As the day draws near when ICANN begins accepting applications to operate new generic Top-Level Domains (New gTLDs), ICANN community members have labored diligently to ensure that the program includes, right from the start, financial and non-financial forms of assistance to deserving applicants that intend to serve the public interest.
As a result, the formation of the New gTLD Applicant Support program nears completion.Currently, several aspects of the program are posted for comments from the public. You can weigh in now on aspects of the program, such as:
The handbook that needy applicants will follow in applying for financial assistance
The criteria that evaluators will use in deciding who merits financial assistance
The actual evaluation process itself
The timeline for evaluating support applications.
To see documents related to these topics and to register your insights and opinions, visit the Public Comment Forum. The public comment period closes 10 January.
ICANN's effort to include everyone in the new gTLD program has extended to awareness-raising events in countries the World Bank defines as "developing economies." ICANN representatives have raised awareness in such diverse places as Fiji, India, Kenya, Mauritania, Senegal, and many others.
As the clock winds down to 12 January, ICANN is using the Google ad network to display information on ICANN's New gTLD program for Internet users in specific countries. Targeted countries include all 35 that the World Bank categorizes as "low income," ranging from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe.
ICANN's Board has set aside USD$2,000,000 to assist needy applicants, a seed fund to which other organizations can donate.
Thanks to the hard work and extraordinary commitment from the entire ICANN community, new gTLDs will include this applicant support and financial assistance program. Starting from the first round, qualified organizations have the opportunity to apply for financial aid and their own top-level domain.
This announcement was sourced from here .
Â