Hello Vic,

> 
> isnt it time we ended this farce and let people do what they 
> want with the names they own? if you can sell car licence 
> plates or phone numbers why cant you sell domain names. 

I agree.   You could also add fishing licences, taxi licences etc to the
list above.

It is time to review this policy.

I see no reason why a domain name licence cannot be transferred to
another party.

I think the domain name registrar should review the eligibility of the
new licence holder before completing the change of ownership.

I see no difference between:

Register domain name licence to party A after eligibility check
Party A cancels domain name licence
Register domain name licence to party B after eligibility check

And

Register domain name licence to Party A
Party A requests a transfer of licence to Party B
Registrar completes licence transfer to Party B, after eligibility check

If we want to be extra careful, you may require the registry to publish
a list of pending licence transfers, and allow the intellectual property
lawyers to monitor the list and raise objections under some sort of UDRP
process.  Another protection against various forms of fraud/hijacking
etc would be to put some time limits on when a transfer can occur (e.g
at least 60 days past initial registration, and 60 days past the last
registrant transfer).

The policy framework developed to protect registrants in transfers of
registrar could be used for transfers of registrant.

With respect to generic names which were auctioned sometime ago - I see
no rason why a current licence holder should not be allowed to transfer
their licence.

Regards,
Bruce Tonkin