While the process of introducing New Top Level Domains is going smoothly for many domains, a legal dispute over the control of ‘.africa’ is still unsettled – and raises questions about the validity of ICANN’s registration process.
Because of its importance, ‘.africa’ was not sold, but rather administered to the party proving it was supported by 60 percent of all African governments. Or so it should have been. Instead, there were two rival applications, both of which claimed they had the support of the African Union.
In 2014, ICANN agreed to issue .africa to ZA Central Registry, but DotConnectAfrica requested an internal review. In March 2016, ICANN’s board passed a resolution reaffirming its decision and stating that DotConnectAfrica had not garnered enough government support.
However, a California-based court found that ICANN’s terms and conditions for the application process do not comply with the California Civil Code. The clause in question states that applicants agree not to challenge […] and irrevocably waive any right to sue or proceed in court.
This view not only opens new legal options in the ‘.africa’ case, but it potentially also challenges the legal certainty of all other New Top Level Domains decisions made by ICANN.
