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The original vision of ICANN is now undergoing serious review. After nearly
four years of attempting to create a purely private sector process for managing
the Internet's naming and address allocation systems, some of ICANN's
top officials are questioning the practicality of excluding national governments
from its board.
On February 24, ICANN President M. Stuart Lynn laid out his proposals for change
in a 22-page report titled "ICANN - the Case for Reform." This
report, available in its entirety at http://www.icann.org/general/lynn-reform-proposal-24feb02.htm,
outlines Lynn's reasons for abandoning ICANN's current course and urges a major
restructuring of the organization. Instead of 19 board members, five of whom
are elected by the general Internet community, the new board would consist of
15 membersÑfive of them nominated by governments.
For a summary of the issues at stake in overhauling ICANN and links to other articles on the subject, see the Wired News article "If ICANN Can't, Who Should?" at http://wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,50670,00.html