The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) will continue its role as internet guardian for at least another seven years.
ICANN has signed a new deal with the US government which will see the organization run the global assignment of internet protocol addresses and top-level domains until at least the end of the decade.
Under the terms of the contract, issued by the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration, ICANN will continue to perform the functions of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA).
These involve coordinating the assignment of technical internet protocol parameters, root zone management and the allocation of internet numbering resources.
“We are honored by the awarding of this contract and we are committed to performing the IANA functions at the highest possible level,” said Akram Atallah, ICANN’s new president and chief executive officer.
“We look forward to continuing our work with the multi-stakeholder community to ensure that we operate effectively, transparently and in the global public interest.”
Jamie Hedlund, ICANN’s vice-president of North America, explained that this is the longest IANA functions contract it has ever had, running for a period of three years with two 24-month renewal options.
“This contract reflects the input of the stakeholders from around the globe and serves as an affirmation of support for ICANN and the multi-stakeholder model.”
The corporation has received 1,930 individual applications for businesses and organizations seeking control of a domain name registry.