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ICANN Expands Domain Registration to Five New Companies

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Washington D.C. has seen a major shift in the world of domain registration with the announcement of five new companies entering the fray. ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, has chosen America Online, CORE Council of Internet Registrants, France Telecom, Melbourne IT, and Register.Com to act as "test-bed registrants" of domain names. This move marks a significant departure from the monopoly held by Network Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ:NSOL) on domain registration since the Internet's founding. The new registrants will use a shared registry system, operated by Network Solutions, and will have the authority to register applicants for top-level domains such as ".com," ".org," ".edu," and ".net."

Key Takeaways:

  • ICANN has chosen five new companies to act as "test-bed registrants" of domain names: America Online, CORE Council of Internet Registrants, France Telecom, Melbourne IT, and Register.Com.
  • Network Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ:NSOL) has held the US government contract for domain registration since the Internet's founding.
  • The five companies were chosen from a group of over 30 applicants and will use a shared registry system operated by Network Solutions.
  • Each registrar will have the authority to register applicants for top-level domains such as ".com," ".org," ".edu," and ".net."
  • The testbed is intended to work out technical difficulties before introducing additional registrars and is a first step toward establishing fair and consistent guidelines and procedures.
  • The list of organizations that will join the registration group includes firms from around the globe, including large telecom and non-profit organizations.
  • ICANN was formed with the consent of the US Commerce Department to privatize Internet functions after years of government oversight.

Statistics:

  • ICANN has accredited over 20 companies and other organizations to join the registration group in the second phase of expansion (Source: Newsbytes, 19990421)
  • Over 30 applicants were reviewed by ICANN before choosing the five test-bed registrants (Source: Newsbytes, 19990421)
  • The number of potential domain registrars will be increased in the near future to establish fair and consistent guidelines and procedures (Source: ICANN official, Newsbytes, 19990421)
  • ICANN has worked out a shared registry system that will be launched by Network Solutions by the end of April (Source: Newsbytes, 19990421)

Sources:

  • Newsbytes, "ICANN Names Five Companies as Test-Bed Registrants," April 21, 1999, http://www.newsbytes.com
  • William M. Daley, Commerce Secretary, praising ICANN for moving toward private management of the domain names system, as reported by Newsbytes News Network, http://www.newsbytes.com (19990421/WIRES ONLINE, BUSINESS/DOTNAME/PHOTO)

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