[At-Large] Updates to New gTLD Program Implementation and auctioning model.

[Bret Fausett]

On Aug 10, 2008, at 2:20 PM, Alan Greenberg wrote:
> Using an auction to resolve the conflict does indeed mean that .web
> will not likely go to a small not-for-profit organization. If that is
> your concern, then in my mind, you are being somewhat unrealistic.

I was on the Council when this first came up, and the concern I heard  
from the ALAC then was about regionalism, rather than "non-profits" v.  
"for profits." I don't know that we care which among many U.S.  
corporate entities wins the battle for the next big ASCII TLD gold mine.

The ALAC concern, as I understood it, was about whether a foreign  
registry services provider ought to win the bid for the IDN versions  
of COM/NET/ORG over a competitor in the region in which the language  
is spoken. At bottom, it's a debate about free trade v. regional  
protectionism, a subject on which the nations of the world have  
significantly different positions.

Auctions will produce results that do not account for territories. I  
understand the view that this is a good thing. But, I have to wonder  
whether it is politically tenable for ICANN to award .COM in Arabic  
or .NET in Chinese to a U.S.-based registry?

       -- Bret