RE: [Membership] The People's Republic of ICANN?

[edyson@edventure.com (Esther Dyson)]

Sounds clear, simple and easy to implement.  It also has the advantage that
it doesn't make too many assumptions about things we don't know, like who
(how many) would *want* to be members?  

Esther

At 05:43 PM 12/02/99 -0500, George Conrades wrote:
>I'm in favor of where you're coming out on this.
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Daniel Kaplan [mailto:dkaplan@terra-nova.fr]
>Sent: Thursday, February 11, 1999 3:23 PM
>To: membership@icann.org
>Subject: Re: [Membership] The People's Republic of ICANN?
>
>
>A 17:17 11/02/99 -0000, Dr Nii Quaynor a écrit :
>>>My own suggestion: no classes.  Only people as members.  Anyone coming up
>>>with the initiation fee and the necessary identification can be a member.
>
>There are 3 suggestions there, which should be analyzed separately:
>
>- Everyone can join, provided they come up with, etc. As I said in an
>earlier message, although I was more inclined to limiting membership to
>domain names and IP address holders in the beginning, I now tend to agree.
>
>- Only people as members. I disagree. Most end-users of domain names and IP
>address (at least for now) are corporations, associations, public-service
>agencies, etc. I'm not talking about Internet professionals, but all others
>who have no reason to join SOs, but want to have a say as users. Letting
>their employees join (although it should and can not be prevented) is not
>the same, because (i) Organizations are not just sums of individuals and
>(ii) There is some hypocrisy in presenting one's position as personal while
>it is in reality that of one's organization. Organizations have to be
>allowed to join as members.
>
>- No classes. As siegfired has repeatedly pointed out, there are advantages
>and drawbacks to that. If there are no classes, those constituencies which
>have less members will not be heard, but also, capture by an active
>minority is easier. If there are, we face the problem of determining which
>are those classes, how many votes they get... And we build in inter-class
>conflict.
>
>So my suggestion(s) is/are: No classes. Individuals and organizations can
>be members and get one vote each. Anyone coming up with the initiation fee
>and the necessary identification can be a member.
>
>And I add: be especially proactive towards the 1st-level end-users of
>ICANN, ie, domain names and IP address holders. Create a way though which
>they can join ICANN at the same time as they register. Include fees in
>registration. Mail them an offer to become members as soon as registration
>is taken into account.
>
>Thus, replying to Antony Van Couvering: (please do not take that as a
>support for the Paris draft. I don't know which DNSO draft has my support)
>The idea in the Paris draft, that DNSO (why not all SOs?) members are at
>first ICANN members, then can choose to join 0, 1, 2, 3 SOs, is a good one
>to me.
>
>Daniel
>** Les eLectrophées  -  trophées du commerce électronique  -  19/3/99
>** http://www.finances.gouv.fr/mission_commerce_electronique/trophees
>---------------------------------------------------
>Daniel Kaplan                            Consultant
>dkaplan@terra-nova.fr        http://www.dkaplan.net
>5, rue de la Véga    -   75012 Paris    -    France
>Tel +33 (0)1 5333 8881       Fax +33 (0)1 5333 8882
>---------------------------------------------------
>


Esther Dyson			Always make new mistakes!
chairman, EDventure Holdings
interim chairman, Internet Corp. for Assigned Names & Numbers
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