Right. www.computerworld.com/article/3552... has comment from IANA/ ICANN, and it's very non-committal...

Is the .io top level domain headed for extinction?

The possibility exists following UK diplomatic deal with Mauritius, says digital strategist.

.su domain still exists despite Soviet Union non-existing for what, 30 years?

The forces of capitalism would never let it be deprecated.

"...there are multiple potential outcomes depending on the nature of the change...[one] may involve ensuring there is an operational nexus with Mauritius to meet certain policy requirements. Should .io no longer be retained as a coding...it could trigger a five-year retirement process..."

The big players are gonna call them and say UCANT