非拉丁语网络域名获批

The body in charge of assigning the world's Internet users their online addresses on Friday said it had agreed to allow the use of any of the world's scripts, no longer just the Latin alphabet.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which approved the change at a meeting in Seoul, said in a statement it could lead to a dramatic rise in the number of Internet users.

"This is only the first step, but it is an incredibly big one and an historic move toward the internationalization of the Internet," ICANN's President and CEO Rod Beckstrom was quoted as saying.

"We have just made the Internet much more accessible to millions of people in regions such as Asia, the Middle East and Russia."

The program will be rolled out in stages, starting November 16.

Initially, it will allow internationalized domain names (IDNs) using scripts such as Chinese, Korean or Arabic for the country code designators at the end of an address name.

Eventually, the use of IDNs will be expanded to all types of Internet address names.

ICANN was set up in 1998 and operated under the aegis of the U.S. Commerce Department. It decides what names can be added to the Internet's top level domains (TLDs) such as .com as well as country designations.

Last month, the U.S. government agreed to changes that in effect meant ICANN would no longer report solely to the United States.

负责向全世界的互联网用户分配在线地址的机构于上周五宣布，已批准互联网域名使用除拉丁语外的世界其它文字。

国际互联网名称与编号分配公司（ICANN）在首尔召开的一次会议上正式通过了这一改革方案。该机构在一份声明中说，这一改变会引起互联网用户数量的激增。

ICANN总裁和首席执行官罗德．贝克斯特罗姆被援引称：“这只是一个开端，但却是极其重要的一步，是迈向互联网国际化的历史性之举。”

“通过此举，可以让亚洲、中东和俄罗斯等地的广大用户更便捷地访问互联网。”

ICANN将于本月16日开始接受非拉丁域名的申请，并将分阶段落实该计划。

在最初阶段，该机构将允许国际化域名在地址结尾使用用汉语、韩语或阿拉伯语表示的国家域名。

最终，所有的互联网地址都可用这种方式来表示。

ICANN创立于1998年，受美国商务部管辖。该机构主要决定什么名字可加入顶级域名，如.com和国家域名等。

上月，ICANN已获准独立于美国政府之外，不再受美国“独家”控制。

Vocabulary:

roll out: to launch (a new film, product, etc.) in a series of stages over an area, each stage involving an increased number of outlets 分阶段展开

aegis: guidance, direction, or control 管制