ICANN 48 has just opened in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The event attracts major domain industry players to discuss the most relevant industry issues and future prospects. The Coordination Center and the Technical Center of Internet also took part in the event.
Juan Manuel Abal Medina, Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers of Argentina, opened the conference, noting that the Internet penetration in the country currently stands at 75%. Therefore, Argentina ranks first in the Latin American and Caribbean region – far above the worldwide average of Internet use. The employment in the IT sector, according to Abal Medina, currently amounts to 77,000 positions – a few times larger than in 2003, with 19,000 people employed in the sector.
Fadi Chehade, ICANN CEO, said that 144 registries have signed the new gTLD contracts in the last few weeks. Moreover, Chehade announced two awards that would be given to the most prominent members of the stakeholder community. The new ICANN Multistakeholder Ethos award will be looking for candidates who recognize and demonstrate the spirit of collaboration and engage with those from other backgrounds, cultures and interest. Moreover, Lesley Cowley (Nominet) was the first recipient of the Leadership award for supporting the innovation.
ICANN CEO also urged the attendees to take part in the Internet governance dialogue within /1net, a new collaboration platform. Many stakeholder organizations have backed up the initiative, including W3C, IETF, ISOC and others.
