[NA-Discuss] ICANN Layoffs

[Glenn McKnight]

ICANN is laying off 33 staffers, the non-profit domain overseer announced
<https://www.icann.org/en/blogs/details/organizational-changes-to-ensure-icanns-financial-stability-and-sustainability-30-05-2024-en>
 today.

That represents about 7% of the organization’s ranks of 485 positions.

ICANN said it is facing a deficit of $10 million a year, thanks in part to
sluggish domain name growth.

In a blog post, the organization stated:

This decision is part of a broader effort to evaluate costs and activities,
focusing on resource management, ensuring operational efficiency, and
achieving financial sustainability. Other key areas of focus include
reviewing travel and meeting costs, optimizing the use of regional offices,
exploring opportunities for greater cross-collaboration and process
improvements across functions and regions, and evaluating ICANN’s fee
structure to ensure it scales realistically with inflation.

That last line is likely to raise eyebrows amongst contracted parties and
domain registrants. It suggests that ICANN might consider raising the
“taxes” it charges on domain name registrations.

ICANN has faced deficits in the past and even took money from new top level
domain name auctions
<https://domainnamewire.com/2018/11/06/icann-will-use-36-million-of-new-tld-auction-proceeds-to-cover-shortfall/>
to
replenish its coffers.
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Glenn McKnight, MA
Virtual School of Internet Governance
Chief Information Officer
www.virtualsig.org
*YOUR SOURCE FOR INTERNET GOVERNANCE EDUCATION *
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