So some rumors are not in fact baseless….

Many things one could say, snarky and otherwise, but I'll leave it at this: I hope they find a replacement who understands it's supposed to be a global organization that acts in public interest….

BD



Begin forwarded message:

> From: "Bruce Tonkin" <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: August 17, 2011 3:17:08 AM GMT+02:00
> To: "GNSO Council List" <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: [council] Rod Beckstrom to leave ICANN at the end of his term
> 
> 
> Hello All,
> 
> From:  http://www.icann.org/en/news/releases/release-16aug11-en.pdf
> 
> August 16, 2011
> 
> BECKSTROM TO LEAVE ICANN AT END OF HIS TERM
> 
> Rod Beckstrom will continue to fulfill his term as ICANN's President and
> CEO, which will be completed on 1 July 2012. He has held this position
> since 1 July 2009.
> 
> "I am incredibly proud of ICANN's achievements throughout my tenure,"
> said Beckstrom. "In two short years we have advanced this organization
> to a new level of professionalism and productivity, and turned it into a
> genuinely multinational organization that will serve the world community
> long after my time here."
> 
> Beckstrom has had many notable accomplishments at ICANN. They include
> the negotiation and signing of the Affirmation of Commitments, the
> historic 2009 agreement with the US Government that moved ICANN's
> oversight from one government to the world, and the signing of the
> Internet's root with DNSSEC. The introduction of internationalized
> domain names under his watch has allowed millions of Internet users to
> access the Internet entirely in their primary language script.
> 
> "I can summarize my time here in four words: strong execution, great
> teambuilding," he said. "We have built a world-class executive team, and
> elevated ICANN's stature through strategic relationships with
> governments, businesses, top technology firms and international
> organizations."
> 
> A program to launch new generic top-level domains - a major change to
> the domain name system - was approved in June and will launch in the
> next year. ICANN's agreement with the US government - the IANA functions
> contract - expires in March, and Beckstrom emphasized his commitment to
> bring the contract renewal to a successful conclusion.
> 
> Steve Crocker, Chair of ICANN's Board of Directors, said: "The Board of
> Directors fully supports Rod through the completion of his July 2012
> term and is committed to continuing the collaboration that has produced
> so many benefits for ICANN and for the global Internet."
> 
> Beckstrom continued: "I remain committed to leading this critical
> organization with the utmost dedication, and to living up to our common
> vision: One world, one Internet."
>