Jeff, for your total pleasure, here are some passing comments between
myself and David Conrad only a week ago :)

Count the speculations.

Count the number that came true :)

DIdn't I read IP Numbers and Domain Names would be administered by the new
corporation in the WP??  <smile>  ARIN and IANA the Megerer!

Anyway, here it is ...
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At 09:08 1/06/98 +0800, David wrote:
>Hi,

Hi David, but time you joined in :)

>>To Date IANA has been funded by US Grants and the University ISI.  
>
>paid large chunks of money (APNIC paid US $50,000) to insure the IANA
>continued.  After a bit of backing and filling, the US Government restored
>funding, albeit through the Department of Energy and NASA instead of DARPA.

My gosh, what a tangled web is woven.  (Pardon the pun.)  Seems the USG got
it's dollars in one way or another.

>>extremely near future IANA Inc will be created, with a board of directors
>>and TRUE consumer based costs.  
>
>Haven't seen how costs will be apportioned, nor would I imagine you have,

This is partially true.  There have been a number of comments made in
private groups about how it might be handled. The list concerned has 8
members.  Neither you or I are on that list.

>however guessing that it will be based on end user charging is as good a
>guess as any.

Most approriate if you ask me.

>If the US Gov't was smart (heh), they'd use the intellectual
>infrastructure fund as an endowment and the IANA could live off the

Oh David, dream on!  Anyway wasn't it deemed illegal or something?

>interest.  The registries have proposed that the numbers portion of the
>IANA be funded directly be the registries, thereby continuing the chain of
>bottom-up governance up to the IANA, but whether that occurs (also) remains
>to be seen.

Probablem is the statement issued so far is that NO NEW REIGTRIES will be
created and no new TLDs will be opened.

Probably speculation again, but in all cases to date those who have
commented haven't been far wrong.

But yes, it remains to be seen. We could all be surprised.

>>DOes it now continue to be irrelevant, based on the fact that it will
>>OVERSEAA ALL DNS and, beleive it or not, looks like ARIN may be merged into
>>the one organisation.
>
>Presumably you're saying ARIN and the IANA will be merged into one
>organization?  _Extremely_ unlikely.

I wish that were the case, but I've already seen comments that indicate
ARIN is going to jump at the chance to be merged into IANA Inc, only
because the revenue will be better.  Hidden agendas and all that jazz.
They do exist.

>Sounds like you've been listening to
>flems.  Probably more productive listening to white noise.

<smile> Yes, sometimes I agree, but overall, there have been some very
valuable comments made from other sources.

Still this is the big WEEK!

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