Dear Friends,I'm back
in the fray. In some respects, the odds are not good folks. The
Land Rush is upon us without constructive action. Many registrars seem to be
purging pre-reg information. Additional charges appear out of nowhere.
There are pockets of integrity, but many parties involved do pretty much whatever
they please -- banking on the disorganization and scattered nature of Land Rushers
-- and the lack of general public interest in what is to many an arcane "speculator"
issue. I found Slicer wearisome, but he may have been right in some respects
in that what we write here may have little impact. If we wish to make a real
difference, we need to have a sober and realistic view of what we are up against
and what can be done. However, Antipodes is right in that if we give up on righting
this wrong, we can not expect others to speak up. There are still pockets of
public interest in this issue and Afilias could still implement a Land Rush II which
could use existing pre-reg information.
I am asking for your help in coming
up with a succinct list of the top 10 Questions for Investigation concerning the
.INFO start up. I am not exactly sure what to do with these... but I think
that it could be useful. The following is my first shot at the top ten questions.
We should try to keep them clean and pointing toward factual issues. I personally
would like to try to avoid ad hominen points.
What are your suggested revisions
and/or additions? Let me know and I'll begin revising the list.
Sincerely,
DomeBase
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.INFO
Start Up: Top (10) Questions for Investigation:
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Why
were there not even basic data field checks for Sunrise
registrations?
Did
some registrars encourage fraud by sending e-mails promoting
registration of non-trademarked
names during Sunrise, saying that
trademark specifics were "optional," or themselves
filling in
fraudulent trademark information?
Did some executives or employees
of the registry or registrars
abuse "registrar-reserved" privilege and/or cybersquat
by
registering their personal name, the names of geographic areas
such as states,
or names which are the legitimate trademarks of
other parties?
Did some
executives or employees of the registry or registrars
register any names using
fraudulent trademark information?
Why did the registry not address the problem
of Land Rush
registrants cheated out of their pre-registration fees by Sunrise
squatters
before the Land Rush period -- especially when there
were proposals to correct
the problem that would have benefitted
all parties except fraudulent registrants?
Did
some registrars use "bait and switch" tactics by: adding
additional charges not
specified when consumers signed; or by
switching from single to multiple submissions
per name?
Did some registrars accept non-refundable pre-registration fees
for
names that were not available (e.g. because they were
reserved or already registered)?