(This message was also sent to ICANN via org-eval@icann.org)The DotOrg Foundation
appreciates that the task of evaluating eleven detailed proposals for the operation
of the .org registry is a difficult and complex one. We also understand that the
Academic CIO Team was asked to prepare only a brief report and that they had limited
time to complete their evaluation. However, we are perplexed by the Academic CIO
Team's rating of our bid's technology as "marginal" and we would appreciate some
clarification. We raise this concern because we received a "top five" technology
rating in the more detailed Gartner analysis, and also because the RegisterOrg bid
was given an "acceptable" technology rating by the Academic CIO Team. The RegisterOrg
and DotOrg Foundation bids have identical technology components, with Registry Advantage
as the common technical element, so it does not make any sense why our ratings should
be so divergent. Complicating our interpretation of the Academic CIO Team's report
is the absence of any detail regarding how specific bids were ranked. We are unable
to determine the specific reasons behind the rankings, so we cannot address any misunderstandings
that may have occurred during the Academic CIO Team's one and a half day evaluation
session. We wanted to post this message in advance of the August 29 deadline for
comments on the Preliminary Staff Report with the goal of resolving this uncertainty
as soon as possible.
Thank you. Marshall Strauss
President
DotOrg Foundation