Welcome to the website of ICANN's Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC).
The GAC plays a key role within the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), particularly with regard to public policy issues, as the Internet continues to expand and command greater influence within all our societies.
The GAC has grown and evolved considerably since its inception in 1999 and its relationship with ICANN and the wider Internet community reflects both the principles and the international multi-stakeholder model successfully applied also during the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS).
GAC membership is open-ended and is drawn from all regions of the world. It includes representatives of Governments, public authorities of distinct economies, as well as several intergovernmental organizations. As such, we would like to extend an open invitation to representatives of all governments who have yet to join the Committee. This site should serve as a useful starting point for those who wish to know more about the GAC's role and its evolving nature.
The Committee is committed to engaging more directly with all ICANN constituencies to ensure that public policy perspectives can be factored into their work at a constructive stage. Recently the GAC adopted a set of general principles guiding the introduction of new generic top-level domains (gTLDs), a set of principles concerning gTLD WHOIS services, and an advice concerning the ICANN draft procedure for handling potential conflicts between WHOIS requirements and privacy laws
The focus of the GAC is turned to Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs), which will mark a rapid expansion of the Internet space into a more global resource but which also come with significant public policy considerations. During the most recent ICANN meeting which was held in New Delhi, India in February 2008, the GAC together with other ICANN's supporting organizations and advisory committees discussed the ?fast track? IDN ccTLD deployment modalities, as well as possible GAC's contribution to the IDN ccTLD policy development process which was initiated by the ccNSO.
We look forward to engaging you all in constructive dialogue over this important area of management of the global Internet infrastructure.
Janis Karklins
Chairman of the GAC
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