A battle over two letters that led to several directors leaving the .au authority has blown up into a government review.
The not-for-profit .au Domain Administration (auDA) oversees management of Australia's domain code but internal turmoil has plagued the organisation in recent times.
There's also conflict in the industry over plans to quickly introduce domains that don't need .com or .net before .au.
Those changes would open the door to google.au or ebay.au.
Federal Communications Minister Mitch Fifield has announced a review into the governance arrangements for .au.
"It is appropriate to undertake a review of the governance arrangements... given the increasing importance of .au domain to Australia's economy," a spokewoman told AAP in a statement on Thursday.
Company secretary Di Parker this week joined eight directors who have left since June last year.
Chair Stuart Benjamin resigned in July this year ahead of an extraordinary general meeting where a vote of no confidence was expected to pass against him.
At the time, he complained about an organisation that had not changed for a long time.
"Driving transition is hard for the Board, it can sometimes be hard for staff and it's clearly created concerns for some members," Mr Benjamin said in a statement in July.
The man filling the chair in the interim said he welcomed the government review and hoped to maintain and enhance the position of .au as one of the most trusted domain zones in the world.
"It is critical that we have the best possible model for managing the domain and that our risk and mitigation strategies are among the best in the world," interim board chair Erhan Karabardak said.
Public submissions will be allowed before a report in early 2018.
