ASO & ICANN
The Address Supporting Organization (ASO) is one of several policy development and advisory organizations that make up the ICANN multi-stakeholder community.
ICANN Supporting Organizations (SOs)
There are three ICANN SOs:
- Address Supporting Organization
- Country Code Names Supporting Organization
- Generic Names Supporting Organization
The ASO was established in 1999. As per the ICANN ASO Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between ICANN and the world’s five Regional Internet Registries (RIRs). The Number Resource Organization (NRO), as the coordinating body for the RIRs, fulfils the role of the ASO. Its purpose is to review and develop recommendations on Internet Protocol (IP) address policy and to advise the ICANN Board on policy issues relating to the operation, assignment, and management of IP addresses.
ICANN Empowered Community
As an SO, the ASO also plays a role in ICANN’s Empowered Community. The ICANN Empowered Community is the mechanism through which ICANN’s SOs and Advisory Committees (ACs) can organize, under California law, to legally enforce their community powers and hold ICANN accountable for its actions. Find out more here.
Independent Reviews
The ICANN Bylaws also call for periodic reviews of the performance and operation of each SO by an independent entity. Find out more about the ASO Reviews here.
Last modified on 24/04/2020