ICANN

The nonprofit corporation formed to assume responsibility for the IP address space allocation, protocol parameter assignment, domain name system management (DNS), and root server system management functions.

It is ICANN's objective to operate as an open, transparent, and consensus-based body that is broadly representative of the diverse stakeholder communities of the global Internet. ICANN is funded through the many registries and registrars that comprise the global domain name and Internet addressing systems. Some ICANN-accredited registrars provide registration services in the ccTLDs in addition to registering names in .com, .net and .org, however, ICANN does not specifically accredit registrars to provide ccTLD registration services.

Historical perspective: In 2016 the U.S. surrendered the Internet's address book according to the Financial Times. The U.S. government gave up its remaining control over the Internet when it formally handed over control of ICANN, the Internet's naming and addressing system, to an independent international body that was already handling the system under a contract from Washington.