VOA慢速英语--非营利组织抗议出售org域名

Major nonprofit organizations are protesting the planned sale of the dot-org internet registry system they belong to.

The groups say the sale of the system to a private investment company could lead to much higher costs to register and keep a domain¹ name. A domain name identifies a website on the internet. The nonprofit groups also say the change could reduce freedoms of speech and expression.

The registration² process for millions of nonprofit groups using websites that end in dot-org is controlled by the U.S.-based Internet Society, or ISOC. But in November, the Internet Society announced it was selling control to Ethos Capital. It is a private investment company based on the island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean.

Hundreds of organizations have objected to the plan. Top nonprofit groups like Greenpeace and Amnesty International have called for the $1.1 billion sale to be blocked.

Last week, the directors of 10 leading nonprofit groups published an open letter during the World Economic Forum³ (WEF) meeting in Davos, Switzerland. The letter urged the Internet Society and ICANN, the internet's governing body, to intervene to stop the sale.

"Should the governance and stewardship⁴ of .ORG end up under the control of private or other actors that could lead to financial or other barriers, that would irreparably harm global civil society," the letter read.

The Internet Society said in a joint⁵ statement with Ethos Capital that Ethos had promised to limit any cost increases to a yearly average of 10 percent. The statement added that existing agreements with ICANN contain limitations to prevent an internet registry from selling information about registered organizations.

The statement rejected suggestions that the new system would lead to spying or censorship of online material. "Ethos and [the Internet Society] take freedom of expression very seriously, and the registry's commitment to free speech will continue unabated."

Brett Solomon is the director of Access Now, a group that supports policies to keep the internet open and free. He told Reuters the sale could force smaller organizations with less money off the internet. In addition, he worries about the level of control handed over to the new owner of the registry system.

"They have a capacity to take somebody off the .org domain, which means they can censor⁶, they can monitor, they can deny," Solomon said. "And all these issues are very, very important for organizations who are challenging governments and are challenging powerful interests," he added.

A small demonstration⁷ was recently held at the ICANN offices in Los Angeles to protest the planned sale. The demonstrators presented a letter signed by 35,000 supporters that urges ICANN to block the deal.

ICANN's chairman, Maarten Botterman, came outside with some other board members to meet with protesters. He told The Associated Press that ICANN is in the process of examining the effects of the sale. He said the organization was also looking to find guarantees to offer concerned dot-org registrants.

Words in This Story

domain – n. the part of an email or website address that shows the name of the organization that the address belongs to

stewardship – n. the job of supervising or taking care of something, such as an organization or property

irreparably – adv. in a way that is impossible to repair

unabated – adj. without weakening in strength or force

capacity – n. the ability to do, experience or understand something

monitor – v. to watch something carefully

challenging – adj. testing one's abilities; demanding

1 domain   

n.(活动等)领域，范围；领地，势力范围

参考例句：

• This information should be in the public domain.这一消息应该为公众所知。
• This question comes into the domain of philosophy.这一问题属于哲学范畴。

2 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

3 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

4 stewardship   

n. n. 管理工作；管事人的职位及职责

参考例句：

• The organization certainly prospered under his stewardship. 不可否认，这个组织在他的管理下兴旺了起来。
• Last, but certainly not least, are the issues of stewardship and ethics. 最后，但当然不是微不足道的，是工作和道德规范的问题。

5 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

6 censor   

n./vt.审查，审查员；删改

参考例句：

• The film has not been viewed by the censor.这部影片还未经审查人员审查。
• The play was banned by the censor.该剧本被查禁了。

7 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。