING NOW ABOUT HOW WE ADVANCE PARTICIPATION, NOT WHETHER WE ADVANCE PARTICIPATION.
IT IS, IN FACT, CRITICAL THAT WE ADVANCE PARTICIPATION VERY BROADLY. HOWEVER, I, AT THIS POINT, DON'T YET UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH ICANN STAFF HAS BEEN ABLE TO DO BY REACHING OUT TO THE REGIONAL CCTLD ORGANIZATIONS, BY TALKING TO THE RIRS, BY MEETING WITH THE CCS THEMSELVES BY TALKING TO OTHER ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE BUILDING CAPACITY IN THESE REGIONS, AND WHETHER WE HAVE YET HAD A CHANCE TO THINK ABOUT CAPACITY BUILDING WITH OTHERS.
WHEN YOU HIRE STAFF TO DO CAPACITY BUILDING WITH OTHERS, IT'S A DIFFERENT SET OF SKILLS THAN WHEN YOU HIRE STAFF TO DO THINGS THEMSELVES.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE OPERATIONAL PLAN TODAY. I MAY EXPECT TO ADDRESS THIS MORE TOMORROW, BUT UNDOUBTEDLY, THERE ARE IMPLICATIONS FOR THE NEXT YEAR AS WELL ON THAT FRONT.
>>KURT PRITZ: SO IF I CAN -- MARILYN, I SHOULDN'T TRANSLATE DOCUMENTS THAT I CAN'T EITHER NOT FIND OR NOT UNDERSTAND.
>>MARILYN CADE: YOU SHOULD WRITE SOME NEW DOCUMENTS.
>>KURT PRITZ: AND THEN SECONDLY, BUT THE -- OUTREACH REALLY GOES TOWARDS USING OTHERS TO ACCOMPLISH THAT RATHER THAN STAFF. IS THAT --
>>MARILYN CADE: I THINK THAT THE U.N. HAS, AND SOME OTHER DONOR ORGANIZATIONS, HAVE LONG YEARS OF EXPERIENCE WITH WHAT WE CALL THE PARACHUTE IN, PARACHUTE OUT APPROACH.
AND WHAT WE TEND TO FIND THAT IS SUSTAINABLE IS CAPACITY BUILDING IS DONE IN A WAY THAT ADVANCES WORK THAT IS ALREADY BEING DONE BY PEOPLE, BUILDS BRIDGES, ET CETERA.
MY QUESTION WAS HAVE WE YET HAD A CHANCE TO REACH TO THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE ALREADY DOING TRAINING OR ARE ALREADY IN THE COMMUNITY AND THINK ABOUT HOW TO STRENGTHEN, SUPPORT, EXTEND WHAT THEY'RE DOING AS OPPOSED TO TRYING TO DO IT OURSELVES AND PERHAPS (INAUDIBLE) COMPETITION.
>>SEBASTIAN BELLAGAMBA: I WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS TOMORROW THE ISSUE ABOUT TRANSLATION, TOO, BECAUSE, IT'S MORE PART OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN THAN TODAY. BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT I THINK THE ISSUES OF (INAUDIBLE) ARE NOT. IF WE EXPECT US TO BE A BROAD ORGANIZATION, WE HAVE TO TRANSLATE, WE HAVE TO COMMUNICATE TO THE WORLD.
IF WE EXPECT THAT THE INCLUSIVE WAY WE WORK IS WAITING FOR THE REST OF THE WORLD TO LEARN TO PARTICIPATE IN ICANN, I THINK WE ARE WRONG. SO I WILL ADDRESS TOMORROW THE ISSUE MORE BROADLY, BUT FOR TODAY, SOME.
>>IZUMI AIZU: IZUMI AIZU, AT-LARGE ADVISORY COMMITTEE, ASIA PACIFIC. WHEN READING THE STRATEGIC PLAN, YOU MENTIONED THAT AT-LARGE, ICANN WILL ISSUE SUPPORT FOR THE FOLLOWING ACTIVITIES. DOES IT MEAN THAT YOU HAVE A PLAN TO INCREASE THE STAFF SUPPORT SPECIFICALLY FOR THE REGIONAL ACTIVITIES? BECAUSE WITH THIS, IT'S SO VAGUE. WE DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT EXACTLY YOU'RE PLANNING. IF YOU COULD EXPLAIN.
>>KURT PRITZ: THE INTENTION -- AND I MIGHT NOT BE THE BEST PERSON TO ANSWER THIS QUESTION, BUT THE INTENTION IS TO MAKE AN INVESTMENT AND STAFF SUPPORT ALONG THOSE LINES, BUT ALSO LEVERAGE CONTRIBUTIONS IN KIND FROM EITHER GOVERNMENTS OR NGOS OR CCS IN THE FORM OF STAFF OR FACILITIES OR INFRASTRUCTURE. SO WE SEE THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY TO DO THAT. AND THE EFFECTIVE WAY -- MOST EFFECTIVE WAY, NOT TO PARACHUTE IN AND PARACHUTE OUT, AS MARILYN SAID, IS TO MAKE THAT A PARTNERSHIP RATHER THAN A PURE STAFF ACTIVITY, ALTHOUGH THERE IS STAFFING INVESTMENT INVOLVED.
>>IZUMI AIZU: I APPRECIATE THAT. FOR YOUR, PERHAPS, INFORMATION, AS AT-LARGE, WE ARE TRYING TO EVALUATE OUR OWN ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING HOW TO SET UP THE RALOS, AND I APPRECIATE. WE FEEL LIKE WE ALREADY PARACHUTED IN SO THAT WE DON'T WANT THE OTHER PARACHUTES GOING OVER WITHOUT, YOU KNOW, DOING SOME CONSULTATION WITH US BEFOREHAND. I REALLY SERIOUSLY ASK FOR THAT KIND OF CONSIDERATION BE IN PLACE. THANK YOU.
>>KURT PRITZ: OKAY. I APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU.
>>BRET FAUSETT: I'M BRET FAUSETT. I'M THE ALAC LIAISON TO THE GNSO, ALSO A LONG-TIME ICANN FOLLOWER AND BLOGGER.
I DON'T KNOW IF WE HAVE EVER HAD THIS OPPORTUNITY BEFORE AND I THINK IT'S A GREAT FORUM.
I DON'T WANT TO ADD TO THE LIST OF PROPOSED PRIORITIES BUT I WOULD LIKE TO UNDERSCORE ONE THING THAT'S ALWAYS BEEN ON THE ICANN'S PRIORITY LIST AND THAT'S GETTING ITS MINUTES AND PRELIMINARY REPORTS OUT IN A VERY TIMELY MANNER. I KNOW THAT UP UNTIL A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO WE HAD MINUTES THAT WERE OVERDUE FOR MONTHS AND MONTHS AND MONTHS. THERE'S STILL AN ONGOING PROBLEM GETTING THE PRELIMINARY REPORTS OUT. AND THE BYLAWS SAY THAT A PRELIMINARY REPORT HAS TO BE PUBLISHED WITHIN FIVE DAYS OF AN ICANN BOARD MEETING. I KNOW THAT HASN'T BEEN FOLLOWED IN ABOUT A YEAR. AND STILL THERE'S NO PRELIMINARY REPORT FROM THE MARCH 21ST BOARD MEETING, JUST THREE WEEKS AGO. SO THAT'S ALREADY OVER THE BYLAW RECOMMENDATION.
SO WHAT CAN STAFF DO TO FULFILL THAT OBLIGATION AND GET THOSE THINGS OUT IN A MORE TIMELY MANNER?
>>VINT CERF: (INAUDIBLE).
>>KURT PRITZ: SO NOT TO BE GLIB, BUT WE FULLY UNDERSTAND YOUR CONCERN AND WE RECOGNIZED OUR OWN LACK OF PERFORMANCE THERE. NOW THAT THE THRASHING IS DONE, WE'VE PUT THINGS IN PLACE TO PERFORM BETTER.
>>AMADEU ABRIL I ABRIL: AMADEU ABRIL, INTERNET USER.
I WON'T TALK ABOUT MINUTES PUBLICATION HERE. ANYWAY....
REGARDING TRANSLATIONS, I WILL NOT TURN DOWN THE IMPORTANCE OF TRANSLATIONS, BUT SOMETIMES I WOULD LIKE THAT WE COLLECTIVELY, AND ESPECIALLY ICANN, TRIES TO TRANSLATE ITS DOCUMENTS TO A NEW LANGUAGE: INTERNET USERAGE. IF SOMEONE HAS PROBLEMS WITH ITS DOMAIN NAME OR SOMETHING, IT'S A REGULAR USER, AND TRIES TO DISCOVER CLIMBING UP TO THE TOP, WHAT'S THE REDEMPTION GRACE PERIOD OR HOW A TRANSFER WORKS, THIS IS FOR EXPERTS. THIS IS NOT EVEN FOR THE WHOLE ICANN COMMUNITY, THIS IS FOR A SUBSET OF THE ICANN COMMUNITY. AND I THINK WE SHOULD MAKE AN EVIDENT -- I THINK WHOIS IS A LITTLE BIT BETTER, THERE'S SOME GOOD EXPLANATIONS BETWEEN INTERNIC AND ICANN. BUT FOR THE REST, NOT SO MANY PROCESSES THAT AFFECT THE LIFE OF A DOMAIN NAME, WE LACK SOMETHING THAT INTERNET USERS MAY UNDERSTAND AND IT WOULD BE A GOOD ADDITION. REGARDING THE OPERATIONS, THIS BRINGS ME TO ANOTHER THING. ALL THE OPERATIONS ARE VERY GOOD AND ARE VERY IMPORTANT. THEN YOU HAVE THE PROBLEM OF FOCUS. I!
WOULD SAY THE INTELLECTUAL PRIORITIES WE HAVE. AND WE ARE ACCUMULATING ALL OF THEM. COMPETITION, SECURITY AND STABILITY, THE INSTITUTIONAL REFORM.
I WOULD LIKE SEEING -- AND I AM VERY ENCOURAGED THE WAY I AM LISTENING IN THE LAST TWO MEETINGS, NOTHING CONSUMER PROTECTION, BUT DESIGN IN RULES THAT DON'T EFFECTIVELY THE REGULAR INTERNET USER. AND WE HAVE A LOT OF WORK AND I THINK THIS SHOULD BE GUIDING LOTS OF YOUR OPERATIONS THERE. AND I REPEAT, I AM ENCOURAGED BY WHAT I AM LISTENING HERE AND BACK AND CAPE TOWN AS WELL.
>>MARCUS FAURE: MARCUS FAURE. I'M WITH THE COUNCIL OF REGISTRARS. I'M NOT A NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKER BUT I THINK THAT TRANSLATING IS A WASTE OF RESOURCES BECAUSE YOU WILL NOT FIND ENOUGH PROFESSIONAL TRANSLATORS THAT ARE AWARE OF OUR INTERNET VOCABULARY. AND GIVE YOU ONE SPECIFIC EXAMPLE. WHEN THE DOT EU REQUESTED, IT WAS TRANSLATED INTO ALL LANGUAGES. THE ONLY ONE YOU COULD UNDERSTAND WAS THE ENGLISH ONE.
>>AMADEU ABRIL I ABRIL: THE SAME THING WITH THE EUROPEAN. (INAUDIBLE) IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE.
>>JORDYN BUCHANAN: JORDYN BUCHANAN WITH REGISTER.COM. ALTHOUGH I'LL BE SPEAKING IN A MOMENT A LITTLE BIT WEARING MY HAT AS THE CO-CHAIR OF THE WHOIS TASK FORCE FROM THE GNSO, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO ECHO THE SENTIMENT THAT HAS BEEN HEARD THAT IT'S VERY HELPFUL TO HAVE A LIST OF ICANN PRIORITIES AND BE ABLE TO REFLECT ON THIS. AND I KNOW THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF OUTSTANDING AND IMPORTANT THINGS THAT ICANN IS PRIORITIZING THIS YEAR.
I DID FIND IT A LITTLE BIT STRANGE, IN MY MIND, AT LEAST, TO SEE RGP II ON THAT LIST OF PERHAPS THE 20 MOST IMPORTANT THINGS ICANN WAS WORKING ON THIS YEAR. IT SEEMS TO ME TO A CERTAIN EXTENT THAT IS A SOLUTION IN SEARCH OF A PROBLEM. I DON'T KNOW IF YOU GUYS ARE GETTING A LOT OF COMPLAINTS. THAT MAYBE SOMETHING THAT WHERE SOME INSIGHT INTO THE CUSTOMER SERVICE DATA MAY BE USEFUL. BUT RGP TODAY SEEMS TO BE WORKING FAIRLY WELL. I KNOW OUR CUSTOMERS THAT USE IT SEEM TO BE FAIRLY HAPPY. I KNOW THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF MOVEMENT IN PRICE THROUGHOUT THE MARKET.
I KNOW ALSO THAT THE DELETES, THE EDDP, THE DELETES POLICY THAT WENT INTO EFFECT LAST YEAR, CONTAINED SOME PROVISIONS TO IMPROVE TRANSPARENCY WITH REGARDS TO PRICING FOR RGP SO THAT THERE IS A COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE THERE, AND IT SEEMS LIKE, LIKE I SAID, IT SEEMS LIKE THERE ARE MANY MORE IMPORTANT THINGS FOR ICANN TO HAVE ON ITS WISH LIST THIS YEAR.
THE SECOND THING I'D LIKE TO BRIEFLY DISCUSS IS TO CONGRATULATE ICANN ON ENHANCING OR IMPROVING THE NUMBER OF POLICY DEVELOPMENT STAFF. I THINK WE HAVE ALL -- ALL OF US WHO HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN THE POLICY DEVELOPMENT PROCESS HAVE BEEN LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT FOR A LONG TIME, PARTICULARLY WORKING WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE NEW PDP, WHICH IMAGINES A VERY ACTIVE ROLE FROM STAFF, AND I THINK CAN'T BE SUCCESSFUL WITHOUT THAT SUPPORT.
WITH THAT IN MIND, THOUGH, I THINK TWO -- THERE ARE TWO IMPORTANT ELEMENTS, I THINK, THAT ICANN SHOULD INCLUDE IN THIS YEAR'S PRIORITIES, AND HOPEFULLY THEY WON'T TAKE A LOT OF TIME AWAY FROM THE OTHER THINGS YOU'RE WORKING ON.
THE FIRST IS, I THINK WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO WORK WITH STAFF. IT'S NEW TO US AS PARTICIPANTS IN THE POLICY DEVELOPMENT PROCESS. WE HAVEN'T HAD A LOT OF STAFF SUPPORT IN THE PAST, AND THE ROLE OF STAFF VERSUS PARTICIPANTS IS NOT ALWAYS 100% CLEAR.
AND I THINK THE PDP PROVIDES SOME GUIDANCE BUT IT'S OFTEN, I THINK, AS WE'VE RECOGNIZED IN WORKING THROUGH THE PDP, IT OFTEN ASSUMES THE STAFF IS GOING TO DO THINGS THAT WE WOULD THINK THAT THE PARTICIPANTS AND THE CONSTITUENCIES WOULD BE MUCH MORE INVOLVED IN, AND THERE ARE OTHER PLACES, I THINK, WHERE STAFF COULD BE VERY HELPFUL WHERE IT'S ABSENT AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THEY'D BE CONTRIBUTING THAT IN THE PDP.
SO I THINK ONE OF THE GOALS, I THINK, BY THE END OF THE YEAR SHOULD BE WE'VE FIGURED OUT WHAT THE STAFF DOES IN SUPPORT OF PDP PROCESS AND POLICY DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.
AND THE SECOND NOTE I'D LIKE TO MAKE, AND IT'S A THOUGHT I'VE ECHOED BEFORE, I DON'T THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT REQUIRES ANY TIME FROM YOU GUYS AT ALL, IS TO MAKE SURE THAT NOW THAT WE DO HAVE STAFF THAT WE MAKE SURE WHERE THEY'RE SPENDING THEIR TIME SOMEHOW CORRELATES WITH THE INTEREST OF THE COMMUNITY THAT THEY'RE TRYING TO SERVE.
SO, FOR EXAMPLE, IF THE GNSO HAS AN ISSUE THAT IT CONSIDERS TO BE EXTREMELY IMPORTANT AND THEY GO TO WORK ON IT, WE SHOULDN'T FIND OUT THAT THERE'S NO STAFF AVAILABLE TO WORK ON THAT PARTICULAR -- THE GNSO STAFF ASSIGNED TO GNSO ON THAT PARTICULAR TOPIC IS TIED UP DOING OTHER THINGS BECAUSE INTERNAL ICANN STAFF HAS MADE SOME DECISION ABOUT SOME OTHER PRIORITIZATION. SO I THINK SOMEHOW WE NEED TO MAKE SURE WE'RE TYING AT LEAST STAFF MEMBERS RELATING TO CERTAIN ORGANIZATIONS ARE REPORTING TO MEMBERS OF THAT SUBCOMMUNITY.
THANKS.
>>KURT PRITZ: YOU CAN SIT DOWN OR STAY UP.
MAYBE I'D ASK TINA TO RESPOND TO THE RGP II QUESTION IF YOU DON'T MIND BECAUSE THERE'S SOME KNOWLEDGE THAT I AIN'T GOT.
AND THEN WE CAN -- MAYBE WE CAN DISCUSS POLICY DEVELOPMENT IN A SECOND.
>>TINA DAM: SURE. MY NAME IS TINA DAM. I'M WITH ICANN. MAIN RESPONSIBILITY IS WORKING WITH THE GTLD REGISTRIES.
ON RGP II, WE HAVE ACTUALLY -- MOSTLY, SINCE THE NEW TRANSFER POLICY CAME INTO PLACE, WE'VE SEEN A LOT OF COMPLAINTS COMING IN ABOUT REGISTRARS THAT EITHER REFUSE TO RESTORE A NAME THAT'S IN REDEMPTION GRACE PERIOD STATUS OR CHARGE A REALLY HIGH FEE FOR IT. AND SINCE A REGISTRANT ONLY HAS ONE CHOICE TO RESTORE A DOMAIN NAME THAT WAS DELETED BY DEFAULT OR BY ACCIDENT, AND THAT IS THE ORIGINAL REGISTRAR, THEN THAT'S NOT SUCH A GOOD THING FOR THAT REGISTRANT.
HAVING RGP II IN PLACE WILL MAKE SURE THAT A REGISTRANT CAN CHOOSE FREELY BETWEEN REGISTRARS IN ASKING FOR A RESTORE OF THEIR DOMAIN NAME. SO IT'S GOING TO ADD TO THE COMPETITION THAT'S AVAILABLE AMONG REGISTRARS AT THIS POINT IN TIME AND IT'S GOING TO, YOU KNOW, ALLOW THE REGISTRANT TO CHOOSE BETWEEN REGISTRARS.
SO THAT'S WHY IT'S ON THERE.
>>JORDYN BUCHANAN: I'D JUST ADD BRIEFLY THAT, I'M DISAPPOINTED TO HEAR THAT SOME REGISTRARS ARE BEHAVING THUSLY.
>>TINA DAM: ME TOO.
>>JORDYN BUCHANAN: AND A GENERAL CONCEPT THAT HAS BEEN DISCUSSED IN THE PAST I THINK HAS MERIT, IS AS YOU START TO GET TOGETHER THESE CUSTOMER SERVICE METRICS YOU'RE TRACKING, AT SOME POINT WE OUGHT TO THINK ABOUT PUBLISHING WHERE THE COMPLAINTS ARE COMING FROM BECAUSE IF THEY'RE DISPROPORTIONATELY COMING FROM SOMEWHERE, REGISTRANTS OUGHT TO KNOW THAT BEFORE THEY GET INTO THE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE -- WHOEVER THEY'RE GOING TO BE DEALING WITH.
>>TINA DAM: YOU KNOW, I'M DISAPPOINTED AS WELL ABOUT THAT BEHAVIOR IN THE COMMUNITY, BUT THAT'S JUST -- UNFORTUNATELY, THAT'S THE WAY IT IS.
>>KURT PRITZ: BEFORE WE LEAVE THIS, AS FAR AS POLICY DEVELOPMENT GOES, I THINK THE INCREASED STAFF GIVES OPPORTUNITIES FOR TWO LEVELS OF SUPPORT BECAUSE WE'VE GOT PAUL VERHOEF THAT MIGHT MAKE AN ADDITIONAL COMMENT HERE, BUT DEPENDING ON THE DIFFICULTY OR THE PARTICULAR ISSUE AT HAND, THERE'S VARYING LEVELS OF STAFF SUPPORT THAT CAN BE SUPPLIED ON AN AS-NEEDED BASIS.
AND SECONDLY, AS FAR AS THINGS OF IMPORTANCE GO THAT STAFF DOESN'T PAY ATTENTION TO, MY OWN PERSONAL PREFERENCE FOR EVERYBODY HERE AT THE ICANN MEETING IS TO CALL ME, BECAUSE THAT CERTAINLY IS, FOR ME, A MORE EFFECTIVE WAY OF COMMUNICATING, ESPECIALLY IF SOMETHING IS OF HIGH IMPORTANCE AND I THINK STAFF TAKES CALLS ON A REGULAR BASIS AND IS AN EFFECTIVE WAY OF COMMUNICATING.
>>AMADEU ABRIL I ABRIL: SEND YOUR (INAUDIBLE) AROUND THE GLOBE.
>>KURT PRITZ: I HAVE.
>>JORDYN BUCHANAN: AND I DIDN'T MEAN TO IMPLY THAT CURRENTLY I THOUGHT THIS WAS A DISCONNECT. NOW THAT WE HAVE STAFF, IT'S EXCITING. LET'S JUST MAKE SURE WE'RE USING IT AS EFFECTIVELY AS POSSIBLE.
>>PAUL VERHOEF: AND I THINK YOU WILL FIND FULL AGREEMENT ON OUR SIDE. WE ARE EQUALLY HAPPY TO HAVE THE NEW STAFF.
WE'RE -- A GOOD POINT FOR ME TO STAFF WITH THIS, I THINK THE RECOMMENDATION IS COMING OUT OF THE GNSO COUNCIL REVIEW WHICH MAKE SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS ON HOW THE STAFF SHOULD, FOR EXAMPLE, COME TO SOME AGREEMENT WRITTEN DOWN WITH THE COUNCIL ON HOW THIS WORKS.
SO I THINK WE'VE GOT A COUPLE OF STARTING POINTS. WE NEED TO ENGAGE IN A DISCUSSION ON THAT, AND FROM OUR SIDE WE ARE MORE THAN READY TO DO SO.
>>VINT CERF: I'LL WAIT MY TURN. GO AHEAD.
>>MARK MCFADDEN: MARK MCFADDEN, UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN.
ONE OF THE THINGS -- I WON'T ECHO, ALTHOUGH I COULD, THE THANKS FOR ACTUALLY DOING THIS ON SHORT NOTICE. BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT CAME OUT OF THE AMSTERDAM CONSULTATION PARING BACK THE OPERATIONAL PLAN TO TAKE THE STRATEGIC PLAN ASPECTS OUT OF IT AND I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THE DISCUSSION ON WEDNESDAY TO SEE HOW THE PROCESS CAN BE REGULARIZED, IF YOU WILL. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WOULD BE GREAT TO SEE ALONG THESE PRIORITIES IS SOME SENSE OF WHAT THE METRICS ARE, IN YOUR MIND, AND IN STAFF'S MIND, FOR WHAT COUNTS AS SUCCESS FOR THESE. AND ALSO, ALONG WITH THE METRICS, WHERE THEY CAN BE APPLIED, I MEAN, SOME OF THEM ARE TRULY AN ANNUAL PRIORITY. YOU'RE GOING TO WORK ON THEM THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. BUT SOME OF THEM DO HAVE TIME LINES ASSOCIATED WITH THEM AND WHERE THEY DO, IT WOULD BE NICE TO ADD THAT TO THIS PRESENTATION, AND IF YOU CHOOSE TO PUBLISH THIS SO PEOPLE CAN ACTUALLY READ IT, IT WOULD BE NICE TO INCLUDE THAT AS WELL.
>>KURT PRITZ: I AGREE, AND I DON'T THINK THAT'S -- THE TRICK IS TO WORD THESE OBJECTIVES IN A WAY THAT MAKES THEM EASILY UNDERSTANDABLE SO YOU HAVE EASILY UNDERSTOOD CRITERIA.
>>VINT CERF: THANK YOU.
I JUST WANTED TO REEMPHASIZE THIS -- GOD, I HATE NOT FACING PEOPLE.
SO PARDON ME.
BUT -- I JUST WANTED TO REEMPHASIZE THIS WHOLE QUESTION OF FEEDBACK LOOPS AND MEASUREMENT.
IT'S NOT ALWAYS THE CASE THAT WE CAN FIND OBJECTIVE MEASURES FOR EVERYTHING THAT WE DO.
BUT SESSIONS LIKE THIS AND OBSERVATIONS COMING FROM THE PEOPLE THAT DEAL WITH ICANN STAFF AND BOARD ARE REALLY HELPFUL IN HELPING US FIGURE OUT WHETHER WE CAN DO THINGS BETTER OR MORE EFFECTIVELY.
SO I WANT TO ENCOURAGE THE FEEDBACK LOOP AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.
IF WE CAN AUTOMATE SOME OF THE MEASUREMENTS, IT'S WONDERFUL.
BUT EVEN WHERE WE CAN'T DO THAT, THIS FEEDBACK ON OUR PROCESSES IS IMPORTANT.
AND I'VE BEEN SAYING ALL DAY TODAY AND YESTERDAY THAT WE'RE GOOD AT DOING POLICY DEVELOPMENT -- WELL, LET ME SAY THAT WE'RE GETTING BETTER AT DOING POLICY DEVELOPMENT.
WE'RE NOT GOOD ENOUGH IN DOING IMPLEMENTATION AND MEASUREMENT OF HOW WELL THAT POLICY IS IMPLEMENTED.
SO I WANT TO JUST REEMPHASIZE THE VALUE OF THAT AND THE VALUE OF THIS FEEDBACK THAT YOU'RE PROVIDING TODAY.
OKAY.
PETER.
>>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: PETER DENGATE THRUSH, WEARING MY HAT AS CHAIR OF THE ASIA-PACIFIC TOP-LEVEL DOMAIN ASSOCIATION, THE COUNTRY CODE REGIONAL ASSOCIATION.
ONE OF THE GROUPS THAT HURRIED TO FILE A SUBMISSION, BUT I SEE IT HASN'T BEEN NOTED IN THE STAFF REPORT.
I GUESS THE QUESTION IS, IS THERE ANY SENSE YET, OR IS THIS WAITING FOR THE STRATEGIC DISCUSSION, ABOUT THE PRIORITY THAT YOU ARE PUTTING ONTO THE OPENING OF REGIONAL OFFICES?
IS THERE ANY SENSE OF WHAT PRIORITY YOU'RE GIVING THAT?
>>KURT PRITZ: I --
>>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: OR HAVE YOU JUST LISTED THE THINGS THAT ARE ON THE ORGANIZATIONAL PLAN?
>>KURT PRITZ: OH, NO.
I THINK THERE'S A VERY HIGH PRIORITY ON IT.
I THINK THERE'S SOME ISSUES.
THE ISSUES REMAINING TO BE WORKED OUT ARE SOME IN THE COMMUNITY, HOW THAT IMPLEMENTATION IS BEST ACCOMPLISHED AND BEST ACCOMPLISHED FROM THE STANDPOINT OF ECONOMICS AND THE STANDPOINT OF SUCCESS, AND, FINALLY, THE STANDPOINT OF -- SUCCESS IMMEDIATELY AND THEN SUCCESS ON AN ONGOING BASIS.
BUT I DON'T WANT TO SPEAK FOR DR. TWOMEY, WHO CAN'T BE HERE.
BUT CERTAINLY AS HE TRAVELS TO EACH REGION AND CONTACTS PEOPLE IN THE VARIOUS REGIONS, GETS ON THE PHONE AND SAYS, "BOY, HERE'S WHAT HAPPENS TODAY," AND PAUL VERHOEF CAN DO A MUCH BETTER JOB OF RELATING THIS THAN I CAN.
BUT WE'VE REALLY GOT TO GET SOME PEOPLE HERE, WHETHER IT'S ICANN STAFF OR SOME REPRESENTATIVE OF ICANN STAFF, IN ORDER TO PROVIDE INFORMATION, EDUCATION, AND INFORMATION ON THE ICANN MODEL.
DO YOU WANT TO DO A BETTER JOB THAN I?
>>PAUL VERHOEF: I WANT TO ADDRESS THIS HERE, PETER, BECAUSE I SAW THE TLD REPORT, AND I WAS SURPRISED TO FIND IN THERE, IF I RECALL IT -- YOU WILL HAVE THE BETTER WORDS -- BUT, BASICALLY, YOUR STATEMENTS TOWARD THE ICANN STAFF IS SAYING REGIONAL OFFICES IS NOT IMPORTANT; YOU SHOULDN'T DO OUTREACH; WE DON'T NEED ANY OF THAT.
THIS CERTAINLY CONFLICTS WITH WHAT WE HEAR, INCLUDING FROM THE ASIA-PACIFIC REGIONS WHERE THERE ARE QUITE A NUMBER OF COUNTRIES WHO ARE ASKING US FOR SUPPORT FOR BEING IN THE REGION.
AS YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD TWO OFFERS TO COME TO THE REGION.
IT DOESN'T TALLY SOMEHOW.
AND I WAS SURPRISED TO SEE THAT APTLD AS A GROUP IS SAYING SOMETHING DIFFERENT FROM WHAT AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE ASIA-PACIFIC TLD OPERATORS, PLUS OTHERS, ARE TELLING US.
SO MAYBE WE SHOULD HAVE A DISCUSSION ON THAT AT SOME POINT.
>>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: I THINK THAT IS THE STRATEGIC DISCUSSION.
BECAUSE OTHER THAN THE GAC REPRESENTATIVE TODAY I THINK FROM SOUTH AFRICA, I HAVE HEARD AND SEEN IN WRITING NO SUPPORT FROM ANY OF THE ORGANIZATIONS FOR REGIONAL OFFICES.
ALL THREE OF THE CCTLD REPRESENTATIONS THAT WERE MADE IN FEBRUARY EITHER ASKED VERY POINTED QUESTIONS OR WERE, FRANKLY, CRITICAL, FOR EXAMPLE. AND I UNDERSTAND THAT THE GNSO HAS RAISED THE SAME THING.
AND I THINK -- I CAN'T FIND IT -- THAT THE ASO HAS SAID THE SAME THING.
SO ALL THREE OF THE SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS HAVE EITHER BEEN CRITICAL OR RAISED, SAY, VERY POINTED QUESTIONS.
AND IT'S SUMMARIZED IN THE STAFF REPORT THAT WAY.
A NUMBER OF QUESTIONS WERE RAISED ABOUT THE PROPOSED REGIONAL OFFICES. AND IT SEEMS TO ME THAT WE HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE STRATEGIC ANALYSIS OF WHO IS IT THAT WANTS THIS AND WHY BEFORE WE AGREE TO DO IT AT ALL.
AND THEN IF WE ARE GOING TO DO IT, IN WHAT ORDER.
AND I TAKE MARILYN'S POINT.
THERE'S SO MANY OTHER THINGS IN MY VIEW THAT WE NEED TO DO THAT WILL ENCOURAGE OUTREACH AND UNDERSTANDING.
GETTING DOCUMENTS ORGANIZED AND AVAILABLE AND ET CETERA.
AND THEN THERE'S THE HIDEOUS COST OF ACTUALLY OPENING REGIONAL OFFICES.
THOSE OF US WHO HAVE DONE IT KNOW THAT IT'S FAR CHEAPER TO KEEP STAFF IN ONE PLACE AND MOVE THEM AROUND THAN IT IS TO DEAL WITH LOCAL EMPLOYMENT LAW, LOCAL MATERNITY LEAVE, LOCAL TAX, LOCAL GST, LOCAL -- THOSE THINGS ARE NOT EASILY DONE.
SO I GUESS --
>>PAUL VERHOEF: I WOULD --
>>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: I GUESS THE STRATEGIC ORGANIZATION FOR TOMORROW, YOU HAVE AN ORGANIZATIONAL RANKING IN THE OPS PLAN.
I THINK WE WILL HAVE TO HAVE AN INTERESTING STRATEGIC DISCUSSION ABOUT THAT TOMORROW.
>>PAUL VERHOEF: I WOULD DISAGREE WITH THAT.
I SEE IN THE COSTS AT THE MOMENT IF THERE ARE MEETINGS IN -- ANNE-RACHEL AND I HAVE TAKEN.
IF A COLLEAGUE HAS TO COME FROM LOS ANGELES, IT IS NOT ONLY THE COST FROM LOS ANGELES THAT IS HIGHER.
IT IMMEDIATELY COSTS THEM A WEEK BECAUSE OF THE TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS. AND THAT HAS AN EFFECT ON REQUIREMENTS FOR MORE STAFF RESOURCES.
SO I THINK -- I WOULDN'T BE TOO EASY IN JUDGING THAT OFFICES ARE EXTRA COST.
THE STAFF NEEDS TO BE PUT IN PLACES ANY WAY, WHETHER THEY ARE IN PUT IN MARINA DEL REY OR ANYWHERE ELSE, THEY NEED TO BE IN SOMEPLACE.
SO FROM MY EXPERIENCE, I WOULD DARESAY THAT THE COST IS PROBABLY THE SAME, IF NOT LESS.
>>MICHAEL PALAGE: MIKE PALAGE, I THINK I WOULD TEND TO AGREE WITH PETER'S COMMENTS.
AND I THINK WITH THIS -- WHAT THIS SHOWS IS THAT STAFF AND THE BOARD NEED TO INTERACT A LITTLE MORE TO MAYBE HAMMER OUT SOME OF THESE DIFFERENCES.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I'VE HEARD FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS IN SITTING ON THE BOARD WAS THESE EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST FROM ORGANIZATIONS, COUNTRIES.
I HAVE HEARD THAT REPEATED TIME AND TIME AGAIN.
BUT I'VE NEVER HAD A LIST OR SEEN A LIST WHO HAVE THESE COUNTRIES ARE, WHO THESE ORGANIZATIONS ARE.
AND I THINK IT WOULD BE IMPORTANT FOR THE COMMUNITY TO SEE WHO THEY ARE AND, AGAIN, CONSISTENT WITH THE BOTTOM-UP, CONSENSUS-DRIVEN PROCESS UPON WHICH THIS ORGANIZATION IS BUILT, IS TO HAVE A COMMUNITY DISCUSSION, WHERE ARE THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR THIS ORGANIZATION TO GO?
WHAT ARE THE COST/BENEFIT ANALYSIS IN THESE DIFFERENT REGIONS?
THE REASON I THINK THIS IS IMPORTANT TO DO THIS PROACTIVELY IS, YOU'VE BEEN A TREMENDOUS ADDITION TO THE ICANN STAFF IN THE TWO YEARS THAT YOU HAVE BEEN SERVING.
WHEN YOU CAME ON BOARD, WE, THE BOARD, WERE PRESENTED WITH TWO RESOLUTIONS.
ONE WAS OPEN UP A BRUSSELS OFFICE.
THE OTHER WAS TO OPEN UP AN AUSTRALIA OFFICE.
WE GRANTED THE AUSTRALIA -- THE BRUSSELS OFFICE BECAUSE, OBVIOUSLY, WE NEEDED A FACILITY FOR YOU TO SUPPORT YOU.
AT THE TIME, WE REJECTED THE AUSTRALIA OFFICE.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK I HAVE A CONCERN WITH AS WE HIRE ADDITIONAL STAFF, WE NEED TO KNOW WHERE THAT STAFF IS.
BECAUSE IF THE SENIOR MANAGEMENT BEGINS TO EMPLOY STAFF IN DIFFERENT REGIONS, WE AS A BOARD, AND THE COMMUNITY, THEN DO NOT GET TO SAY WHERE THE OFFICE IS.
THE TOP -- IF YOU WILL, THE STAFF-DOWN DECISION OF WE'VE HIRED THIS PERSON, ERGO WE NEED AN OFFICE FOR THEM, CUTS THE BOARD AND POTENTIALLY THE COMMUNITY, OUT OF THAT CONSULTATIVE PROCESS.
SO I THINK THAT'S WHAT PETER'S SAYING.
THAT'S MY CONCERN.
I'VE HAD THIS CONCERN FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS.
AGAIN, WITH REGARD TO THE FOOTPRINT, I THINK WHAT PETER, MYSELF, AND A NUMBER OF OTHER MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY HAVE IS ABOUT INVESTING IN INFRASTRUCTURE, PUTTING PEOPLE ON THE GROUND IS AN IMPORTANT THING.
THERE'S NOBODY THAT I'VE TALKED TO THAT SAYS WE DON'T WANT TO PUT PEOPLE IN THE ASIA-PACIFIC REGION, IN AFRICA.
I AGREE.
I DON'T WANT YOU OR ANNE-RACHEL TO BE HAVING TO ALWAYS FLY DOWN TO AFRICA.
THAT IS NOT AN EFFICIENT USE OF YOUR TIME.
INVESTING IN PEOPLE, INVESTING IN RELATIONSHIPS IN THESE DIFFERENT AREAS, IS SOMETHING WE WANT TO DO.
AND THAT'S, I GUESS, THE -- WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS HAVE A DISCUSSION.
AND THAT'S WHAT'S BEEN LACKING, I THINK, IN THE STRATEGIC PLAN, IN THIS ONGOING DISCUSSION, IF YOU WILL, FOR TWO YEARS ON THE BOARD.
AND THAT'S JUST SOMETHING I JUST WANTED TO GET OUT.
>>VINT CERF: OKAY.
THE BOARD'S GOING TO HAVE A LITTLE FIGHT HERE.
OKAY.

(LAUGHTER.)
>>VINT CERF: DO YOU WANT TO STEP OUTSIDE FOR A MINUTE?
(LAUGHTER.)
>>VINT CERF: LET ME TELL YOU THAT FOR A WHILE, I WAS ACTUALLY VERY NERVOUS ABOUT THIS WHOLE IDEA OF OPENING UP REGIONAL OFFICES ELSEWHERE, THINKING IT WAS GOING TO BE EXPENSIVE AND COMPLICATED AND TIME ZONE DIFFERENCES WOULD BE A PROBLEM AND EVERYTHING ELSE.
AND I'M -- I'VE ACTUALLY COME AROUND TO A VERY DIFFERENT VIEW OF THIS.
SO FOR PETER, AND MIKE IN PARTICULAR, PART OF THE REASON FOR MY CHANGE OF VIEW, THAT IS TO SAY, I'M MORE POSITIVE ABOUT IT, IS THAT I'VE SEEN WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU HAVE STAFF IN A LOCAL TIME ZONE WHERE THEY'RE TRYING TO DEAL WITH ISSUES ON A REGULAR BASIS.
NOW, IT HAPPENS THAT A LOT OF THE ACTIVITY RIGHT NOW IS CENTERED AROUND THE WSIS THINGS.
AND MANY OF THOSE MEETINGS ARE IN EUROPE.
SO WE HAVE STAFF IN THAT TIME ZONE.
BUT THERE ARE ALWAYS ISSUES THAT ARISE THAT -- AND I THINK INCREASINGLY, THERE WILL BE ISSUES THAT ARISE -- THAT ARE OF CONCERN TO ICANN OR PARTIES WHO WANT TO COME TO ICANN TO SOLVE PROBLEMS.
SO I'M ACTUALLY MORE FAVORABLY DISPOSED THAN I HAD BEEN TO HAVING SOME FORM OF PRESENCE IN THESE DIFFERENT TIME ZONES. AND THAT'S POINT NUMBER ONE.
POINT NUMBER TWO, ICANN HAD BEEN CRITICIZED IN THE PAST FOR NOT DRAWING ON PARTIES FROM ALL THE VARIOUS REGIONS OF THE WORLD, BECAUSE THEIR EXPERTISE, SKILL, LANGUAGE CAPABILITIES, AND KNOWLEDGE VARIED AND COULD BE QUITE USEFUL.
WE HAVE A PRETTY BROAD RANGE OF PEOPLE THAT WORK AT ICANN NOW.
BUT IT ALSO TURNS OUT TO BE IN SOME WAYS EASIER TO HAVE THEM IN THEIR HOME TERRITORIES.
SO THAT RAISES THE NEXT QUESTION.
THIS IS, WHAT DOES IT COST US TO PUT THEM THERE?
IT'S NOT NECESSARILY ALWAYS THE CASE THAT WE LITERALLY HAVE TO PURCHASE AN OFFICE, LEASE AN OFFICE SPACE.
IF, IN FACT, SOME OF THE PARTIES ARE LOCATED IN AREAS WHERE WE HAVE POTENTIAL COLLABORATORS, WHETHER IT'S THE RIRS OR SOME OF THE OTHER REGIONAL PARTS OF ICANN, WE MIGHT ACTUALLY BE ABLE TO MAKE USE OF SOME OF THOSE EXISTING FACILITIES.
NOW, HAVING SAID ALL THAT, I'M NOT SUGGESTING THAT THE BOARD SHOULD BE OUT OF THIS LOOP.
AND IT IS APPROPRIATE TO USE THE LONG-TERM PLANNING, THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS TO MAKE SOME CHOICES ABOUT WHEN, WHERE, AND HOW THOSE REGIONAL PRESENCES ARE CREATED.
BUT I HAVE PERSONALLY FELT PRESSURE FROM A VARIETY OF SOURCES TO SHOW A MUCH MORE INTERNATIONAL FOOTPRINT, BOTH IN TERMS OF STAFFING AND IN TERMS OF AVAILABILITY AND ACCESSIBILITY IN DIFFERENT TIME ZONES.
SO JUST TO STATE MY PREFERENCES ARE NOW QUITE DIFFERENT THAN THEY WERE BEFORE.
WHICH WAY DO YOU WANT TO GO?
>>RAUL ECHEBERRIA: HERE.
MY NAME IS RAUL ECHEBERRIA.
I AM THE CEO OF LACNIC.
I WILL REMARK ON THAT, BECAUSE I THINK THAT I CAN SPEAK ON BEHALF OF MY ORGANIZATION.
I FIND THIS DISCUSSION VERY INTERESTING.
THE MOST INTERESTING IS THAT WE DISCUSSED THE SAME LAST YEAR AS WE ARE IN THE SAME POINT.
I STRONGLY SUPPORT THE IDEA OF OPENING REGIONAL OFFICES.
MY CONCERN IS THAT WE HAVE NOT OPENED MORE OFFICES YET.
THIS IS --
AND I THINK THE REASONS THAT HAVE BEEN POINTED OUT RECENTLY ARE SOME OF THE BEST ARGUMENTS, AS I REALLY THINK THAT IT COULD BE A VERY GOOD IDEA TO HAVE PEOPLE IN OUR OWN REGION, SPEAKING OUR OWN LANGUAGE, AND PEOPLE WHO KNOW THE WAY IN WHICH THE THINGS WORK IN OUR REGION.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I BELIEVE IS THAT MANY TIMES, I WOULD LIKE TO BE RESPECTFUL IN THIS COMMENT, BUT MANY TIMES, PEOPLE FROM DEVELOPING COUNTRIES DOESN'T UNDERSTAND -- DOES UNDERSTAND, SORRY, HOW THE THINGS WORK IN LATIN AMERICA.
I CAN SPEAK ABOUT MY REGION.
BUT I THINK THAT THE SAME HAPPENS IN OTHER PLACES.
THEN MY CONCERN IS, AS I SAID BEFORE, THAT WE HAVE NOT OPENED THOSE OFFICES YET.
I THINK THAT THE COST SHOULD NOT BE THE OBSTACLE FOR DOING THAT.
THANK YOU.
>>PAUL VERHOEF: IF I CAN MAYBE MAKE A SHORT REMARK.
YOU'LL GET THE FLOOR, MIKE, DON'T WORRY.
I THINK WE NEED TO LOOK AT THIS PROBLEM FROM AN ISSUE OF COMMUNICATIONS.
AND I DRAW INTO THE DEBATE WHAT WAS DISCUSSED BEFORE IN TERMS OF TRANSLATION AND ALL THAT.
AND THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO WOULD SAY, WHY DON'T DO YOU IT WITH VIDEO EQUIPMENT AND ALL THE REST.
WE NEED TO APPRECIATE THAT THE WESTERN CULTURE IS VERY USED TO COMMUNICATE BY PAPER AND VERY -- AND GETTING USED TO COMMUNICATE, AT LEAST TO SOME EXTENT, BY VIDEO CONFERENCING EQUIPMENT.
LARGE PARTS OF THE WORLD, THIS DOESN'T WORK THAT WAY.
IT IS MUCH MORE PERSONAL COMMUNICATION, IT IS MUCH MORE PERSONAL INTERACTION.
AND IT REQUIRES THE NEED TO HAVE ACCESS TO THOSE PEOPLE TO BE AT A SORT OF DISTANCE WHERE IT IS FEASIBLE TO DO THAT.
SO WE NEED, I THINK, TO APPROACH THE DISCUSSION FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE.
OBVIOUSLY, WE NEED TO LOOK AT COST AND IMPLICATIONS INVOLVED IN IT.
BUT I DON'T THINK WE NEED TO ARGUE FROM WHAT I, AS A WESTERN EUROPEAN, WOULD SAY ARE MY CULTURAL VALUES.
I THINK WE NEED TO BE CLEAR THAT THERE IS A WHOLE DIFFERENCE OF -- SET OF CULTURAL VALUES HERE, AND WE NEED, AS AN ORGANIZATION, TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT IN AN APPROPRIATE FASHION.

>>MICHAEL PALAGE: JUST A POINT OF CLARIFICATION.
I AM NOT OPPOSED TO REGIONAL OFFICES.
WHAT I AM OPPOSED TO, WHAT I WOULD -- IN CONNECTION WITH REGIONAL OFFICES, IF THE COMMUNITY WANTS THEM, ICANN NEEDS TO SET UP A PROCESS BY WHICH PEOPLE COULD SUBMIT AN EXPRESSION OF INTEREST.
WHAT I'M SAYING IS, IF WE'RE GOING TO SET UP REGIONAL OFFICES, THEY NEED TO BE DONE IN A BOTTOM-UP, OPEN, TRANSPARENT PROCESS.
THAT DID NOT HAPPEN WHEN WE ESTABLISHED THE BRUSSELS OFFICE.
STAFF HIRED YOU, AND WE THEN HAD TO GIVE YOU AN OFFICE.
AGAIN, IF RAUL AND THE REST OF THE PEOPLE IN THE LATIN AMERICAN COMMUNITY OR SOUTH AMERICA WANT AN OFFICE, THEN WE NEED TO SET UP AN OFFICE BY WHICH WE CAN SOLICIT INPUT.
WHERE DO WE NEED TO PUT THIS OFFICE.
AGAIN, GOING BACK TO MY PREVIOUS COMMENTS, FOR TWO YEARS, WE HAVE HEARD FROM STAFF THAT THERE ARE PEOPLE THAT HAVE EXPRESSED EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST, COUNTRIES, GOVERNMENTS, ORGANIZATIONS.
THEY'VE NEVER GIVEN US THAT LIST.
IN ORDER TO MAKE THIS WORK, WE NEED TO LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE.
SO, AGAIN, IF THE LATIN AMERICAN COMMUNITY WANTS AN OFFICE, FINE.
WE NEED TO SET UP A MECHANISM ON THE WEB SITE FOR THEM TO SOLICIT THAT INPUT.
I AM NOT AGAINST REGIONAL OFFICES AS LONG AS IT IS DONE IN CONSULTATION WITH THE COMMUNITY.
>>ROBERTO GAETANO: ROBERTO GAETANO, AT-LARGE ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
ORIGINALLY WHEN I QUEUED UP FOR SPEAKING AT THE MIKE, I JUST WANTED TO SAY ONE SIMPLE THING.
REMOVE THE PERCEPTION THAT WE MIGHT HAVE FROM PETER'S INTERVENTION ABOUT ALMOST ALL THE CONSTITUENCIES IN ICANN BEING AGAINST OR NOT STRONGLY SUPPORTIVE ABOUT REGIONAL OFFICES.
SINCE I HAVE PARTICIPATED IN THE PROCESS BEFORE ICANN WAS FOUNDED, I WAS SUPPORTING IN THE BODY -- I AM ONE OF THE PEOPLE WHO SEES THE REGIONAL OFFICES LIKE A STRATEGIC MOVE.
AND, IN FACT, THE AT-LARGE IS STRONGLY IN FAVOR OF HAVING REGIONAL OFFICES.
I WOULD LIKE TO -- WE GET EVEN TO THE POINT THAT IT WILL BE MUCH MORE DIFFICULT TO SET UP REGIONAL AT-LARGE ORGANIZATIONS IF WE DON'T HAVE REGIONAL OFFICES.
BECAUSE THE FIRST THING THAT WE ENCOUNTER IN CONTACTING PEOPLE, POTENTIAL AT-LARGE ORGANIZATIONS OR USERS, IS THE PERCEPTION THAT ICANN IS A U.S. BUSINESS.
SO I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, THE FIRST STATEMENT IS THAT AT-LARGE -- AT LEAST THE ALAC -- IS SUPPORTIVE OF THE REGIONAL OFFICES.
NOW, SINCE THE DISCUSSION IS BECOMING MORE INTERESTING, I WOULD LIKE TO ADD THAT WE NEED TO SEE THIS THING ABOUT THE REGIONAL OFFICES, OR, FOR THAT EXTENT, ALSO THE TRANSLATION IN FOREIGN LANGUAGES, FROM TWO DIFFERENT POINTS OF VIEW.
ONE IS STRATEGIC; AND THE OTHER ONE IS COST-EFFECTIVENESS OR I WOULD SAY COST/BENEFIT RELATED.
NOW, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT STRATEGIC PLANNING HERE.
AND I THINK THAT WE SHOULD SEE THINGS IN A STRATEGIC PERSPECTIVE.
THE PERCEPTION THAT THE WORLD HAS BY AND LARGE OF ICANN AS BEING A U.S. TYPE OF THING OR A WASP, IN THE BEST OF THE HYPOTHESES, TYPE OF THING, IS A PROBLEM THAT HAS TO BE COUNTERED WITH A STRATEGIC MOVE.
SO IN ORDER TO REMOVE AT LEAST THE PERCEPTION OF THIS, WE NEED TO HAVE A GLOBAL PRESENCE OF ICANN.
AND THE GLOBAL PRESENCE CAN BE ENFORCED BY HAVING REGIONAL OFFICES AND BY HAVING TRANSLATION OF THE MATERIAL IN NATIONAL LANGUAGES.
THAT WILL BRING ICANN CLOSER TO PEOPLE.
AND WILL BE ONLY STRATEGICALLY BENEFICIAL.
NOW GETTING INTO THE COST-BENEFIT, I BELONG TO AN ORGANIZATION THAT HAS REGIONAL OFFICES.
AND WE HAVE FOUND OUT THAT THEY ARE NOT ONLY CENTERED ON COSTS, BUT WE HAVE BENEFITS IN HAVING REGIONAL OFFICES.
WHY?
BECAUSE WE HAVE -- AT ANY POINT IN TIME, WE HAVE SOMEBODY THAT IS -- HAS BUSINESS HOURS AT ANY MOMENT DURING THE DAY SO THAT WE CAN SPREAD THE LOAD BY REDIRECTING CALLS TO PEOPLE THAT ARE WORKING DURING NORMAL WORKING HOURS AND NOT AT 3:00 A.M. SO -- AND THEN ALSO THE LOCAL PRESENCE, IF INTELLIGENTLY DONE, CAN MAKE A MORE EFFICIENT USE OF THE RESOURCES.
AND THERE ARE SEVERAL OF THOSE THINGS THAT WE CAN DISCUSS IN DETAIL.
BUT I DON'T THINK THAT THIS IS THE MOMENT IN TIME OR THE PLACE WHERE WE HAVE TO DISCUSS THOSE ISSUES THAT ARE IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES.
I THINK THAT HERE WE NEED TO RESTRAIN OUR CONSIDERATION TO THE STRATEGIC ASPECT OF THE THING.
AND I THINK THAT IT IS STRATEGICALLY IMPORTANT, IS A MATTER ALMOST OF SURVIVAL FOR ICANN, TO ESTABLISH ITSELF AS A GLOBAL PRESENCE AND NOT AS SOMETHING THAT IS LOCALIZED.
WELL, IT CAN BE IN CALIFORNIA OR ANYWHERE ELSE, BUT IS SEEN AS SOMETHING THAT CAN BE A PRIVATE AFFAIR OF A RESTRICT NUMBER OF PEOPLE OR COUNTRIES.
>>KURT PRITZ: OKAY.
THANK YOU, ROBERTO.
>>RAIMUNDO BECA: RAIMUNDO BECA --
>>KURT PRITZ: BEFORE YOU START, I JUST WANT TO SET SOME EXPECTATIONS.
WE HAVE ABOUT 10 MINUTES TO GO.
THERE'S A COUPLE OF SLIDES WITH WHICH I WISH TO CLOSE.
SO WE'LL TAKE THESE MANY PUBLIC COMMENTS, AND THEN I'LL HAVE A FEW MORE REMARKS.
>>RAIMUNDO BECA: RAIMUNDO BECA FROM THE ICANN BOARD AND THE ADDRESS COUNCIL.
I'M NOT IN FAVOR OR AGAINST THE REGIONAL OFFICES.
IT ALL DEPENDS TO DO WHAT.
THE EXPERIENCE ON THE UNITED NATIONS SHOWS US THAT ALMOST ALL THE UNITED NATIONS AGENCIES, ITU, WHICHEVER ONE, THEY HAVE CREATED REGIONAL OFFICES.
IN GENERAL, THEY HAVE NOT BEEN A BIG SUCCESS.
WITH THE REGISTRIES AND COUNTRIES IN A REGION, EVERY TIME THEY OPEN AN OFFICE, THEY GET ONE (INAUDIBLE) THE COUNTRY WILL RECEIVE THE REGIONAL OFFICE AND 20 ENEMIES WHO OPPOSE THEM AND SAY THAT THEY ARE THERE TO BE A REGIONAL OFFICE AND THEY DIDN'T GET THE (INAUDIBLE) IN OUR PARTICULAR CASE, THE WORK OF THE ICANN FUNCTIONS, MAINLY THE IANA FUNCTIONS, MAY BE DONE ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.
SO TO PUT THEM MORE NEAR WHERE THE NEEDS ARE, THAT'S CERTAINLY A GOOD THING.
BUT THE COST OF THE OUTREACH, IT'S A CONCEPT WHICH IS NOT VERY CLEAR.
AND I WOULD NEVER PUT IT IN THE STRATEGIC PLAN WHICH HAS BEEN PUT, UNFORTUNATELY, AS AN OBJECT OF THE OUTREACH.
THE OBJECT IS TO MAKE THINGS, AND THEN IT WOULD ENGINEER WE NEED A REGIONAL OFFICE TO DO SOMETHING, OR WHATEVER.
SO IN SOME REGIONS PERHAPS WE DON'T NEED IT AT ALL.

>>BRUCE TONKIN: KURT, I HAVE A FEW COMMENTS TO TALK ABOUT OTHER THAN REGIONAL OFFICES.
BUT I CAN'T RESIST MAKING A COMMENT ABOUT THEM, ANYWAY.
MELBOURNE IT AS A COMPANY -- IS A GLOBAL COMPANY.
WE HAVE OFFICES OVERSEAS.
I JUST WANT TO SORT OF MAKE A COUPLE QUICK COMMENTS.
ONE, IN TERMS OF TIME ZONES, WE HANDLE 24/7 FROM MOBILE AUSTRALIA.
SO IT IS POSSIBLE TO SCHEDULE PEOPLE AROUND THE CLOCK TO HANDLE TIME ZONES.
IN TERMS OF SELECTING REGIONAL OFFICES, WE HAVE REGIONAL OFFICES.
AND I AGREE THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF BENEFITS FROM DOING THOSE.
BUT WE HAVE DONE IT FAIRLY CAREFULLY AND NOT UNTIL WE HAD CRITICAL MASS IN OUR MELBOURNE OFFICE.
WE HAD WELL OVER 100 PEOPLE IN MELBOURNE BEFORE WE COMMENCED OPENING OFFICES OVERSEAS.
I THINK MY COMMENTS ARE MORE ONE OF CAUTION THAT YOU CONSIDER WHAT YOU CAN DO OUT OF A FEW OFFICES POTENTIALLY STAFFED OVER PERIODS OF TIME, PERHAPS A COUPLE OF SHIFTS.
AND MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ENOUGH CRITICAL MASS IN THOSE FEW OFFICES AND HAVE ENOUGH SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES IN PLACE.
BECAUSE IF YOU HAVE LOTS OF OFFICES AND A FEW PEOPLE IN EACH OF THEM, YOUR MANAGEMENT PROBLEMS WILL START TO EXCEED THE BENEFITS OF THOSE OFFICES.
SO JUST A CAUTION.
I'M NOT CRITICIZING EITHER WAY.
I THINK IT'S A GOOD IDEA.
I JUST THINK YOU NEED TO PLAN IT VERY CAREFULLY OPERATIONALLY.
>>KURT PRITZ: IF I CAN JUST ADDRESS YOUR COMMENT AND ALSO, PARTIALLY, MIKE PALAGE'S.
CERTAINLY IF YOU KNOW PAUL, THERE'S NOTHING THAT'S GOING TO COME BEFORE THE COMMUNITY OR THE BOARD THAT'S NOT FULLY FLESHED OUT IN TERMS OF AN OPERATIONS PLAN, WHICH MEANS A FULL CASH FLOW PLAN AND A COMPARISON OF COST AND BENEFITS, COSTS OF TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH THE SAME THING, SAY, IN MARINA DEL REY OR BRUSSELS VERSUS LOCALLY IN A REGION.
SO WE CERTAINLY UNDERSTAND AND WE DO NOT INTEND TO GO FORWARD WITHOUT DOING THOSE SORTS OF ANALYSES BEFORE WE WOULD EVEN BLURT "LET'S PUT ONE HERE."
>>BRUCE TONKIN: I WONDER.
CAN WE GO BACK ONE SLIDE, WHAT YOU HAVE GOT UP THERE.
DO YOU NOTICE THE TOPIC THERE IS SECURITY AND STABILITY, WHICH IS CALLED MISSION.
YOU NOTICE IT HAS A LOT LESS POINTS THAN COMPARED TO ANY OTHER TOPIC.
AND THAT'S KIND OF GOT TO ILLUSTRATE THE POINT I WAS GOING TO MAKE.
I WOULD LIKE TO SUGGEST THAT YOU EITHER CONSIDER FOR THE OPERATIONAL PLAN THIS YEAR OR MAYBE NEXT YEAR PUTTING ANOTHER SENIOR RESOURCE IN ICANN THAT FOCUSES ON THAT AREA.
IF YOU LOOK AT, SAY, PAUL VERHOEF IN THE POLICY AREA, AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE CHAIRS OF THE SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS, YOU'RE LIKELY TO INTERACT WITH PAUL IN THE POLICY AREA, AND I THINK THAT'S GOING VERY WELL.
BUT IF WE LOOK AT THE SECURITY AND STABILITY SIDE, WE HAVE STEVE CROCKER WHO CHAIRS THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
HE PROBABLY REALLY DOESN'T HAVE A DIRECT EQUIVALENT WITHIN ICANN IN THE SENSE OF SOMEONE WHO'S MORE FOCUSED ON DEALING WITH THE EXTERNAL RELATIONS.
BECAUSE PAUL, I THINK, SPENDS A LOT OF TIME DEALING WITH PEOPLE OUTSIDE ICANN AND THOSE EXTERNAL RELATIONS.
AND IF I THINK OF THE OTHER SENIOR TECHNICAL STAFF IN ICANN, THEY'RE PROBABLY MORE FOCUSED ON THE DAY-TO-DAY INTERNAL OPERATIONS.
AND I THINK AS ICANN STRENGTHENS ITS ROLE AND LOOKS AT HOW DOES IT NEEDS TO COORDINATE WITH OTHER BODIES WHO WORK IN THESE AREAS OF SECURITY AND STABILITY, I'M JUST SUGGESTING THAT YOU MIGHT NOT HAVE THE RESOURCE TO DO IT THIS YEAR, BUT CERTAINLY NEXT YEAR, I WOULD SUGGEST PUTTING IN ANOTHER SENIOR RESOURCE IN THAT AREA.
>>KURT PRITZ: AND CERTAINLY THIS IS A SAMPLING OF THE OBJECTIVES THAT ARE IN THE FULLY FLESHED-OUT PLAN.
THE FINANCE COMMITTEE AND OTHER BOARD MEMBERS ARE REVIEWING THE FULL DOCUMENT.
SO IT'S FRAMED THE RIGHT WAY. AND THE FULL LIST OF OBJECTIVES PROBABLY DOESN'T REFLECT THE FOCUS ON SECURITY AND STABILITY.
BUT STILL I TAKE YOUR COMMENTS CONSTRUCTIVELY ON WHERE OUR FOCUS SHOULD BE.
>>BRUCE TONKIN: JUST ON ANOTHER TOPIC NOW MORE ON THE POLICY SIDE AND JUST REINFORCING WHAT JORDYN SAID, IS MAKING SURE WE HAVE A CLOSER LINE BETWEEN WHAT THE STAFF ARE WORKING ON AND WHAT THE DIFFERENT SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS CONSIDER PRIORITIES.
I WAS ALSO SURPRISED TO SEE REDEMPTION GRACE PERIOD APPEAR THERE.
IT'S NOT SO MUCH WHETHER IT SHOULD BE THERE OR NOT.
IT'S JUST THAT IT'S SURPRISING THAT THAT HASN'T BEEN AT A COUNCIL LEVEL YET.
AND I GUESS IT'S REITERATING ANOTHER POINT THAT I THINK IS VERY IMPORTANT, IS THAT THE FEEDBACK LOOPS ARE THERE SO THAT YOU'RE DOING STATISTICAL STUFF.
WE STILL HAVEN'T SEEN THE TRANSFERS REPORT, FOR EXAMPLE. AND WE'RE VERY KEEN TO SEE THAT.
AND IF REDEMPTION GRACE PERIOD IS ONE OF THE ISSUES, WE WOULD BE AGREEING WITH YOU AND SAY, YES, THAT'S A GOOD IDEA TO DO SOME WORK THERE.
BUT RIGHT NOW, WE HAD A MEETING YESTERDAY AND THAT DIDN'T COME UP AT ALL.
IT'S YET TO COME UP IN THE COUNCIL.
SO THE SORT OF PRIORITIES FOR US WERE SORT OF WHOIS AND NEW GTLDS WERE THE MAJOR AREAS THAT WERE IMPORTANT TO US.
AND THEN -- IMPROVING DELETES PROCESSES AND SO ON.
COMPLIANCE IS CONSIDERED TO BE INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT IN THE GNSO, AND ACTUALLY TRYING TO STRUCTURE THAT.
SO THESE ARE AREAS THAT WE'RE PROBABLY INITIATING POLICY DEVELOPMENT AND WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH PLANNING WITH THE ICANN OPERATIONAL PLAN AND SAY, OKAY, HAVE WE GOT RESOURCES FOR THESE FIVE OR SIX TOPICS THAT WE CAN DO WITHIN A YEAR.
ONE OF THE AREAS FROM A STAFF RESOURCING POINT OF VIEW, I THINK WE'VE SEEN THE LEGAL PART OF ICANN GROW.
AND I SEE IT AS THREE QUITE SEPARATE FUNCTIONS OF THE LEGAL AREA.
ONE IS IN CORPORATE LEGAL, WHICH IS DEALING WITH PERHAPS ICANN IN ASSOCIATION WITH LAWSUITS OR WHATEVER WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS AT THE VERY CORPORATE LEVEL.
THEN THERE'S LEGAL ASSOCIATED WITH COMPLIANCE OF THE CONTRACTS THAT ICANN HAS.
BUT AN AREA THAT WE'VE STRUGGLED WITH IN THE GNSO IS HAVING ENOUGH LEGAL RESOURCE IN THE POLICY DEVELOPMENT PHASE.
AND WE FEEL THAT WE OFTEN SPEND A YEAR WORKING ON SOMETHING, OR MONTHS WORKING ON SOMETHING WHICH COULD HAVE BEEN CUT OFF A LOT EARLIER WITH THE RIGHT LEGAL INPUT.
AND THE REASON WHY WE USE THE WORD "LEGAL" HERE IS THAT ISOC BASED ON LEGAL AGREEMENTS.
THE WHOLE REGISTRAR/REGISTRY INDUSTRIES ARE BASED ON CONTRACT.
SO WHILE WE'RE MAKING POLICIES, THEY HAVE TO FIT WITHIN THE CONTRACT FRAMEWORK.
SO THOSE ARE JUST A FEW COMMENTS.
>>KURT PRITZ: THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>>IZUMI AIZU: IZUMI AIZU AGAIN, AS A MEMBER OF AT-LARGE FROM ASIA-PACIFIC.
YES, WE ALSO HOSTED THE TWO MEETINGS, ONE BEFORE ICANN WAS SETUP, ONE OF THE MEETINGS IN SINGAPORE, AND THE FIRST ICANN MEETING ALSO CO RESIDING WITH APRICOT, ASIA PACIFIC REGIONAL INTERNET CONFERENCE ON TECHNOLOGY.
THE REASON IS WE REALLY WANTED TO CONVEY THE VOICES FROM OUR REGION.
I WAS A BIT SURPRISED AND WANTED TO CLARIFY WITH PETER DENGATE THRUSH, ALTHOUGH HE IS NOT HERE, WHEN I HEARD MOST OF THE ICANN CONSTITUENCIES ARE NOT REALLY IN FAVOR OF HAVING THE REGIONAL OFFICES.
I DON'T WANT TO LIMIT THIS DISCUSSION JUST ABOUT THE REGIONAL OFFICE. WE HAVE TO THINK ABOUT THE GLOBALIZATION OR INTERNATIONALIZATION AND PERHAPS SOME REDISTRIBUTION OF THE RESOURCES OF ICANN RELATED ACTIVITIES TO REGIONS OR LOCAL AREAS.
I USUALLY AM A GOOD FAN, SUPPORTER OF BOTTOM-UP TRANSPARENCY AND OPEN PROCESS, BUT I'D LIKE TO REMIND THAT THERE MAY BE SOME DANGER ABOUT BOTTOM-UP. IF THE BOTTOM MEANS ALL THOSE WHO ARE ALREADY INSIDE ICANN AS CONSTITUENCIES, THEN IF YOU LISTEN TO ONLY THESE PEOPLE, THEN YOU LOSE THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLORE THE NEW CONSTITUENCIES, NEW PARTNERS. THAT'S WHERE WE NEED TO OUTREACH.
I WAS A BIT SURPRISED THAT PETER SAID THAT THE -- YOU KNOW, NOT MEMBER OF TLD FOLKS. ARE YOU SAYING ALL THE TLD ARE AGAINST THIS IDEA? I DON'T THINK SO. I KNOW SOME OF THEM ARE. I DIDN'T REALLY THINK THE ASOS ARE AGAINST. THEY ARE BASED ON THE REGIONAL BASIS OF THE OPERATION.
I THINK IF IT'S MATTER OF, SAY, CONDITIONS OR HOW DO YOU HANDLE THAT, I CAN FULLY AGREE TO THAT.
I DO UNDERSTAND THAT THE GNSO MAY NOT HAVE THAT MUCH CONCERN BECAUSE GNSO ARE NOT REALLY OPERATING ON THE REGIONAL BASIS. THERE'S NO QUOTA OR BALANCE OF THE REGIONAL BODIES IN THE GNSO COUNCIL. SO THEY ARE DIFFERENT BODIES.
SO I THINK WE HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL ABOUT THESE ISSUES.
SO SOMETIMES BOTTOM-UP IS OKAY, BUT IT DEPENDS ON WHO -- WHICH BOTTOM YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT.
SO I'D LIKE TO REALLY CLARIFY THESE ISSUES BEFORE MAKING A VERY SIMPLE EASY STATEMENT.
THANK YOU.
>>PETER DENGATE THRUSH: PETER DENGATE THRUSH, STILL WEARING MY APTLD POINT. WHAT I HAVE SAID IS EVERY WRITTEN SUBMISSION MADE IN RESPONSE TO THE STRATEGIC PLAN HAS EITHER CRITICIZED OR QUESTIONED IN SUCH A WAY THAT IS CRITICAL OF THE IDEA OF REGIONAL OFFICES.
AND AT THIS STAGE, YOU KNOW, HEARING STAFF AND EVEN THE CHAIRMAN'S VIEW ABOUT THAT DOES NOT CHANGE THE FACT THAT ALL WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS BY THE PROCESSES THAT THOSE ORGANIZATIONS WENT THROUGH CAME TO THAT CONCLUSION.
WE'VE NOW HAD TWO MORE, I'VE HEARD IZUMI, RAUL, AND THE GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVE FROM SOUTH AFRICA.
I'M NOT SAYING THERE'S NO SUPPORT. ALL THE WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS ARE OPPOSED.
>>YUMI OHASHI: YUMI OHASHI FROM DOT JP REGISTRY, JPRS, AND ALSO AS THE MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR OF APTLD I'D LIKE TO POINT OUT ABOUT THE REGIONAL OFFICE.
AS FOR THE OPENINGS OF THE REGIONAL OFFICES, I RESPECT OPINIONS FROM SOME REGIONS THAT THERE ARE AN ADVANTAGE TO OPEN UP THESE OFFICES, SUCH AS SAME LANGUAGE OR SAME TIME ZONE OR THINGS LIKE THAT.
HOWEVER, FOR ASIA PACIFIC, PEOPLE USE VARIOUS LANGUAGES AND VARIOUS TIME ZONES.
SO -- AND I MYSELF HAVE DIFFICULTY IN COMMUNICATING FOR THE OUTREACH IN THIS REGION, IN ASIA PACIFIC REGION.
SO MY POINT IS, WHETHER TO OPEN REGIONAL OFFICE SHOULD BE CONSIDERED CASE-BY-CASE BASIS.
AND THE APTLD AS WELL AS JP IS READY TO DISCUSS AND INVESTIGATE THE POSSIBILITY OF THIS ISSUE CLOSELY WITH ICANN.
>>MICHAEL PALAGE: MIKE PALAGE. PERHAPS THE STAFF COULD CREATE A FORUM ON THIS TOPIC OF REGIONAL OFFICES ON THE WEB SITE OF ICANN.
THERE WE GO, AND WE'VE ALREADY PROPAGATED IT WITH SOME GOOD STUFF. AND AGAIN, I THINK THIS WAS A CONSTRUCTIVE DIALOGUE.
THE ONE POINT THAT I DID WANT TO MAKE WAS BACK ON ONE OF YOUR FIRST SLIDES IN THE PRESENTATION, YOU TALKED ABOUT ACCOUNTABILITY. I THINK IT WAS ACCOUNTABILITY AND ENFORCEMENT MECHANISMS. OBVIOUSLY THE ICANN BOARD IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT MECHANISMS FOR ENFORCEMENT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE BOTTOM-UP CONSENSUS PROCESS WORKS.
I THINK IN ANY PROCESS YOU WANT TO HAVE MULTIPLE SAFEGUARD FEATURES TO ENSURE THAT YOU'VE GOTTEN THE PROCESS RIGHT.
WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE CURRENT BUDGET PROCESS, THE CURRENT REGISTRY CONTRACTS HAVE FEE CAPS, REGISTRARS NEED TO APPROVE THE BUDGET BY 66 AND TWO-THIRDS.
HOPEFULLY, IN THE ENFORCEMENT MECHANISMS, WE CAN LOOK TO EMPOWER THE SOS TO, IF YOU WILL, APPROVE THE BUDGET -- OR NOT THE BUDGET BUT, IF YOU WILL, APPROVE THE STRATEGIC PLAN AND APPROVE THE OP PLAN. I THINK WE NEED TO EMPOWER THE SOS TO PROVIDE THAT INPUT SO WHEN IT COMES TO THE BOARD, WE DON'T NEED TO RELY ON STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS BUT WE CAN LOOK AT A DOCUMENTED MECHANISM FROM THE SOS TO MAKE SURE THE BOTTOM-UP CONSENSUS DRIVEN PROCESS IS WORKING.

>>KURT PRITZ: WE'LL LET MOUHAMET BE THE LAST SPEAKER AND I WANT TO KEEP YOU 30 SECONDS MORE.
AGREED, MOUHAMET.
>>MOUHAMET DIOP: THANK YOU VERY MUCH, KURT. I WANT TO START WITH AN EXAMPLE THAT WE HAVE HERE, THE EXAMPLE OF THE REGISTRY. I THINK SOMETIMES WE DON'T HAVE TO LOOK -- I MEAN, FAR AWAY TO SEE THE EFFICIENCY OF THE ORGANIZATION WE HAVE SET IN PLACE.
EVERYBODY UNDERSTAND THAT WE CAN RUN THE ADDRESS ALLOCATION FROM ONE LOCATION. IT HAS BEEN DONE FROM IANA. AND, WELL, SOMEBODY CAN SAY THAT WE DID NOT NEED FIVE REGISTRY TO RUN THE ADDRESSING SPACE. AND EVERYBODY UNDERSTAND NOW THAT THE EXISTENCE OF THE REGIONAL REGISTRY HAVE BEEN A VERY GOOD INNOVATION AND SERVED WELL THE REGION THAT HAVE BEEN ADDRESSED.
AND I JUST TAKE THAT OPPORTUNITY TO LET PEOPLE THINK THAT SOMETIMES WE CAN DO THINGS DIFFERENTLY, BUT IF WE EXPERIMENT SOMETHING THAT IS SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENTED, WE NEED TO BE REALLY FOCUSED ON THAT EXPERIENCE AND TRY TO ENDORSE IT FOR SEVERAL ADD (INAUDIBLE) EXPERIENCE. AND I THINK THE REGIONAL PRESENCE OF ICANN CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE FROM SUCH EXPERIENCE FROM THE ADDRESSING SUPPORT, AND I CAN ELABORATE ON MANY ADVANTAGE WE HAVE BY GETTING REGIONAL REGISTRY BASED ON LOCAL DIFFERENCES, BASED ON LANGUAGE, BASED ON DIFFERENT SENSIBILITY THAT WE DID NOT UNDERSTAND IF WE DID NOT BELONG TO THAT REGION, LIKE THE EXAMPLE OF THE AFRINIC AND THE LACNIC IMPLEMENTATION IS A GOOD EXAMPLE. IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT IF LACNIC DOES NOT EXIST, IT DOESN'T MEAN THE ISP IN THE REGION DIDN'T HAVE THE IP ADDRESS BLOCK. BUT WE ALL UNDERSTAND THAT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF LACNIC HAVE BRING SOMETHING REALLY NEW IN THE REGION THAT THEY CANNOT HAVE IF SUCH PRESENCE WAS NOT HERE IN TERMS OF SERVICE AND O!
F SUPPORT.
SO THE SAME EXAMPLE HAVE TO BE ADDRESSED FOR THE ICANN PRESENCE. WE CAN DISCUSS ABOUT THE WAY WE HAVE TO BE PRESENT THERE, BUT AS AN INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION, WE SHOULD THINK OF AN EFFICIENT WAY TO BE PRESENT IN THIS REGION, ESPECIALLY TO ADDRESS THE OUTREACH NEED AND CURRENT AND ALL THE STAFF ARE DOING, AND PEOPLE UNDERSTAND THAT THERE'S A NEED FOR ADVOCACY, THERE'S A NEED FOR UNDERSTANDING WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND THERE'S A NEED TO PARTICIPATE AND TO HELP PEOPLE KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING.
THANK YOU.
>>KURT PRITZ: THANK YOU, MOUHAMET.
I'D LIKE TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR THE VERY HIGH LEVEL OF PARTICIPATION WE'VE HAD. I'M REALLY ENCOURAGED AND GRATIFIED BY EVERYBODY'S WILLINGNESS TO PARTICIPATE. BUT I'M VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE COMMUNITY, TOO, SO I'M NOT SURPRISED.
I JUST WANTED TO MENTION A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT WE'RE FOLLOWING UP WITH IN OUR GO-FORWARD, AND ONE, OF COURSE, IS MEASURING OURSELVES AGAINST THIS PLAN. SO AS MARK MCFADDEN MENTIONED, WE WANT TO MAKE CARE OF HOW TO WRITE THE OBJECTIVES SO THEY CAN BE EASILY MEASURED. AND WE'LL MEASURE OURSELVES AND INTEND TO MAKE AN ANNUAL REPORT ON THESE OBJECTIVES EVERY YEAR AS SORT OF A CLOSED-LOOP SYSTEM.
AND THEN FINALLY, AS FAR AS NEXT STEPS WE NEED TO DETERMINE THE CONSULTATION PROCESS MOVING FORWARD. AND THIS IS A REASON FOR OUR MEETING ON WEDNESDAY. WE WANT TO SET A TIMETABLE TO CONSIDER WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE FOR THIS UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR IN THE NEXT SEVERAL WEEKS BUT WE'RE ALSO GOING TO SET IN PLACE A CONSULTATIVE PROCESS FOR ONGOING CONSIDERATION OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN AND OF THIS PLAN HERE.
AND THEN TO GET AHEAD OF THE GAME AS BRUCE WAS ALLUDING TO, WE NEED TO START TALKING ABOUT THE NEXT STRATEGIC PLAN NOW; NOT DOING IT, BUT SETTING THE CALENDAR SO THAT WHEN WE HIT THAT SIX-MONTH CYCLE ON JANUARY 1ST WE HIT THE GROUND RUNNING AND NOT WAIT.
SO AGAIN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR COMING AND BEING UNDERSTANDING IN YOUR PARTICIPATION.
(APPLAUSE.)
(7:10)