Web Naming Group Pushes Ahead on Governance Transition

The battle for power over control of Web addresses is heating up as domain names including .com, .org and even .london are losing prominence as traffic funnels through mobile apps, search engines and social networks, Internet experts say.

But representatives from businesses, nonprofit organizations and governments who met in London for the largest-ever meeting of the organization that makes decisions about the names and numbers that make up the Internet's architecture said domain names still serve a core function: proving authenticity. "If I asked my children [when] is the last time you typed a domain name, they probably wouldn't remember," said Fadi Chehadé, president and chief executive officer of Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). Still, he said, a domain name can assure people that they are visiting an authentic site, helping to prevent fraud or counterfeit websites.