Some Personal Comments wrt the .BIZ, .INFO and .ORG Registry Contracts

["Michael D. Palage" <Michael@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Dear ICANN Board and Staff:
 
I would like to thank the ICANN Board and staff for the care they have
exercised in connection with seeking public input in connection with the
proposed .INFO, .ORG and .BIZ agreements. As many of you know I am a
consultant to various registration authorities, including Afilias which
currently has its .INFO registry contract pending before the board for
renewal. Notwithstanding this relationship, these comments are in an
individual capacity.
 
First, I would like to echo many of the concerns within the community
about the potential abuse in connection with tiered pricing. Although I
strongly believe that registries should have the ability to provide
tiered pricing, this flexibility must be balanced with contractual
language to protect the reasonable expectation interests of registrants.
I have published a paper on CircleID that I would like to incorporate by
reference
(http://www.circleid.com/posts/tiered_variable_pricing_compromise/)
which I believe strikes the proper balance on this important topic.
 
Second, I would like to address some of the security and stability
concerns as expressed by Jerry Archer. I have tried to articulate these
concerns in a recent post to the GA list, which I would also like to
incorporate by reference, see
http://gnso.icann.org/mailing-lists/archives/ga/msg04751.html.
 
Based upon the large number of public comments submitted via the public
forum, the Board obviously appreciates the importance of this issue
within the community. Given this heightened focus, I would hope that
directors would exercise their right to submit a personal statement on
the record regardless of which way they vote. There is a lot of distrust
within the community regarding the actions of the Board and staff. I
think the extra steps taken in connection with this process have been a
positive step in the right direction, but given the lack of audio
recordings or transcripts of the Board's meetings, the community needs
to know the basis for your vote in connection with this matter. Given
the current state of affairs, a simple "trust us, we made the right
decision" will not cut it. I understand that there are some Board
members that do not feel comfortable elaborating upon their decisions.
However, I would hope that the growing number of directors that have
exercised this right will continue to do so as this is only path upon
which trust between the Board and the community can be restored.
 
Best regards,
 
Michael D. Palage