What is ICANN?
ICANN is a group whose acronym stands for International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. It is a non-profit corporation based in California. ICANN has an agreement with the United States government, though the Department of Commerce, to work on behalf of the government as the overseer of the Internet. Is there any significance to the answer to “in what year was ICANN established?” There is some, in fact.
In What Year Was ICANN Founded?
ICANN was founded in 1998. At the time the organization ICANN was replacing other groups that had done similar work. ICANN got a big boost in 2006 when they signed official paperwork with the United States. So, though they were founded in 1998, one could argue that the real answer to the question “in what year was ICANN established” was 2006. In 1998, the dot com bust was just happening, and people were worried about the future of the Internet and how it would affect our society.
What Are the Responsibilities of ICANN?
When ICANN was created, their primary goal was to manage the assignment of domain names. The ICANN root servers maintain a full listing and connection for all Internet sites that are purchased. They have information about these sites available. This need came in response to people who believed that the government should be able to do something about the proliferation of Internet sites. Since there is no Internet Police, ICANN is the closest thing to supervising what goes on online.
ICANN Members
ICANN is made up of a number of underlying groups. They are smaller and have different agendas, but they have come together to form a Board of Directors. Each of these groups, which ICANN terms as the Supporting Organizations, appoints someone to the board, and the board makes decisions regarding domain name registration and assignment. When the board is full, there are six members.
Is ICANN the Same as Whois?
Some people confuse ICANN/Whois. The two groups are different. Whois serves as the public record of domain registrations. Anyone can go to the Whois website and look up information about a site. This information will include the name and phone number of the company or person who purchased a URL. ICANN controls the regulations that govern Whois giving out this information, and ICANN has been working on the issue of privacy for a while now. The people who control ICANN have a stake in making sure the Internet continues to run smoothly.