The Time is Now for the ICANN Board to Make a Decision on .AMAZON

The matter of Amazon Corporation’s applications for use of the .AMAZON gTLD has been pending since 2012. While Amazon is a member of the i2Coalition, this issue is of great importance to the i2 Coalition beyond the parochial interests of one company.  Indeed, the i2Coalition has spoken on this important issue before.  And in the wake of the ICANN64 meeting in March and Amazon’s submission on April 17 of its proposed Public Interest Commitment (PIC) to ameliorate the concerns of the Amazon region countries opposed to Amazon’s applications, the ICANN Board is now in the process of discussing next steps in this long-pending matter. 

The i2Coalition, an active member of ICANN’s multi-stakeholder community, believes that the Board must make a decision on Amazon’s applications immediately.  The Amazon Corporation’s applications meet all the requirements of ICANN’s Applicant Guidebook, which was created based on community-driven input. Coupled with its proposed PIC, Amazon applications demonstrate that the multi-stakeholder process is alive and well. 

We strongly believe that the Board of ICANN now has an opportunity to show the entire multi-stakeholder community that its’ systems work. By upholding its Applicant Guidebook, its community-developed bylaws, and independent dispute resolution process, the ICANN Board’s approval of the .AMAZON applications will increase community trust, and show that the Board takes ICANN’s core principles of transparency and accountability extremely seriously.

It is now incumbent upon the Board to make the necessary decision despite continued opposition from certain Amazon region governments.  Further delays will only call into question ICANN’s willingness to act independently of undue governmental influence.