Two top executives at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names
and Numbers (ICANN) have announced that they plan to retire.
Three months after proposing a complete overhaul of the non-profit
group charged with overseeing technical matters related to the
Internet's addressing system, ICANN president and chief executive
officer Stuart Lynn said that he will be leaving the agency next
March, in order to focus on his personal life and health.
Lynn took over his post at ICANN in March 2001, under a two-year
contract.
Additionally, ICANN vice-president and chief policy officer Andrew
McLaughlin said that he will be leaving on 1 July to return to
Harvard Law School's Berkman Center for Internet and Society.
McLaughlin will continue to work part-time at ICANN to facilitate a
smooth transition, the group said.
McLaughlin began working with ICANN in 1999 as a senior advisor and
staff member until he eventually took the post of
vice-president.
In a statement, ICANN board member Vint Cerf said that the board
was disappointed with the news, but understands the motives behind
the departures. Cerf added that the board will organise a search
committee to seek Lynn's replacement.