All,

Just to clarify the position. 

Registrars are required to satisfy themselves that the application meets
with auDA's policy. We provide guidelines to assist with that.

Some of you, it appears, believe the policy is stricter than it actually
is. If you want to get a clear understanding see
http://www.auda.org.au/docs/auda-2002-07.txt. 

In respect to the close and substantial connection rule in com.au  it
says:

"c) be otherwise closely and substantially connected to the registrant,
because the domain name refers to.
(i) a product that the registrant manufactures or sells; or
(ii) a service that the registrant provides; or
(iii) an event that the registrant organises or sponsors; or
(iv) an activity that the registrant facilitates, teaches or trains; or
(v) a venue that the registrant operates; or
(vi) a profession that the registrant's employees practise."


Now, suppose I am an individual involved in the financial services
industry. There are several ways in which I can secure a number of
relevant domain names. 

Firstly I could register a number of business names including the words
I want such as Chris's Stock-market Advisory Service or Chris's
Investment Strategy and so on. These would entitle me to the domain
names 'stockmarket.com.au' and 'inestment.com.au' and if the registrar
does their job properly then each of the business names will NOT  appear
as the registrant for each of the domain names but I will. This is
because a registered business name makes the owner of that  name
eligible for the domain name but cannot be the licensee of a domain
name. (I realise that in some cases this policy has not been followed
but we are taking action to ensure that the database is corrected over
time). So I might appear as the registrant of numerous seemingly
unconnected domain names because I have registered business names for
each of them.

Secondly, I could apply for multiple names under the close and
substantial rule set out above. NOTE that the domain name needs to REFER
to a product I sell or service I provide. So I might apply for
analysts.com.au as referring to a service I provide on the basis that
analysts provide me with investment strategy advice I give to me
customers.

There is nothing intrinsically wrong with a registrant holding multiple
domain names. Let's get clear here. The main concern, I think, is that
domain name speculation will happen. The solution to that is NOT to
prevent multiple registrations but to ensure that the transfer of domain
names is allowed only under certain specific circumstances. In that
respect:

1. There is currently an interim policy covering this (see
http://www.auda.org.au/docs/auda-2002-18.txt) and a more comprehensive
policy is being developed. 

2. auDA follows up each and every attempted 'sale' of a domain name with
a formal letter requiring the offer to be terminated. Failure to respond
results in the name being placed in pending delete and this usually
results in a response giving the undertakings required. 

3. A transfer or change of registrant in the database can only be done
by the registry and only with auDA's consent.

Finally, in circumstances where auDA discovers that a registrant has
breached the warrant given at the time of registration auDA has to power
to revoke the domain name licence.

Regards,

Chris Disspain
CEO - auDA
ceo§auda.org.au
www.auda.org.au


-----Original Message-----
From: Michael-Pappas [mailto:auda§michael-pappas.com] 
Sent: Friday, 4 October 2002 11:58
To: dns§lists.auda.org.au
Subject: Re: [DNS] And The Winner Is!

Vic wrote:

> a registrars job is not to call customers liars, if a customer
warrants
> they have a product or service that is a close and substantial
> connection to a domain name they have to give it to them.


But it is also a registrar job to obtain and collect all relevant
details
to substantiate the claim, if it's not easily defined at face value,
(which some, if not most of these geberic registrations seems to be) the
registrar can and should collect details, on record, that the registrant
is eligible for the domain name.

There is obviously something wrong if a claim is made by one business
that
the do everything from computers to toothpicks or whatever it may be. As
was raised previously, (sorry can remember of hand who but you know who
you are) claims like this can clash with industries standards and are a
conflicts of interest, just on this fact registrars should be wary of
the
registrant and there claims.

Seeking out more information will only help if there is an audit by the
auDA and I'm sure that if registered domains get revoked under the
registrar agreement the specific registrar will loose out more than the
serial registrant.. or what ever we want to call them.

Regards,


Michael-Pappas.



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