Current Status
ICANN-accredited registrars and ICANN held the first round of direct bilateral negotiations to amend and update the current Registrar Accreditation Agreement (RAA) on Friday, 18 November 2011 in Marina del Rey, California. The next round of face-to-face negotiations is scheduled to take place on 8 December 2011.
Negotiation Goals/Objectives
During the ICANN Dakar Meeting, ICANN and the Registrar Stakeholder Group announced their agreement to commence negotiations on possible amendments to the RAA to address recommendations made by law enforcement agencies and the GNSO, provide increased protections for registrants, to enhance security generally, and to increase predictability for all stakeholders.
At its meeting in Dakar, the ICANN Board directed these negotiations to commence immediately, with the goal of reaching agreement on amendments that are “in the global public interest with the twin goals of registrant protection and stability...” for consideration by the ICANN Board at the Costa Rica Meeting.
ICANN and the Registrars have agreed to discuss the following topics in these negotiations:
- The law enforcement RAA recommendations, including as formulated by law enforcement in its proposed code of conduct;
- The “High Priority” recommendations from the joint GNSO/ALAC RAA Drafting Team’s Final Report (see Final Report);
- To the extent time permits, the “Medium Priority” recommendations from the joint GNSO/ALAC RAA Drafting Team’s Final Report;
- Other topics that would advance the goals of registrant protection, DNS stability, and increased predictability for all stakeholders.
Communication and Transparency of the Negotiations
The negotiating teams have approved a communications plan that sets out the steps to be taken to inform the broader ICANN community of the status of these important negotiations. ICANN will update the community regarding the substance and progress of negotiations on this wiki site in accordance with this plan.
Background
In 2009, the GNSO Council embarked on a collaborative process with the At Large Advisory Committee regarding the RAA. As part of this process, a joint GNSO/ALAC drafting team was formed (known as the RAA Drafting Team or, “RAA DT”) to consider various proposals for improvements to the RAA. The RAA DT reviewed proposals from the law enforcement community, the Intellectual Property Constituency, as well as other stakeholders. The RAA DT published a Final Report on 18 October, 2010, that identified potential topics to be addressed in an amended RAA. The RAA DT also propose several next steps for the GNSO Council to consider in determining whether to recommend a new form of RAA.
Prior to Dakar, Staff published a Discussion Paper on the Next Steps for the RAA that recommended the immediate commencement of bilateral negotiations with the Registrars. At Dakar, law enforcement representatives and other stakeholders debated the need for additional amendments to the RAA.
In Dakar, the ICANN Board adopted a resolution (2011.10.28.31) <http://www.icann.org/en/minutes/resolutions-28oct11-en.htm#7> acknowledging that the effort to evolve the RAA is an important element in a program to protect registrants and safeguard the stability of a single interoperable Internet. The resolution called for immediate negotiations and called on the negotiating teams to publish proposed amendments for consideration at ICANN’s meeting in Costa Rica in March 2012. The Board resolution called on the negotiating teams to address of law enforcement and GNSO working group recommendations as well as other topics that would advance the twin goals of registrant protection and DNS stability. The ICANN Board also directed staffed to prepare an Issues Report with respect to any remaining items suited for a PDP.
The Registrars Stakeholder Group and ICANN announced in Dakar the immediate commencement of negotiations on the RAA. These negotiations will occur regularly with the goal of issuing agreed amendments to the RAA for consideration by the ICANN Board at ICANN's Costa Rica Meeting.
More Information
- The ICANN Board’s Dakar resolution on the RAA is posted at: http://www.icann.org/en/minutes/resolutions-28oct11-en.htm#7
- To review the Final Report on Improvements to the RAA, please see: http://gnso.icann.org/issues/raa/raa-improvements-proposal-final-report-18oct01-en.pdf
- To review the Staff Discussion Paper published prior to Dakar, please see: http://gnso.icann.org/issues/final-raa-discussion-paper-13oct11-en.pdf
- To learn more about the RAA, please refer to the Non-Lawyers Guide to the RAA, posted at: http://www.icann.org/en/registrars/non-lawyers-guide-to-ra-agreement-15feb10-en.htm
- Reports of each of the RAA meetings and discussion of amendment topics addressed at each meeting will be posted on separate WIKI pages attached to this Home Page.
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