US keeps keys to internet domain names

The Bush administration announced on Thursday that the US government will not hand over control of the internet to any other organisation, a surprise move that could presage an international flap.

At the moment, the US government maintains control of the internet's "root" - the master file that lists which top-level domains are authorised - but has indicated in the past that it would transfer that responsibility to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (Icann).

The new principles, outlined by Assistant Commerce Secretary Michael Gallagher, say the US government will "maintain its historic role in authorising changes or modifications to the authoritative root zone file". In addition, the US government will continue to maintain "oversight" over Icann and prevent its "focus" from straying from technical co-ordination, the principles say.

Gallagher's blunt announcement to a wireless conference in Washington, DC - just a few days before Icann's next meeting in Luxembourg - hints that the Bush administration would like to keep the California-based not-for-profit group on a short leash. Icann has become the target of criticism as its budget has zoomed upward from $7m in 2003 to around $16m today.

Thursday's announcement also represents an effective snub to a United Nations process that is set to culminate in a summit in Tunisia in November. One gripe of the summit participants has been that poorer nations should have more say in the way the internet is operated.

At one level, the Bush administration's announcement is largely symbolic: while in theory the US can influence what country codes are permitted and who will run each, it's unlikely to make any procedural changes. But the more assertive tack promises to vex nations such as Brazil and Pakistan, which have been outspoken critics of the United States' influence online.

About five years ago, the Commerce Department told the European Commission "these remaining powers retained by the United States DoC regarding Icann should be effectively divested", according to a European government report.

Declan McCullagh writes for CNET News.com