15th April 2014

ICANN CEO Fadi Chehadé visits JPNIC Office

Japan Network Information Center

Fadi Chehadé, President and CEO of The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), and its Asia Pacific Stakeholder Engagement Team visited JPNIC office on 14th April, for a joint meeting with Japan Registry Services Co., Ltd. (JPRS) the .JP ccTLD registry, and JPNIC.

The meeting was held during the critical period, after the announcement from the US Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on the intention to transition its stewardship role for the IANA function. In the week after Mr. Chehadé’s visit, the Global Multistakeholder Meeting on the Future of Internet Governance (NETmundial) will take place in São Paulo, Brazil.

With this background, situation surrounding the Internet Governance was shared by the three parties, followed up by discussions especially pertaining to the IANA function and its accountability mechanism.

JPNIC shared its view on the principles and framework on the Internet Governance, with reference to its contribution to NETmundial, pointing out that "pragmatism", "well-informed decision based on evidence" and "verifiability" are especially important, among a number of other important principles.

As a way forward, JPNIC believes in the need for a catalyst role to coordinate among existing entities, with expertise and responsibilities in their respective arenas, in order to address complex and emerging issues in the Internet Governance.

Mr. Chehadé expressed that Japan’s experience and expertise is needed at this critical time for the Internet, sharing his view on Japan’s Internet activities as "sophisticated" and "diligent, sincere efforts", and that he looks forward to contributions from the Japanese community including JPNIC and JPRS.

Both JPNIC and JPRS have expressed its stance for active commitments, and the three parties have agreed to work collaboratively on the Internet Governance issues.