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Dec. 06, 2002 

The California company that oversees the Internet's domain-name structure has decided to keep its five democratically elected board members through early next year -- even though their terms were due to expire this month. 

The move must be formally approved at the Dec. 14 meeting of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers in Amsterdam. It comes on the heels of protests over the decision to eliminate the elected at-large seats. 

"To me it's very obvious that what they're trying to do is defuse the criticism of ICANN that has come from their repudiation of the principle that institutions that affect the public need to have public representatives," said Karl Auerbach, one of five members elected two years ago in online elections. 

He predicted the board members would be asked to continue on much longer than the transition period of several months that ICANN predicted. 

ICANN President M. Stuart Lynn scoffed at the characterization that the democratically elected board members were being kept on just for appearances. "I can only say that's silly," he said. "No one brought pressure and criticism. That's a Karl Auerbach fantasy." 

Lynn said the transition board that will be set up to map ICANN's future will include all nine at-large board members, except for Phil Davidson, whose term is expiring. Two new board members will be added. 

More at: http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,56740,00.html