.ASIA and .CAT are both proposals to represent regional and/or cultural areas through a sponsored top-level domain, and they're on completely opposite sides of the spectrum. Catalonia is exactly the sort of small, specifically defined area for which a sponsored TLD is perfect, while Asia is the largest, most populated area in the world. Is a "sponsored" TLD appropriate for both? As regional areas, both proposals also brush up against the concept of ccTLDs. Personally, I hope they are both accepted. But if they are, I would expect that the idea of carefully defined countries, governments, and boundaries on the Internet -- now embodied in the country codes -- quickly will give way to an incredible diversity of regional and cultural sTLDs. That's not a bad thing. How about .ONEWORLD?
The decision on .XXX may be one of the most difficult ICANN has ever made, and you can expect ICANN to be criticized whatever it decides. I imagine that many of the countries participating in the GAC aren't ready to be part of a decision that will endorse a space for pr0n on the Internet. The fact that .XXX could be a political hook on which the governments of the world could hang Internet zoning laws could make the decision more palatable, but it's still a political minefield for ICANN. Again, I hope the proposal is accepted, but it's going to take a great deal of courage to do that.
