More support for Digital conferencing & More "cost-optimal" Venues

[Ken Stubbs <ken@xxxxxxxxx>]

Ken Stubbs wrote:

I am writing this comment in my capacity as an individual member of the 
ICANN community. 

I was quite pleased to see in a recent article in the Australian Wall 
Street Journal  (i.e. 8 April 2009) that Dr. Twomey
has a strong statement supporting enhancing Digital Conferencing 
capabilities in his home country.
I would hope that ICANN would take the approach that Dr. Twomey is 
advocating  when it comes to enhancing participation for
future  ICANN meetings. This is a much more practical use of resources 
and can greatly enhance & increase community
participation at a significantly lower cost.

There are excellent technologies available at a cost which would easily 
be recovered in the very first meeting that they would be used
in. ICANN needs to create a small committee to investigate these 
alternatives to costly in-person participation at these events.
The world today is under significant economic stress and ICANN needs to 
show the Internet community that it acknowledges
this fact and more importantly, TAKE THE LEAD  in  utilizing 
technologies which both enhance remote participation and reduce the 
overall costs of
holding these meetings.

The costs per person  for in-person participation at these meetings has 
risen drastically over the last  few years and ICANN needs to work hard to
find both technologies as well as optimal future venues.


Ken Stubbs