Bruce,

>> This will cause the current registrars, melb it, connect, etc etc to
>> affectivly hold records and keep the market share, not really
>> opening up
>> the market at all.
>>
>
> I am not sure what you mean here.

1st Example of what I am trying to show would be...

Domain name: example.com.au (could be a .net.au for argument sake)
Gets registered via reseller today: 1/5/2002
expires 1/5/2004

After the go live date the domain name example.com.au is held with you
guys. The domain name reseller decides to become a registrar. All existing
clients/registrants are now forced to renew/reregister the domain name as
new via their preferred reseller turned registrar.

So affectively the registrant has just lost over 1 years registrations fee.

There is the option that the changed company can keep up both accounts and
change the domain names over the two year period.. admin work in this is
very messy and not cost effective.

2nd Example would be where the domain name holder is not happy with the
service and may only be 1/2 or 1 year into registration period. Already
they are out of pocket in $$$$, time and a headache to boot.

They search out a a compeitior they like and want to move.

Then the answer they get, "oh, that great you want to move to us, we can do
this but you have to pay us the total fee for a new two year registration.
Which may be more or less for another new 2 year registration.

> As I understand it, a registrant has paid for a 2 year service
> agreement either directly with Melbourne IT, or they have paid an agent
> (reseller) to act on their behalf and pay Melbourne IT.
>
> They have already paid up front for this 2 year period, and are
> continuing to receive the service they have paid for.  If they are not
> receiving the service they have paid for then they can complain to
> auDA.

I don't think that this is a current point. If it's a .com.au reseller they
would be complaining to Melb IT. Once competiting registrars start, it will
be the registrar the reseller chooses not the auDA although this will
happen and the auDA will simply ask the registrar to look at their
resellers activities, accounts may be suspended, canceled or what ever
arangments that registrar has.

If is about a registrar, it will then be ACCC and the auDA actions the
final blow. As we have just that seen happen.

> As I understand it, competition occurs in two places:
> (1) At the time a registrant registers a new domain
> (2) At the time a registrant needs to renew their domain name licence

  (3) During Registration license periods.

> In each of these cases the registrant must pay a fee, and make their
> decision of which supplier to use based on the prices and services
> available from the competing companies, as they do now.
>
> In the case of (2) they can either renew their existing licence with
> Melbourne IT or a reseller of Melbourne IT, or they can choose a new
> registrar and receive a domain name licence for 2 years with different
> terms and conditions.
>
> Thus at the time the new registry goes live, both areas (1) and (2)
> above will be subject to competition at the registrar level as well as
> the reseller level (which already occurs).

In the case of (3) companies may wish to move domain names over to a new
registrar for all domain names and not have domains all over the place.
This will see people moving all domains into one registrar so admin and the
mess of management is simplified. Registrar services may not be known to at
the time of renewal and the easy option may be taken to ensure for this
time that the domain name is not lost.

So basically we are scraping the idea that registrants are allowed to move
registrars and saying that they can change by canceling a domain name
record with one registrar and then registraring the same domain name as new
with another. In fact this does not even see like a transfer but more like
the current "terminate and re-apply" registrations for change of company
details when there is not change other than where the record is held.

The current proposal will hold then to the current registrar and not out of
choice.

> Transfers are available between resellers now.  Most of these occur at
> the time of renewal, and the ones that occur outside that renewal
> period are usually the result of misleading conduct (e.g quoting
> incorrect expiry dates, pretending to be the original supplier etc).
> The basis misleading approach is to charge the registrant for a service
> which they
> have already paid for (e.g to "manage" their domain for them), and then
> try to charge them again at the time of renewal.  Charging a registrar
> for a transfer transaction, as well
> as a renewal and domain creation, ensures that the registrar provides
> genuine service to the
> registrant.

Here you seem to be implying that to become a registrar means that you will
and do have the inclination to act improperly on behalf of people who
choose that specific registrar/reseller.

These safe guards don't seem to be there to ensure registrant get what they
want but to rather protect the existing registrars, not to mention gaining
record creation fees for the registry.

 > The special cases where a transfer is legitimately needed by a
> registrant in the middle of an existing licence can be dealt with
> separately (e.g by a complaints process).  If this becomes a
> significant issue we can change the procedures.
>

Special case clause 6.2 which is fine.. but what constitutes a special
case.. auDA may want to elaborate on this.

Does this include change over of domain names in a resellers control to
then as a registrar? Or a reseller of one registrar to the same reseller of
a differing registrar?

> The argument over whether a customer is more likely to stay with the
> original provider of
> a service, and not elsewhere applies to any competitive market.
> Most people don't change unless they are receiving poor customer
> service, or the competing offers are much better.
> Just look at the loyalty of customers to holden cars etc, despite alot
> of choice in the marketplace.

Totally agree, if a consumer in any market has no problem with current
service they generally won't look elsewhere. But there are the consumers
that find new information and become educated consumers where there was no
choice in the first place.

We have to see that this is a new competitive market between registrars.

Best Regards,

Michael-Pappas.


>
>
> Regards,
> Bruce Tonkin
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
> List policy, unsubscribing and archives =>
> http://www.auda.org.au/list/dns/ Please do not retransmit articles on
> this list without permission of the  author, further information at the
> above URL.  (310 subscribers.)