[council] RESOLUTION 102 (Rev. Marrakesh, 2002)

[Elisabeth Porteneuve <Elisabeth.Porteneuve@cetp.ipsl.fr>]

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RESOLUTION  102  (Rev. Marrakesh, 2002)
Management of Internet domain names and addresses

The Plenipotentiary Conference of the International Telecommunication
Union ( Marrakesh, 2002),

aware

that the purposes of the Union are, inter alia, to promote, at the
international level, the adoption of a broad approach to the issues of
telecommunications in the global information economy and society, to
promote the extension of the benefits of new telecommunication
technologies to all the world's inhabitants and to harmonize the efforts
of Member States and Sector Members in the attainment of those ends,

considering

  a) that advances in the global information infrastructure, including the
     development of Internet Protocol (IP) based networks and especially the
     Internet, are of crucial importance as an important engine for growth in
     the world economy in the twenty first century;
  b) that the private sector is playing a very important role in the
     expansion and development of the Internet, for example through
     investments in infrastructures and services;
  c) that the development of the Internet is essentially market led and
     driven by private and government initiatives;
  d) that the management of the registration and allocation of Internet
     domain names and addresses must fully reflect the geographical and
     functional nature of the Internet, taking into account an equitable
     balance of interests of all stakeholders;
  e) that Internet domain names and addresses, and more generally the
     Internet and global information networks, must be widely accessible to
     all citizens without regard to gender, race, religion or country of
     residence;
  f) that the methods of allocation of Internet domain names and addresses
     should not privilege any country or region of the world to the detriment
     of others;
  g) that the management of the Internet is a subject of valid
     international interest and must flow from full international
     cooperation;
  h) that the expanding use of the Internet is expected to lead to the
     need for an increased capacity of IP addresses;
  i) that Member States represent the interests of the population of the
     country or territory for which a country code top-level domain (ccTLD)
     has been delegated;
  j) that Member States should play an active role in coordinating the
     resolution of management and administrative constraints arising with
     respect to their ccTLDs,

recognizing

  a) that ITU is dealing with issues related to IP'based networks in
     general and the Internet in particular;
  b) that ITU performs worldwide coordination of a number of name and
     address allocation systems and acts as a forum for policy discussion in
     this area;
  c) that ITU can play a positive role by offering a platform for
     encouraging discussions, and for the dissemination of information,
     particularly to developing country governments, on the management of
     Internet domain names and addresses;
  d) that through international cooperation, ITU should contribute to
     policy development related to the management of Internet domain names
    and addresses,

emphasizing

  a) that the management of Internet domain names and addresses includes:
     * technical and coordination tasks, for which technical private bodies
       can be responsible, and;
     * public interest matters (for example, stability, security, freedom of
       use, protection of individual rights, sovereignty, competition rules and
       equal access for all), for which governments or intergovernmental
       organizations are responsible and to which qualified international
       organizations contribute;
  b) that the methods of allocation of global and essential resources such
     as Internet domain names and addresses are of interest to both
     governments and the private sector;
  c) that the role of governments is to provide a clear, consistent and
     predictable legal framework, to promote a favourable environment in
     which global information networks are interoperable and widely
     accessible to all citizens, and to ensure adequate protection of public
     interests in the management of Internet domain names and addresses;
  d) that it is in the public interest that the system that manages
     Internet domain names and addresses has transparent rules and
     procedures, including dispute resolution procedures to facilitate the
     protection of intellectual property rights;
  e) that governments are expected to promote, as appropriate, a fair
     competitive environment among companies or organizations responsible for
     Internet resource allocation,

instructs the Secretary General

   1 to take a significant role in international discussions and
     initiatives on the management of Internet domain names and addresses,
     taking into account associated developments and the purposes of the
     Union;
   2 to encourage all Member States to participate in the discussions on
     international management of Internet domain names and addresses, so that
     worldwide representation in the debates can be ensured;
   3 to liaise and to cooperate, in conjunction with the Bureaux, with the
     regional telecommunication organizations pursuant to this resolution;
   4 to provide assistance, in conjunction with the Bureaux, to Member
     States, if so requested, in order to achieve their stated policy
     objectives with respect to the management of Internet domain names and
     addresses;
   5 to report annually to the Council on the activities undertaken on this
     subject,

instructs the Director of the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau

   1 to continue to liaise and to cooperate with appropriate entities on
     relevant Internet domain name and address management issues, such as the
     transition to IP Version 6 (IPv6), ENUM, and internationalized domain
     names (IDN);
   2 to work with Member States and Sector Members, recognizing the
     activities of other appropriate entities, to review Member States' ccTLD
     and other related experiences;
   3 to work with Member States and Sector Members, recognizing the
     activities of other appropriate entities, to develop a recommendation to
     clarify the management of the domain ".int";
   4 to report annually to the Council on the activities undertaken on this
     subject,

instructs the Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau

   1 to organize international and regional forums, in conjunction with
     appropriate entities, for the period 2002-2006, to discuss policy,
     operational and technical issues on the Internet in general and the
     management of Internet domain names and addresses in particular for the
     benefit of Member States, especially for least developed countries;
   2 to report annually to the Council on the activities undertaken on this
     subject,

instructs the Council

     to take appropriate measures in order to contribute actively to
     international discussions and initiatives related to the management of
     Internet domain names and addresses,

invites Member States

   1 to participate actively in the discussions on the management of
     Internet domain names and addresses and notably on progress being made
     in pursuit of their policy objectives;
   2 to participate in and follow the policy, operational and technical
     developments of the management of Internet domain names and addresses;
   3 to increase awareness at national level among all appropriate
     entities, and to encourage their participation in the management of
     Internet domain names and addresses.

--
(curtesy of Paul Kane)