Re: [gnso-vi-feb10] Niche TLDs

[Volker Greimann - Key-Systems GmbH <vgreimann@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

i Robert,

You present very nice starting points for further discussions.
> Under which circumstances would people feel safe in allowing vertical 
> integration for a TLD that serves a small community, like a cultural, 
> linguistic, geographic community?
> Let me start.
>
>     * There should be declared criteria to delimit the community, and
>       adherence to these criteria will be audited by ICANN.
I agree with this assessment, even if it will limit the possible ways a 
TLD can be marketed.
A few examples:
If .org would only allow registrations by bona fide registered 
organizations, would it be a community TLD in this sense?
Would a .paris be registerable by non-parisians? Where will we draw the 
line? Will a definition of the community as "people and organizations 
with interests in Paris" be sufficient?
>     * The registry will be operated as a non profit for the benefit of
>       the community.
This assumes a for-profit cannot also act in the interest of the 
community. I do not subscribe to the belief that a community TLD must be 
NP. As long as the community supports the application, applications 
should be valid.
> The point is that if a registry does fulfill these requirements, they 
> will be granted an exception, and will be allowed to operate without 
> giving equal access to all registrars.
> There might be interesting questions, like:
>
>     * Will they be allowed to use the services of one registrar,
>       selected by them, or not?
Here I will stay firm with my demand for equal access from the start.
>     * What is the maximum number opf names under the TLD?
This is the hard call, as every community is different. .afica may be a 
community TLD by some standards, but attract more applications than a 
.actuallivingastronauts. So where do we set the line. Is the same cutoff 
in the best interest of the communty the TLD is supposed to serve in 
each case? Does a cutoff even make sense?
Best,

Volker