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* ICANN ANNOUNCES SELECTIONS FOR NEW TOP-LEVEL DOMAINS
The board of directors of the Internet Corporation for Assigned 
Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced in November its selections for 
registry operators for new top level domains. They are:

.aero - Societe Internationale de Telecommunications Aeronautiques 
SC, (SITA)
.biz - JVTeam, LLC
.coop - National Cooperative Business Association, (NCBA)
.info - Afilias, LLC
.museum - Museum Domain Management Association, (MDMA)
.name - Global Name Registry, LTD
.pro - RegistryPro, LTD

The ICANN staff will now work through the end of the year to 
negotiate registry agreements with the applicants selected. The 
proposed schedule for completion of negotiations is 31 December 
2000. The negotiated registry agreements must then be approved by 
the board of directors. Following that approval, the ICANN board 
will forward its recommendations to the U.S. Department of 
Commerce for implementation. For more on the history of ICANN's 
new top-level domain (TLD) application process, see 
http://www.icann.org/tlds/. For a preliminary report of the Second 
Annual Meeting and Organizational Meetings of the ICANN Board 
visit http://www.icann.org/minutes/prelim-report-16nov00.htm. 
Multimedia archives of the annual meeting can be reviewed at 
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/icann/la2000/.

* ICANN PUBLIC COMMENT FORUM -- AT LARGE STUDY
Now that ICANN has completed the At Large membership and election 
process in the year 2000, it is launching a comprehensive study of 
the At Large concept, structure, and mechanisms. At its recent 
meeting in Los Angeles, the ICANN Board called for public comments 
on staff recommendations -- on key issues, including the study's 
structure, composition, timetable, and funding. Visit 
http://www.icann.org/at-large/study-comments.htm to read the staff 
recommendations. ICANN actively invites input from any interested 
individual or organization. The deadline for public comments is 27 
December 2000, midnight GMT/UTC. To post a message in this forum, 
you must first register at http://www.icann.org/mbx/register.html. 
You need only register once -- your username and password will 
work on all ICANN public comment forums.

* VINT CERF NAMED ICANN CHAIR
Internet Society board member and Internet founding father Vint 
Cerf has been named chairman of the Internet Corporation for 
Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the international oversight 
board for online addresses. It is believed that Dr. Cerf will 
bring a much-needed technical focus to the organization, which has 
been accused of straying into social policy and governance. The 
selection was made at ICANN's annual meeting in November at the 
same time the organization approved seven new domain-name 
suffixes. Cerf, who will serve for one year, will replace Esther 
Dyson, who left the board after two years. For more, see 
http://www0.mercurycenter.com/svtech/news/breaking/merc/docs/042814.htm
(San Jose Mercury News, 16 Nov 2000)


* DIGITAL DOWNFALL: THE RISING POPULIST BACKLASH AGAINST TECHNOLOGY
Rejecting the demands of the digital lifestyle at home and at 
work, a growing number of 21st century Luddites are part of the 29 
million Americans who, earlier this year, stopped using the 
Internet. Among U.S. consumers who were recently surveyed by 
Harris Online, a third admitted suffering from "digital distress" 
-- nervousness and anxiety in shopping for high-tech goods. One 
hundred and eight million said they have no desire to get onto the 
Internet. Forrester Research finds that 47 percent of North 
American consumers are "technology pessimists" who are "hostile or 
ambivalent" toward high-tech products. Social scientists and 
career experts note that greater numbers of people are escaping 
the high-tech rat race and seeking more time with their families, 
the solace of nature, or a sense of peace in spirituality. Anti-
technology forces are also making their presence felt in movies 
and on the Web. Recently an independent film called "I Want to 
Blow Up Silicon Valley" found a distinct following. And guerrilla 
Web sites that blast Internet firms are springing up. The consumer 
electronics industry is trying to address the neo-Luddites by 
making their products easier to use. But the kill-the-computers 
crowd claims the answer to technostress lies in people leading 
simpler and more reflective lives. (from USA Today as reported in 
Social Change Briefs, Sept-Oct 2000)




-- 
Howard Flack        http://www.unige.ch/crystal/ahdf/Howard.Flack.html
Laboratoire de Cristallographie               Phone: 41 (22) 702 62 49
24 quai Ernest-Ansermet             mailto:Howard.Flack@cryst.unige.ch
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