[gnso-dnt-com] update for today's call

["liz.gasster" <liz.gasster@xxxxxxxxx>]

All,

 

Following is in response to the two questions I was asked on the last
tasting call: 

 

1. the staff proposal that will be considered as part of the initial draft
budget is simply to make the $.20 fee non-refundable. Nothing further.

 

2. As for the previously referred to "interim solution", initially staff
considered raising this action separately with the Board's Finance
Committee, but given the timing of the budget and the need for public input
on this action, including it in the budget turned out to be the most
expeditious path forward. 

 

In addition, you may also be aware that on 23 Jan. the Board approved the
following resolution:

 

Whereas, the current version of all gTLD registry contracts provides for a
five-calendar-day Add Grace period (AGP) following the initial registration
of a domain during which a domain may be deleted and the sponsoring
Registrar will be credited for the amount of the registration fee (see,
e.g.,
http://www.icann.org/tlds/agreements/verisign/appendix-07-01mar06.htm);

Whereas, the AGP was originally created to allow domain names that had been
accidentally registered to be cancelled; 

Whereas, the practice of "domain tasting," by which names are registered and
then deleted during the AGP, has grown at a very great rate since 2005, with
tens of millions of domains registered and deleted each month; 

Whereas, it is apparent that the AGP is being used for purposes for which it
was not intended;

Whereas, abuse of the AGP is, in the opinion of the majority of respondents
whose statements were collected by the GNSO Ad Hoc Group on Domain Name
Tasting (4 October 2007 report), producing disadvantages in the form of
consumer confusion and potential fraud that outweigh the benefits of the
AGP;

Whereas, the GNSO Council on 31 October 2007 resolved to launch a PDP on
Domain Tasting and to encourage staff to apply ICANN's fee collections to
names registered and subsequently de-registered during the AGP;

Whereas, it is the Board's view that abuses of the AGP should speedily be
halted, while the positive benefits of the AGP to consumers should be
retained;

Whereas, the positive benefits of the AGP may include, among other things,
avoiding fraud and monitoring, testing and development of registrars'
provisioning, production and/or merchant gateway systems; 

Whereas, the Board believes that the withdrawal of ICANN's waiver of ICANN's
non-refundable transaction fee to the deletion of names within the AGP will
substantially end the practice of abusing the AGP; 

THEREFORE, the Board resolves (2008.01.04) to encourage ICANN's budgetary
process to
include fees for all domains added, including domains added during the AGP,
and encourages community discussion involved in developing the ICANN budget,
subject to both Board approval and registrar approval of this fee. 

A voice vote was taken of all Board Members present and the motion was
approved by a vote of 13-0. Bruce Tonkin abstained from voting on this item.


 

Thanks, Liz