APTLD Hong Kong Communiqué

21 June 2006

Representatives from Members .au, .hk, .jp, .kr, .lk, .my, .nz, .sg, .tw; Associate Members Afilias and WebCC, and ICANN staff, met in Kowloon, Hong Kong on 20-21 June 2006 for an ordinary Board and Members meeting of the Association.

The meeting, held prior to the forthcoming ICANN meeting in Marrakech, was notable for the welcoming of APTLD’s inaugural General Manager, Mr. Don Hollander. In addition, it discussed the results of a survey on training desires of APTLD members, discussed the progress of ICANN’s ccNSO, heard from ICANN staff on Accountability Frameworks, and heard a full report on the appointment process for the General Manager.

APTLD General Manager

APTLD is delighted to announce the appointment of its inaugural General Manager, Mr. Don Hollander. Mr. Hollander is a New Zealand resident with extensive experience of work in the ccTLD industry. He is a former manager of the .ws ccTLD and will be taking up an initial two year term in the role.

This appointment marks the next phase in APTLD’s development, from its inception in 1998 and the appointment of a secretariat in 2000. Mr. Hollander will be working to increase the membership of APTLD and its visibility around the whole Asia Pacific region, and to further develop the benefits that APTLD offers to its members, building on the existing base of strong information sharing and best practice development.

A number of other matters were discussed as noted above. APTLD is investigating training opportunities it can offer members, and the Training Working Group will be reporting back to the next members meeting with draft programmes for approval. The results of a survey of members and other Asia Pacific ccTLDs indicated a serious need for more training opportunities for ccTLDs in the region.

Chris Disspain, the ccNSO Council Chair, gave an update on the ccNSO’s progress. Donna Austin from the ICANN staff showed members the details of the Accountability Frameworks and exchange of letters that are being used to formalise relationships between ccTLD managers and ICANN.

APTLD sincerely thanks hosts HKDNR/HKIRC for their sponsorship and hospitality in the course of the meeting in Hong Kong.