Icann transparency vital to the web, says .org chief

The organisation's 39th public meeting in Cartagena saw yet more delays to this project, and the rollout of the .xxx domain for adult content, as government representatives voiced their disapproval.

The calm at the centre of the Cartagena storm was chief executive of the .org registry Maarten Botterman. The non-profit registry runs the namesake domain, one of the industry's first to launch as the web took its initial tentative steps in 1985 along with its more illustrious cousin, .com and a handful of others.

According to Botterman, the Cartagena outcome was not surprising given the lack of accountability and transparency which still plagues Icann.

"The Icann board got a lot of pushback from the Government Advisory Council [GAC] there, but it would have had to deal with governments one way or the other," he said.

"Where Icann really needs to grow is in the transparency of its processes. It would mean a lot less government interference."

The GAC was particularly non-plussed this time round about the decision to allow new TLD registries to sell their own domains, Botterman explained.

"We have to sell .org domains via registrars. We sell to intermediaries. Then just weeks before Cartagena, Icann made a 180-degree change to its previous position and it wasn't explained, which meant a lot of countries said: 'We just can't accept it'."

Botterman is adamant that no stakeholder deliberately wants to delay a project which could have rich social and economic repercussions.

The relaxation of the rules will ultimately enable the creation of any TLD with up to 64 characters, effectively allowing large brand owners with sufficient cash to become TLD registries.

There are important issues which still need to be resolved, however, such as whether the power to determine who should run the potential domains of cities, such as .paris or .london, should lie with Icann or the individual national governments.

Icann also came in for a lot of stick for its handling of the .xxx domain, which had been effectively thrown out by the body after heavy lobbying by conservative US groups until its own independent review declared that the board's decision was wrong.