If .au opens up (and .net.au etc is kept, with com.au getting .au (for
example)), what is to stop companies from becoming 2LD Registrars. So if
"Bob" registered bank.au, then he could effectively run his own 2LD. Some
might argue that it is a free market, so be it. However, it fundamentally
devalues the existing 2LDs and can cause confusion in the marketplace (as
au.com did). 
 
If we open up .au, then 2LDs need to be scrapped. The challenge with that
is, how do you reconcile who gets abc.au (for example). 
 
One argument might be that the Broadcaster gets abc.tv.au instead. Which in
my opinion is fundamentally flawed and it takes back to the current
situation (abc.net.au).  
 
The question about 2LDs needs to be resolved with a clear strategy before
opening up to register at .au level, regardless of the market demand. 
 
If companies can run tv.au (for example) as a 2LD and basically sell sub
domains, then .net.au and .org.au become irrelevant. The suggestion below of
more 2LDs has more relevance than simply opening up .au for registration
based upon market demand or a better country brand that divorces us from the
.com. 
 
However will more 2LDs do it? Maybe not, as it is clear that with only
900,000 names registered (compared to the millions at TLD), demand has not
outstripped supply. Meaning we have enough .com.au (and other 2LDs) to
sustain market growth, which would mean the need to open up 2LD is not
clear. 
 
It becomes a circular argument. We need to identify how we are going to
handle the effective opening up of 2LD (as a result of registering in .au)
and the conflict of which company with seemingly equal rights, gets the .au,
and then the discussion can take form. 
 
Cheers
 
Marty


  _____  

From: dns-bounces+marty=domaincandy.com.au§dotau.org
[mailto:dns-bounces+marty=domaincandy.com.au§dotau.org] On Behalf Of
info§enigmaticminds.com.au
Sent: Friday, 29 June 2007 12:24 PM
To: .au DNS Discussion List
Subject: Re: [DNS] Australia registers more .au than .com domains


To point things in a completely different direction, rather than moving to
the model of direct registration of .au domains, which in effect closes the
.au namespace to any further 2LDs, I think it makes far more sense to open
the .au namespace up even further by introducing more 2LDs.

For example, a model based on industry classification - i.e.
name.industry.au

For example:
- anz.bank.au
- abc.tv.au
- mmm.radio.au
- bigpond.isp.au
- telstra.tel.au / telstra.telco.au
- johns.plumbing.au

The greater the number of 2LDs and the more specific they are, the more open
the .au namespace is, the greater the room to grow and more importantly, the
fewer IP issues and domain conflicts. There is no conflict between
xyz.bank.au and xyz.plumbing.au but there is when both want xyz.com.au

Andrew



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