BIG^(TM) : The Basic Internet Guide
A Sourcebook for Learning Web Essentials
in the School, the Home and the Office
by Andis Kaulins, J.D. Stanford University
Lecturer a.D. University of Trier, Author Langenscheidt Fachverlag
(in collaboration with Chris Loehr, Erlangen)
Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2004 by Andis Kaulins. All rights reserved.

PART 1
Essential Internet Knowledge

Chapter 2
The Administration of the Internet

Page 13 - Internet Governance - ICANN, IANA

ICANN - Technical Coordinators of the Internet

[Quoted ICANN material is copyright of ICANN and is reprinted here by permission.]

ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) is a California non-profit corporation run by a board of directors, who constitute the technical coordination body for the Internet. ICANN was established in 1998 after the United States Department of Commerce decided that domain name registration should be a private business subject to market competition:¹³

"ICANN is a non-profit, private-sector corporation ... created in October 1998 ... to assume the responsibilities previously performed under U.S. government contract by IANA and other groups.... ICANN...coordinates the assignment of the following identifiers that must be globally unique for the Internet to function: Internet domain names, IP address numbers, [and] Protocol parameter and port numbers.

As a non-profit, private-sector corporation, ICANN is dedicated to preserving the operational stability of the Internet; to promoting competition; to achieving broad representation of global Internet communities; and to developing policy through private-sector, bottom-up, consensus-based means. ICANN welcomes the participation of any interested Internet user, business, or organization."

IANA - The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority

IANA "is the overall authority for day-to-day administration of the Internet Domain Name System (DNS) [including] IP Addresses, Autonomous System Numbers, Top Level Domains...As part of its responsibility for the overall coordination and management of the DNS, the IANA receives and processes all requests for new TLDs and for changes to existing TLDs." See http://www.icann.org/icp/icp-1.htm.

Subject to the internet management policies of the ICANN Board, IANA tops the hierarchy of the Internet registry system. As noted in the documents at http://www.apnic.net:

"The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) has authority over all IP number spaces used in the Internet, including ... address space. IANA allocates parts of the ... address space to Regional Internet Registries (Regional IRs) according to their established needs."

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