ICANN is working hard to promote the concept of universal acceptance of internationalized domain names. As reported earlier, solving the problem of universal acceptance (UA) and internationalized domain names (IDNs), including email address internationalization (EAI), is a strategic priority for ICANN in 2021–2025. China, which has a large number of internet users who do not speak English, is likely a key region for success. Providing Chinese users with the opportunity to navigate the global network in their native tongues will be a great step towards making the internet a truly international and multilingual space.
Jian-Chuan Zhang, head of ICANN’s office in China, wrote about the first presentation on IDN/UA on the ICANN blog. It was held in Hangzhou as part of the Chinese Domain Name Development and Application Summit Forum organized by the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), the Cyberspace Administration of China's (CAC) Zhejiang Provincial Office, and the Computer Network Information Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). The event was attended by over 200 people, and the topics covered sparked a lively discussion.
The participants concluded that more active involvement of the Chinese government and public institutions in addressing IDN/UA issues would be of great help. They also discussed the need to carry out educational activities for users and cooperate actively with Chinese IT companies. ICANN plans to travel to four more cities in China to get the word out about IDNs and the benefits of UA this year.
