The .ORG domain registry won’t be sold!

Press Release From Open Media:

In a huge win for the Internet, ICANN has announced that it’s blocking the sale of the .ORG domain registry to Ethos Capital, a private equity firm¹. The sale would have transformed all the non-profit and charitable organizations that rely on their .ORG domains into the cash cows of a for-profit company. 

But thanks to the more than 25,000 members of the OpenMedia community that spoke out against the deal², ICANN is blocking the sale, citing “global public interest” as a major factor in their decision. You can read more about their reasons for stopping the deal on our blog.

While the future of the .ORG domain registry remains uncertain, we at OpenMedia are hopeful that it will continue to be operated by a mission-based, non-profit, as it has been for the last 20 years. But if we learn that isn’t going to be the case, we’ll pick up the fight again. 

To help us be ready, please consider donating today. If you’ve already donated, thank you!

From everyone at OpenMedia, thank you for rallying together, supporting non-profit and charitable organizations, and for protecting the interests of an open and free Internet.

Bryan at OpenMedia

Donate Now

P.S. The best kind of support we can receive is consistent funding, so that we’re able to successfully plan ahead. If you’re able, would you consider becoming a monthly donor with OpenMedia?

Footnotes:

1. ICANN Board Withholds Consent for a Change of Control of the Public Interest Registry, ICANN 

Sign the petition to save dot org, OpenMedia