The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has revealed the membership and operating time frame for four of its strategy panels.
Proposals to create the panels were announced by ICANN president and chief executive officer Fadi Chehade during the organization’s July 2013 meeting in Durban, South Africa.
He said the platforms will bring together various experts of specific subject matters, as well as thought leaders and industry practitioners to help guide and transform ICANN’s current five year strategic plan.
Theresa Swinehart, senior advisor to Mr Chehade on strategy, said: “This new time frame is aimed at facilitating public comment on the panels’ work prior to its possible consideration in the formation of ICANN’s strategic plan and our 2015 budget.”
“We are encouraging our community to provide input and comment before the panels submit their final reports at the end of January [2013].”
The panels will explore the various subject areas. The first is chaired by Paul Mockapetris and is called Identifier Technology Innovation, while Vint Cerf will chair the second, known as ICANN’s Role in the Internet Governance Ecosystem.
ICANN Multistakeholder Innovation will be headed up by Beth Simone Noveck and Nii Quaynor is in charge of Public Responsibility Framework.
All four entities will begin their work this month (October) and a public comment period on their recommendations will begin as soon as it is completed (January 31st 2014) and will conclude on March 31st 2014.
Meanwhile, a fifth panel had been announced in Durban that will look into the role of ICANN in the future of internet governance, but it is being refocused. ICANN said more information will be announced in the coming weeks regarding the fifth panel, though it appears unlikely it will follow the same time frame as the others if it does get approved.