Name.Space.Info: Some Root Operators Refuse to Sign on toICANN/DOC Project

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Date: Sat, 3 Jul 1999 01:43:52 -0400
To: nettime-l@desk.nl
From: "Name.Space.Info" <info@name-space.com>
Subject: Some Root Operators Refuse to Sign on to ICANN/DOC Project

COMPUTERGRAM INTERNATIONAL: JULY 06 1999

Some Root Operators Refuse to Sign on to ICANN/DOC Project

By Nick Patience

Last week the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN)
distributed a memorandum of participation (MoP) to the operators of the 13
root servers that maintain the internet's address book of domain names. 

The latest version of the document, which ComputerWire has seen, affirms
the operator's willingness to participate in the Cooperative Research and
Development Agreement (CRADA) that has been signed by ICANN, the
Department of Commerce and its agency, the National Institute of Standards
and Technology (NIST) to come up with ways of formalizing the relationship
between the root server operators and establishing formal procedures for
the operation of the server network. 

According to sources, at least three of the operators have refused to sign
as of press time but, as none of them will talk to the press, it is
difficult to ascertain the exact number. 

The MoP gives the operator the option of withdrawing from the list of
participating operators and does not create any legal liability on the
part of the metaphor or his or her company or organization. It says work
plans developed by the research project will have to be approved jointly
by ICANN and Commerce before being put into effect. And the operator is
obliged to operate the root in the manner agreed upon as part of the
project - although it is not clear if they are still obligated to do so if
they have withdrawn their name from the list of project contributors.