*http://domainincite.com/europe-and-us-to-meet-on-xxx-and-new-tlds/ * * European Commissioner Neelie Kroes is to meet with the US Department of Commerce, a month after she asked it to delay the launch of the .xxx top-level domain.* Tomorrow, Kroes will meet with Larry Strickling, assistant secretary of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, according to a press release <http://europa.eu/rapid/showInformation.do?pageName=middayExpress&guiLanguage=en>:This follows the controversial decision of the ICANN Board in March to approve the ".XXX" Top Level Domain for adult content. Ms Kroes will make clear European views on ICANN's capacity to reform. In particular, Ms Kroes will raise ICANN's responsiveness to governments raising public policy concerns in the ICANN Governmental Advisory Council [Committee] (GAC) , the transparency and accountability of ICANN's internal corporate governance and the handling of country-code Top Level Domains for its most concerned public authorities. In April, Kroes asked Strickling's boss, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, to put a hold <http://domainincite.com/europe-did-ask-the-us-to-delay-xxx/> on the addition of .xxx to the domain name system root until the GAC had chance to discuss it further. Strickling declined <http://domainincite.com/did-europe-ask-america-to-block-xxx/>, saying that for the US to take unilateral action over the root would provide ammunition to its critics in the international community. The US and EC are two of the most active and vocal participants in the GAC -- at least in public. Whatever conclusions Strickling and Kroes come to tomorrow are likely to form the basis of the GAC's short-term strategy as negotiations about new TLDs continue. ICANN's board is scheduled to meet with the GAC on May 20, for an attempt to come to some final conclusions about the new gTLD program, particularly in relation to trademark protection. ICANN wants to approve the program's Applicant Guidebook on June 20, but is likely to face resistance from governments, especially the US. Strickling has indicated that he may use the upcoming renewal of ICANN's IANA contract as leverage <http://domainincite.com/us-wants-to-delay-new-tlds/> to get the GAC a stronger voice in ICANN's decision-making process. <http://domainincite.com/europe-and-us-to-meet-on-xxx-and-new-tlds/> --