From: technews <technews@ou.edu>
To: "'it-fyi@listserv.ou.edu'" <it-fyi@lists.ou.edu>
Subject: it-fyi: Internet Group Approves Domain Registration Rules (NY Tim
Date: Fri, 5 Nov 1999 08:43:24 -0600
November 5, 1999
Internet Group Approves Domain Registration Rules
Ends Monopoly Over Popular `.Com' Suffix
By JERI CLAUSING
LOS ANGELES -- The Internet's governing board today approved terms for
opening the network's address registration businesses to full-scale
competition. Enactment of the landmark document ends the six-year monopoly
that enriched Network Solutions Inc (http://www.networksolutions.com).
Just as important, it marks a victory for the oversight group, the Internet
Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN (http://www.icann.org),
whose first year has been rocked by dissention and controversy.
ICANN unanimously approved the agreement, which spells out the terms under
which Network Solutions will open its business to the more than 80 companies
around the world already approved to compete in the registration of Internet
addresses, or domains, thatend in the popular .com, .net and .org suffixes.
Breaking Network Solutions' monopoly was the key charge ICANN was given when
the Clinton Administration appointed the nonprofit group last year to take
over the administrative functions of the Internet's domain name system.
A handfull of companies have already begun competing with Network Solutions
as part of a pilot. But final approval of the hard-fought agreement to bring
the company under ICANN's oversight finally paves the way for full-scale
international competition in the business, which has made Networks Solutions
hundreds of millions of dollars.
"I think this is a tremendous boost to ICANN's stability," said Becky Burr,
a senior Commerce Department adviser who has been overseeing the contentious
process for moving Internet administration from United States government
contractors to the international Internet community.
The agreement also gives the cash-strapped ICANN, which does not yet have a
means of support, an immediate infusion of $1.25 million from Network
Solutions.
Ms. Burr predicted that the agreement would give consumers and businesses
around the world lower prices, better service and a host of new options in
registering Internet addresses.
Having Network Solutions finally agree to recognize ICANN's authority was
crucial because Network Solutions not only has registered the bulk of the
more 6 million Internet addresses already assigned; it has also developed
the network infrastructure and databases that translate addresses like
www.nytimes.com into the long strings of numbers, or I.P. addresses, by
which computers find each other.
During a public hearing on Wednesday, a group of the companies wanting to
compete with Network Solutions lined up at the microphones to complain that
the agreement gave the Herndon, Va., company too many competitive advantages
and would essentially guarantee its continued monopoly in the registration
of .com, .net and .org domains. They asked for seven changes or the defeat
the contracts, which had taken Network Solutions, ICANN and the Department
of Commerce nearly a year to negotiate.
Though some feared that any changes would send the contentious process back
to the drawing board or, even worse, would result in drawn-out litigation
that could threaten the stability of the Internet, the differing sides
worked all night to reach compromises on the areas of concern.
ICANN, currently run by 10 directors appointed by a small group of Internet
insiders, has been repeatedly criticized for ignoring the public in favor of
well-financed special interest groups and large companies.
"I hope now we can stop fighting and start cooperating," said Hans
Kraaijenbrink, a board member from the Netherlands.
Mike Roberts, ICANN's interim president, said that public and private
interests were well balanced in the final document. "The challenge in front
of us now is to admit that we made mistakes and look to the future," he
said. "We need to continue to balance the public and private interests, and
this open process that we have observed here is the way to do it."
While some of the new registrars said they were still not pleased with
aspects of the contract, they said they were satisfied that ICANN had
listened to them and had properly addressed their concerns.
"This is an ICANN rite of passage," said Richard Forman, president of
Register.com (http://www.register.com), a New York company that was the
first test participant to begin competing with the Network Solutions.
"I think it is good that they took our issues seriously and came back with
solutions to some of them. The devil is in the details, though."
The new registrars complained that the agreement did not contain strong
enough guarantees of the service levels Network Solutions will provide the
companies in return for the fees Network Solutions will collect to operate
the registry. The new agreement calls for Network Solutions and the
registrars to work together to incorporate such guarantees into the
contract.
They had also complained that while they were being required to take payment
up front from prospective domain name registrants, Network Solutions had
four months to change from a credit-based system to immediate payments. To
compromise, Network Solutions agreed that it would not drop its $70
registration fee on all registrations within four months.
The prepayment provision was adopted by ICANN in an effort to crack down on
cybersquatting, the term for speculating in Internet addresses by buying
popular domain names with the hopes of selling them later for a huge profit.
Many cybersquatters secured names through Network Solutions on credit in
hopes of selling them before the bill came due, then let unsold names expire
for nonpayment.
The competitors also said the agreement gave Network Solutions more power
than other ICANN members in influencing and challenging ICANN policy-making,
particularly in setting the fees the companies will have to pay to help
finance ICANN's operations.
This week's annual meeting included nine new board members, who were elected
recently by ICANN's business and technical membership groups. The interim
directors will be replaced next year after a general membership of
individual Internet users is developed.
Developing that membership, and deciding how to add new top-level domains to
the Internet are the next big issues for ICANN. To help the membership
building process, the Markle Foundation (http://www.markle.org) on Monday
donated $200,000 to ICANN and another $300,000 to a contingent of public
interest groups to help ensure that the group fairly represents individual
interests and that a fair and open voting process is established.