Press Statement - April 23, 1997

Media contact:

Beth Gaston

(703) 306-1070

egaston@nsf.gov

Statement by Dr. Joseph Bordogna
Acting Deputy Director, National Science Foundation

On Administration of Internet Addresses

In February, the National Science Foundation (NSF) received a Report on the Administration of the Internet from NSF's Office of Inspector General (OIG). The report contains an interesting and thoughtful series of recommendations.

NSF's management has been considering for some time the nature of its relationship to the Internet and the terms of its existing cooperative agreement with Network Solutions, Inc. (NSI). The agency also has been focused on how best to direct its resources toward matters of significance to our scientific and engineering communities, including our participation in the next-generation Internet initiative.

The OIG Report recommends continued governmental oversight through Federal administration of current Internet registration and the imposition of an excise tax on such registration, recognizing that a regulatory structure would need to be created either within NSF or through some other new, governmental organization or independent commission. Several of the proposed options would require additional Federal legislation, or a significant increase in Federal personnel. The long-term issues raised by the report may indeed require additional government oversight, and we are referring the OIG report to appropriate policy-makers in the Administration for consideration.

In the meantime, next-step solutions for Internet registration are being discussed in the Internet community. The Internet is no longer primarily a medium for the exchange of information among computer networks in the scientific community -- the original reason for NSF involvement. The vast majority of domain name registrants are commercial interests.

The Internet has gone from the development stage to the application stage, and its administrative structure needs to serve the general purpose of the enterprise and needs to be supported by its commercial participants. The operations that are covered by the NSI Cooperative Agreement no longer require financial support from NSF.

NSF has no plans to renew or to re-compete this agreement when it ends in March 1998. At present, NSF is working with NSI to provide the suitable disposition of the "intellectual infrastructure" fund and the resolution of other matters related to the conclusion of the cooperative agreement. If, by mutual agreement with NSI, NSF believes it would be appropriate to end the cooperative agreement even earlier than March 1998, we will do so.

NSF is confident the Internet community and others will eventually develop mechanisms to handle Internet registration without NSF's involvement. In addition, we believe it is time for NSF to focus its attention on the challenges and opportunities of the next-generation Internet in support of research and education in science and engineering.