Factual error in registry failure report

["Edward Hasbrouck" <edward@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

This message is in response to the request at:

http://www.icann.org/announcements/announcement-4-01jun07.htm

for comments and feedback on the report, "Building Towards a Comprehensive 
gTLD Registry Failover Plan," at:

http://www.icann.org/registries/reports/registry-failover-01jun07.htm

Section 4.2 of the Registry Failover Plan report refers to "the current 
.AERO sponsorship agreement."

This reference in the report is factually incorrect, because there is no 
"current" .AERO sponsorship agreement.

The original AERO Sponsorship Agreement was effective 17 December 2001, 
for a 5-year term:

http://www.icann.org/tlds/agreements/sponsored/sponsorship-agmt-
05nov04.htm

Section 5.1 of that agreement provides:

"5.1.1 The Expiration Date shall be five years after the Effective Date.

"5.1.2 Sponsor acknowledges and agrees that, unless ICANN and Sponsor 
enter a new agreement continuing Sponsor's status as Sponsor of the 
Registry TLD, Sponsor will cease to be the Sponsor for the Sponsored TLD 
upon the earlier of (a) the Expiration Date or (b) termination of this 
Agreement by ICANN pursuant to Subsection 5.4....

"5.1.4. Sponsor acknowledges and agrees that, except as expressly provided 
by this Agreement, it shall not acquire any right in the Sponsored TLD by 
virtue of its Sponsorship of the Sponsored TLD or the provision of 
Registry Services in the Sponsored TLD."

The original .AERO agreement expired 17 December 2006.

There has been no publicly-disclosed action of ICANN to renew or extend 
this agreement, or to approve any new .AERO sponsorship agreement.

Therefore, the original sponsor of .AERO has ceased to be the sponsor of 
.AERO, and no longer no longer has any right in .AERO.  There is no longer 
any sponsor, registry operator, or other entity with any contractual 
relationship or obligation to ICANN with respect to .AERO.  This limits 
and complicates ICANN's ability to ensure registry continuity. 

ICANN should correct the factual error in the report by removing the 
reference to "the current .AERO sponsorship agreement", or changing it to 
refer to "the original, now expired .AERO sponsorship agreement."

And ICANN should add to its registry plan a discussion of how to ensure 
registry continuity when a TLD sponsorship agreement expires without 
renewal, extension, or the conclusion of a new agreement, as has now 
happened for .AERO, .COOP, and .MUSEUM.


----------------
Edward Hasbrouck
<edward@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
<http://hasbrouck.org>
+1-415-824-0214