The Future of Internet Navigation and the Domain Name System: The NAS Study
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) has been studying the issue of internet navigation and the Domain Name System (DNS). The study was undertaken at the request of Congress to "provide analysis and advice for consideration by agencies of the U.S. Government, interested international institutions, and other stakeholders." In addition to examining technological issues, the study is also considering "relevant legal, economic, political, and social issues...because technologies related to the DNS and Internet navigation do not operate in isolation, but must be deployed within a complex and challenging national and international context." Issues considered in the range from protection of intellectual property to competition, to personal privacy and freedom of speech.

The NAS has solicited input to their study from around the world and held a series of meetings in 2001 and 2002. The final report is expected in the first quarter of 2004. The report is expected to characterize, for each prospective technology, "the institutions, governance structures, policies, and procedures that should be put in place to complement it and will specify the research (if any) required to design, develop, and implement the technology successfully."

ICANN will need to examine the study and its conclusions closely. In particular, the report may highlight needed changes in the organization's policies and procedures to enhance its governance of the internet. Of potentially even greater significance will be any recommendations in the report regarding the federal government's internet governance policies. ICANNfocus.org will keep our readers updated on this important study.