Special to ag-IP-news Agency

AMMAN - The US Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced March 14th, 2014 its intent to transition key Internet domain name functions to the global multistakeholder community. As the first step, NTIA is asking the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to convene global stakeholders to develop a proposal to transition the current role played by NTIA in the coordination of the Internet’s domain name system (DNS).

“We welcome this move and applaud the decision to transition management responsibility for key Internet domain name functions to the global multistakeholder community. As an ICANN accredited registrar and ICANN accredited Arab Center for Dispute Resolution (ACDR) and through our different involvements in the multistakeholder model, we strongly believe that this move will have a positive impact on the Internet,” HE Dr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, chairman of the Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAG-Org) said in a statement.

Dr. Abu-Ghazaleh who chaired the UN Forum on Internet Governance and laid the foundation for the establishment of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Berlin November 2004 added: “ICANN through its bottom-up approach is capable of developing a transition plan that supports and enhances the multi-stakeholder model, preserves the security, stability, and resiliency of the Internet domain name system."


Dr. Abu-Ghazaleh also confirmed TAG-Org’s support and participation in the consultation process, which will lead to developing a transition plan.

"I continued to fully support IGF all the way since its inception as UN ICT TF, and subsequently as GAID chair, and always as TAG-Org chair. TAG-Org proudly served on the UN SG WGIG since its establishment. Today, once again I wish to applaud IGF success under its able leadership," he said.

It is worth noting that Dr. Abu-Ghazaleh chaired: the United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force (UNICTTF) (2004 – 2006), the Advisory Committee on Internet Governance (2003 – 2004), Global Alliance for ICT and Development of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and Commission on E-Business, Information Technologies and Telecoms, International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) (2001 – 2008).

On several occasions, Dr. Abu-Ghazaleh called for transfer of key Internet Stewardship to the Global Community. In 2008, in his keynote speech during the ICANN Regional Outreach Meeting in Dubai, Dr. Abu-Ghazaleh stressed “The USA has served humanity with the introduction and continuous support of the Internet, and we thank the USA for this achievement”, he concluded by stressing “It is time now to have the Internet managed and administered by an independent body ensuring the security and stability of the overall functions of the Internet.”