PDP Termination
On the 24 October 2018, the GNSO Council voted in favour of the motion to terminate the Next-Generation gTLD Registration Directory Service (RDS) to replace WHOIS Policy Development Process.
- Read the GNSO Council Resolution to Terminate the Next-Generation RDS to replace WHOIS PDP
- Read the RDS PDP Termination Summary
Accordingly, no further RDS PDP WG meetings will be held, and this workspace reflects progress made prior to RDS PDP termination.
- Learn about the progress made by the RDS PDP through its final WG meeting at ICANN61
- Learn about the related Expedited PDP on the Temporary Specification for gTLD Registration Data
Please note that the documents linked below related to the PDP are provided for informational purposes. Some documents are produced by the GNSO and others are not. To learn about the materials on the Active Project pages, please see this overview.
Summary
Comprehensive 'Whois' policy reform remains the source of long-running discussions within the ICANN as well as wider Internet community. Any discussion of 'Whois' – hereafter called gTLD registration data and directory services – typically includes topics such as purpose, accuracy, availability, privacy, anonymity, cost, policing, intellectual property protection, security and malicious use and abuse.
On 8 November 2012 the ICANN Board passed a resolution that led to the creation of an Expert Working Group (EWG) and, in parallel, also launched this Board-initiated GNSO Policy Development Process (PDP). The Board specifically called out two of these topics in its request; purpose and accuracy. With regard to purpose, at a minimum the most basic purpose, which is commonly accepted, is that gTLD registration data allows domain name holders to be contacted. However, who would be granted the right to access the data under what circumstances and contact the holder and by which means, is a set of difficult follow-up questions that need to be answered. In relation to accuracy, There are many data elements in the Whois database required under the Registry Agreements and the Registrar Accreditation Agreements; if only one of these data fields is incorrect, does that mean the Whois information is inaccurate? And how can the accuracy of data be verified and/or measured, especially considering that if data is not accurate the purpose of gathering the data might be questionable in the first place.
Upon publication of the EWG's Final Report in June, 2014, an informal group of Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO) Councilors and ICANN Board members collaborated to propose a Process Framework for structuring a GNSO Policy Development Process (PDP) to successfully address these challenging issues.
On 26 May, 2015, the ICANN Board adopted that Process Framework and reaffirmed its 2012 request for a Board-initiated PDP to define the purpose of collecting, maintaining and providing access to gTLD registration data, and to consider safeguards for protecting data, using the recommendations in the EWG's Final Report as an input to, and, if appropriate, as the foundation for a new gTLD policy.
Status
A new Preliminary Issue Report was published for public comment on 13 July 2015. Following review of the public comments received, the Issue Report was updated accordingly and submitted as the Final Issue Report to the GNSO Council for its consideration on 7 October 2015.
On 19 November 2015, the GNSO Council approved the Draft Charter proposed in the Final Issue Report and directed ICANN staff to issue a call for volunteers for the PDP WG. This WG convened at the end of January 2016.
Web Presence
Responsible Staff Members
- Marika Konings
ICANN Board Request for a Preliminary Issue Report
Resolved (2015.04.26.10), the Board reaffirms its request for a Board-initiated GNSO policy development process to define the purpose of collecting, maintaining and providing access to gTLD registration data, and consider safeguards for protecting data, using the recommendations in the Final Report [PDF, 5.12 MB] as an input to, and, if appropriate, as the foundation for a new gTLD policy […]
Preliminary Issue Report
Submitted on: 13 July 2015
- Next Generation gTLD RDS to Replace WHOIS Preliminary Issue Report
- Public Comment
- Public Comment Open Date: 13 July 2015
- Public comment period close date: 6 September 2015
- Note, to review the original Preliminary Issue Report and related public comment forum, please see https://www.icann.org/public-comments/gtld-registration-data-2013-03-15-en
Final Issue Report
Submitted on: 7 October 2015
GNSO Resolution on the Initiation of the PDP:
Adopted on: 19 November 2015
Summary: Resolved … [see link for details]
Working Group Charter
Adopted on: 19 November 2015
Input from Supporting Organizations/Advisory Committees and GNSO Stakeholder Groups/Constituencies
Working Group Initial Report
Submitted on: Not Applicable
- Public Comment Forum: Not Applicable
Working Group Proposed Final Report
Submitted on: Not Applicable
Working Group Final Report
Submitted on: Not Applicable
GNSO Adoption of the Final Report
Adopted on: Not Applicable
GNSO Council Report to the ICANN Board
Submitted on: Not Applicable
Public Comment Prior to ICANN Board Consideration
Submitted on: Not Applicable
Notification by the ICANN Board to the GAC to Request Input on Whether Policy Recommendations Raise Public Policy Issues
Submitted on: Not Applicable
Board Paper
Submitted on: Not Applicable
ICANN Board Resolution Text
Adopted on: Not Applicable
Notice of Policy Actions
Adopted on: Not Applicable
Implementation Details
- Not Applicable
Additional Information
None