The gTLD-MoU Policy Oversight Committee continues to monitor progress in this area and has and continues to participate in international initiatives related to domain name administration. 

However, the Policy Oversight Committee notes that little progress has been made because of both an extremely complex political environment and the economic interests of the parties involved in the multi-billion dollar business of selling domain names. The Policy Oversight Committee also notes that despite a multi-year effort involving the United States Government and ICANN, little progress has been made in the core issue - the necessary economic model for registry/registrar relationships embodied in the Council of Registrars (CORE) model developed in the Internet Ad Hoc Committee (IAHC) final report. The adoption of an equitable competition model is a necessary prerequisite for introduction of new top level domains. Therefore, those who are interested in the availability of new top level domains should not expect any availability in the 1999/2000 2nd quarter time frame and perhaps much longer.

October 18, 1998: The Internet Policy Oversight Committee joins the world in mourning the death of Dr. Jonathan Postel, a founding father of the Internet and the director of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority on October 16, 1998.

September 11, 1998: The French Government has released an in-depth policy analysis on Internet et les réseaux numériques. Chapter V of the report examines domain names and trademark rights. The report is currently only available in French with English and Spanish versions available in October 1998. 

September 3, 1998: The gTLD-MoU Policy Advisory Body has issued a statement concerning the IANA draft Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation.

September 2, 1998: The Policy Oversight Committee has issued a statement concerning the IANA draft Bylaws and Articles of Incorporation.

September 1, 1998: Lars-Johan Liman , appointed by the Internet Architecture Board (IAB), has now officially joined the gTLD-MoU Policy Oversight Committee.

August 24, 1998: The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) has released a third and near final draft of its proposed restructuration. See specifically Introduction and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ),  Proposed Articles of Incorporation, and Bylaws Proposal - Third Iteration. IANA is soliciting comments on its proposed restructuration at comments@iana.org. 

August 24, 1998: The US Department of Commerce has extended the deadline to October 5, 1998 for the comment period on their request for comments on the .us domain name space. 

August 20, 1998: Industry Canada, the Canadian government department responsible for matters relating to electronic commerce and information technologies has released Domain Name System Reform and Related Internet Governance Issues: A Consultation Paper.

August 4, 1998: The US Department of Commerce is asking for public comments on the Future Expansion and Administration of the .us Domain Space. Also see related press release.

August 1, 1998: The following speeches given at the IFWP Geneva opening plenary session are available online:

• Michael Schneider, Vice President, EuroISPA: results of the European consultative meeting on July 7th, 1998 in Brussels.
• Christopher Wilkinson, European Commission: Internet Governance - Implementation of the US White Paper

July 30, 1998: The Japanese Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications has released its report: A Vision for the New Era of Domain Names in the 21st Century - Final Report of the Study Group on Internet Domain Names

July 28, 1998: Real Video proceedings of the IFWP-Geneva meeting plenary sessions are now available: 

IFWP Plenary sessions 1 and 2 for July 24, 1998

• http://realserver.itu.ch/ifwp/ifwp240798-1.ram
• http://realserver.itu.ch/ifwp/ifwp240798-2.ram

• http://realserver.itu.ch/ifwp/ifwp250798-1.ram
• http://realserver.itu.ch/ifwp/ifwp250798-2.ram
• http://realserver.itu.ch/ifwp/ifwp250798-3.ram

July 23, 1998: Jon Postel awarded ITU silver medal at INET '98 for his central role in the success story of the Internet

July 15, 1998: CORE announces opening of applications to new members. See press release and  application details.

July 15, 1998: The Internet Architecture Board (IAB) has announced its new appointees to the gTLD-MoU Policy Oversight Committee. The new appointees are Pindar Wong and Lars-Johan Liman. Pindar Wong will immediately take up the seat vacated by Patrik Fältström, which runs until August 2000. Lars-Johan Liman will take up the seat to be vacated by Rob Austein at the end of August 1998, for three years until August 2001. The Policy Oversight Committee would like to express its appreciation for the dedication and contributions of the departing IAB appointees, Patrik Fältström and Rob Austein. 

July 9, 1998: The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has now announced details on the international process to develop recommendations concerning intellectual property issues associated with Internet domain names, including domain name dispute resolution. WIPO has now issued background information, the process timetable, its first Request for Comments on the Terms of Reference, Procedures and Timetable for the WIPO Internet Domain Name Process (comment deadline is August 17, 1998), and details on participation in the process. 

July 9, 1998: The conclusions of the European consultative meeting Internet Naming and Addressing - the constitution of the new Self-Regulatory Organisation to succeed IANA held in Brussels on 7 July 1998 are now available. 

June 30, 1998: Internet Naming and Addressing - the constitution of the new Self-Regulatory Organisation to succeed IANA - European information meeting Brussels, 7 July 1998