Noted Internet expert Dr. Xiaodong Lee of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has been selected as ICANN’s Vice President for Asia.

Rod Beckstrom, ICANN President and Chief Executive Officer called Lee’s appointment “an important development for ICANN, for China and for all of Asia.”

“Dr. Lee has an impressive history of achievement, and respect for him reaches far beyond China’s borders,” said Beckstrom. “His broad range of knowledge and expertise will make a major contribution to ICANN and to the future of the global Internet. It is a visible demonstration of ICANN’s commitment to fully engage globally.”

Beckstrom announced Dr. Lee’s appointment in Beijing during an event aimed at increasing global awareness of ICANN’s new generic Top-Level Domain (gTLD) program, which is scheduled to begin accepting applications for the new domain names on 12 January.

Dr. Lee was born in the Shandong Province of China, the home of Confucius. After graduating from Shandong University, he joined the Chinese Academy of Sciences where he obtained Masters and PhD degrees in Computer Sciences, and also had the distinction of being one of the youngest professors.

In 2008 he was named as one of the “Ten Outstanding Youth in China’s software industry.” A year later, he was awarded the “China Outstanding Youth Medal,” one of the highest honors China can bestow upon a young person. Most recently, Xiaodong Lee served as the Deputy Director General and Chief Technology Officer of CNNIC.

“I am proud to join an international organization like ICANN,” said Dr. Lee. “ICANN’s role in shaping the history of the Internet is undeniable, as its role in shaping the Internet’s future.”

Former ICANN Board member Harald Alvestrand added, “Xiaodong Lee has been working in the Internet for a long time, and has been an influential contributor in the process that led to our current standards and procedures for international domain names. He knows the technology and the people who work with it very well.”

“Dr. Lee’s appointment comes at a critical time in ICANN’s history,” said Beckstrom. Acknowledging nearly half of all internet users are in Asia, Beckstrom said, “This appointment sends a powerful signal that ICANN recognizes the importance of the new gTLD program to China’s and Asia’s online future.”

Dr. Lee assumes his new position on Monday, 12 December.

This ICANN news release was sourced from:
www.icann.org/en/news/releases/release-08dec11-en.pdf