Comments regarding the proposed settlement with verisign

["Matt Sturtz" <msturtz@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello,

I am a reseller of Tucows, on their OpenSRS platform, and received a
notice from them regarding the pending settlement.

First, I don't understand why you would allow Verisign to actually
increase the fees it charges registrars.  While the number of registered
domains may be going up, technology, internet bandwidth, and storage are
all getting cheaper.  In my opinion, in today's world, if they have a 7%
per year increase in costs, they are clearly doing something wrong.  I
strongly suspect there are a variety of companies that are more than
willing, let alone able, to handle the operation of the registry for the
same cost, or even less, than Verisign is currently charging.  These
increases translate directly into higher costs paid by consumers, be they
businesses or individuals.  Paying more money for exactly the same service
doesn't make sense to me.  For a reseller like myself, this may mean the
difference between getting the deal and loosing the deal.

Second, although related, how can you possibly justify allowing them
effectively perpetual rights to the contract?  Not that I believe Verisign
is doing a particularly bad job today (although I'm sure you'll hear from
people who do have some opinions about that), but certainly it'll keep
them honest if they know they may loose the deal next time the contract is
up.  That's how business works -- if you don't measure up, you're likely
to be replaced by somebody who will.  Nothing good can come from
guaranteeing them the contract for as long as they want it.  I strongly
advise against giving up this very important part of the contract.

Thank you,

-Matt Sturtz-