[council] TOR for New gTLDs: Public Comments 6 Dec to 9 January

[Bret Fausett]

Having served on the task force that created the PDP, my clear 
recollection is that we believed that public comment only at the end of 
the process was inadequate. The reason for this was because, typically, 
at the end of the process, after the constituencies and task forces have 
developed something concrete, little room exists for additional revision 
or compromise. As a consequence, we added a special comment period at 
the beginning of the process to maximize the opportunity for the 
Internet community to have meaningful input. (Background information is 
here: 
http://www.icann.org/committees/evol-reform/npdpag-report-21aug02.htm)  
As our report stated: "We emphasize the importance of collecting 
information as part of the PDP. Whether via use of a task force or not, 
a primary goal of the PDP is to gather information and data from the 
global community and synthesize such data into reports that can be 
intelligently deliberated and, we hope, widely agreed upon." We 
concluded that public comment periods bookending the Council 
deliberations would increase the value of the public comments.

So Bruce is correct: we are asking for substantive answers to the 
questions posted. These comments will be synthesized into an initial 
public comment report that will become part of the PDP record. I know 
that the ALAC intends to submit initial comments during this period.

           Bret