Starting in February 2016, the GNSO New gTLD Subsequent Procedures Policy Development Process (PDP) Working Group (WG) has been working to evaluate the experiences of the 2012 round New gTLDs Program and identify possible areas for future GNSO policy development. To help the broader ICANN community gain insights and understanding of its important and complex work, the PDP WG has been issuing a monthly newsletter since March 2017 that provides detailed updates on its overall work progress and the development within its four Work Tracks. Furthermore, as part of its efforts to engage the ICANN community on the issue of geographic names at the top-level, the PDP WG held two webinar sessions on Tuesday, 25 April 2017. Various organizations and individual ICANN community members presented their positions on the treatment of geographic names. The webinars served as the beginning of a discussion that will continue at ICANN59 Johannesburg. In Johannesburg, the PDP WG leadership team will hold an extended session to work through the positions presented in the webinars and propose solutions on how to establish a common ground on the way forward.
