So the initial report of the Vertical integration/ cross
ownership working group is out. You can link to it below. I would like to see
how someone from our constituency who was not deeply involved in the WG reacts.
If I were to write a public comment on this it would include the
following points:
ˇ
It is not 1998 and the main problem in domain name market structure
regulation is not the problem of the .com monopoly. Most new gTLDs will have to
compete fiercely for market share.
ˇ
Vertical integration and cross ownership regulation should not
be made into a barrier to entry that excludes smaller competitors and greatly
restricts the diversity of applicants
ˇ
Express support for “exceptions” allowing vertical integration
or extensive cross ownership for community and linguistic TLDs
ˇ
Express support for “exceptions” allowing vertical integration
or extensive cross ownership when an applicant for a new gTLD does not have
market power
ˇ
Express support for allowing Single Registrant, Single User
(SRSU) top level domains (which would include both .brand names and .ngo type
names
ˇ
One of the strongest forms of consumer protection would be to
allow registries to offer end users perpetual registration
Avri may have several to add to this list
--MM
From:
[log in to unmask] [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Glen de Saint Géry
Sent: Saturday, July 24, 2010 4:12 AM
To: liaison6c
Subject: [liaison6c] Public Comment: Initial Report on Vertical
Integration Between Registrars and Registries
http://www.icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-2-23jul10-en.htm
23 July 2010
The
GNSO Vertical Integration Working Group is seeking comments on its Initial Report
on Vertical Integration Between Registrars and Registries. This Initial
Report [PDF, 731 KB] is
posted for public
comment as a required step in
the GNSO’s Policy Development Process on Vertical Integration between
Registrars and Registries. The Initial Report describes various proposed solutions
for restrictions on vertical integration between registrars and registries for
adoption in the New gTLD Program.
Please
note: The Working Group is working under an
extremely aggressive schedule in order to meet the requirements that have been
placed on it by the GNSO Council and the ICANN Board. The Working Group is
planning to continue its analysis throughout the public comment period.
Reviewers are encouraged to submit comments early to provide the group as much
time as possible to consider them.
The
public comment period ends on 12 August 2010.
Background:
The
GNSO Council has commenced a policy development process (PDP) on the topic of
vertical integration between registrars and registries. The GNSO Council formed
a working group to evaluate whether any policy recommendations should be
developed on the topic of vertical integration between registrars and
registries affecting both new gTLDs and existing gTLDs.
ICANN
is currently in the process of finalizing the implementation details for the
launch of new gTLDs. ICANN has posted four draft applicant guidebooks and a
series of topic papers for public comment describing the manner in which ICANN
proposes to implement this program. These documents include proposals on the
topic of vertical integration and whether cross-ownership restrictions or other
rules related to vertical integration should be adopted to apply to the New
gTLD Program.
The
Initial Report describes several proposals regarding vertical integration that
have been developed and analyzed by the VI Working Group. No proposal has
achieved consensus support within the VI Working Group. These proposals are
included for the purpose of seeking public comment and will be subject to
further analysis and debate as the VI Working Group continues to strive to
develop a consensus position to recommend to the GNSO Council on an expedited
basis.
The
Initial Report published for public comment is a “snapshot” of a
living document that will be revised several times during the public comment
period. Reviewers are encouraged to check on the working-group wiki for the
latest version of this Initial Report.
This
public comment forum is an opportunity to comment on any of the proposed
vertical integration models that are described the Initial Report. The Initial
Report will be posted for a public comment period that closes on 12
August 2010. Comments can be sent to [log in to unmask] and reviewed athttp://forum.icann.org/lists/vi-pdp-initial-report/.
Additional
Information:
To
review the Issues Report on Vertical Integration Between Registries and
Registrars, please refer to http://gnso.icann.org/issues/vertical-integration/report-04dec09-en.pdf [PDF, 254 KB].
The
ICANN Board resolution on Vertical Integration is posted at http://www.icann.org/en/minutes/resolutions-12mar10-en.htm#5.
To
review the charter describing the policy work undertaken by the Vertical
Integration Working Group, please refer to: http://gnso.icann.org/issues/vertical-integration/vi-chartered-objectives-10mar10-en.pdf [PDF, 41 KB].
For
information on the details of the implementation planning activities for new
gTLDs, please refer to the documents posted athttp://www.icann.org/en/topics/new-gtld-program.htm
To
review updates to the Initial Report that may be developed by the VI Working
Group during the public comment period, please refer to the archive of Initial
Report snapshots posted at https://st.icann.org/vert-integration-pdp/index.cgi?initial_report_snapshots.
Staff
responsible:
Margie Milam
Glen
de Saint Géry
GNSO
Secretariat