Follow on Google News News By Tag Industry News News By Place Country(s) Industry News
Follow on Google News | ![]() DotConnectAfrica Update: Status of our gTLD Application & Current Engagements with the U.S.CongressUpdate on GAC Objection Advice & Initial Evaluation new gTLD Applications
Update on GAC Objection Advice & Initial Evaluation DotConnectAfrica Trust’s independent new gTLD application for the .Africa name string was directly affected by a GAC Objection Advice; and following the public notification procedure, DCA Trust was given a 21-day period to respond officially to the GAC Policy Advice pertaining to its .Africa application. DCA Trust had articulated a comprehensive response and submitted same to the ICANN Board on May 8, 2013. A copy of DCA Trust’s Response to the GAC Advice has now been published by ICANN and may be found here (http://newgtlds.icann.org/ At this time, it is understood that the ICANN new gTLD Program Committee has already prioritized its work and is now considering all the GAC responses and public comments received, and would communicate its views and decisions after completing its deliberations on the matter. DCA Trust expects that the ICANN Board would publish its GAC Advice decisions after the third week of June 2013 prior to the next ICANN-47 International Meeting that will take place in Durban, South Africa in July 2013. In the interim, DCA Trust remains confident that the ICANN Board would allow its .Africa new gTLD application to proceed on the basis of the response that it submitted. It is to be noted that no Initial Evaluation (IE) Results have been published so far by ICANN for the two contending applications for the .Africa name string. The prioritization draw number for UniForum ZA Central Registry (307) has already been passed (view list here (https://gtldresult.icann.org/ Update on Letter of Escalation to the U.S. Congress It may be recalled that DCA Trust had sent an official letter to the United States Congress in February 2013 to escalate its complaints and grievances over the new gTLD program. The letter was jointly addressed to Senator John Rockefeller, Chairman of the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation; During the month of May 2013, DCA Trust held several high-level meetings in Washington D.C. with congressional staffers in pertinent committees to discuss the general and specific issues conveyed in its letter to Congress. The meetings were quite encouraging and provided DCA Trust an opportunity to further explicate its recommendations to Congress. The meetings have enabled joint understanding on the way forward regarding the issues raised by DCA Trust in its escalation letter to Congress. The prospects for a congressional investigation remain on the table. In the coming weeks, DCA Trust shall continue to engage on a consultative basis with the relevant officials of the relevant Committees of the U.S. Congress to ensure that its recommendations that call for the appointment of a Special Independent Counsel as new gTLD Program Ombudsman would be implemented. End
Page Updated Last on: May 30, 2013
|
|