Proposed research on registrar transfer-away fees
Thanks to Danny Younger for starting this conversation. Danny has proposed that the ALAC initiate research on a specific, registrant-affecting question: What are the scope and magnitude of transfer-away fees among the various registrars? These fees, charged to domain-name registrants when they seek to leave one registrar for another, can lock registrants in to a registrar who no longer serves their needs (as has happened in droves with former Registerfly customers). High fees can also contravene the intent of the uniform transfers policy. We have seen little public information about these fees. So, here is a focused research task: For each registrar, ask Is there a transfer-away fee for registrants to take their domain names to another registrar? If so, what is the fee? Is the transfer-away fee disclosed to the registrant at the time of registration? Where and how is such disclosure made? Is the fee subject to change? After we decide whether these are the relevant questions, we should ask staff to contact all registrars for their responses, and/or review public information on the registrars' websites. If you're interested in this research, please respond to this message with your thoughts. --Wendy -- Wendy Seltzer -- wendy@seltzer.org Visiting Assistant Professor of Law, Brooklyn Law School Fellow, Berkman Center for Internet & Society http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/seltzer.html http://www.chillingeffects.org/
Danny has proposed that the ALAC initiate research on a specific, registrant-affecting question: What are the scope and magnitude of transfer-away fees among the various registrars?
In my experience, the fees are less of a problem than registrars who don't provide the required authcodes, or who provide them very slowly. But I suppose the fees are easier to research. Also, related to registries and registrars, I see that ICANN has a "gTLD Registry Data Escrow Report" on the home page. Having looked through it, I see that all the registries are supposed to put copies of the data in escrow once a week. But I don't see any report on whether they actually do so. Based on some of the language in the registry failover stuff, I get the impression that some of them don't. I also see that section 3.6 of the registrar accreditation agreement requires each registrar to put its data in escrow either directly with ICANN or with an approved escrow agent. Again, we know that Registrfly didn't do so, and I wonder if anyone else does. A failure to enforce the escrow rules is an egregious failure on ICANN's part to protect the stability of the DNS. Perhaps we should alert the Ombudsman. R's, John
Re: I wonder if anyone else does... Consider the remarks of the Chair of the Registrars Constituency on the data escrow topic: "Just so we are on the same page, Section 3.6 of the RAA provides for the following: "During the Term of this Agreement, on a schedule, under the terms, and in the format specified by ICANN, Registrar shall submit an electronic copy of the database . . . to ICANN or, at Registrar's election and at its expense, to a reputable escrow agent . . . ." Every registrar currently is in technical compliance with this provision because ICANN has never implemented a schedule, terms, or a format of the escrow arrangement." http://gnso.icann.org/mailing-lists/archives/ga/msg06000.html Best regards, Danny --- John L <johnl@iecc.com> wrote:
Danny has proposed that the ALAC initiate research on a specific, registrant-affecting question: What are the scope and magnitude of transfer-away fees among the various registrars?
In my experience, the fees are less of a problem than registrars who don't provide the required authcodes, or who provide them very slowly.
But I suppose the fees are easier to research.
Also, related to registries and registrars, I see that ICANN has a "gTLD Registry Data Escrow Report" on the home page. Having looked through it, I see that all the registries are supposed to put copies of the data in escrow once a week. But I don't see any report on whether they actually do so. Based on some of the language in the registry failover stuff, I get the impression that some of them don't. I also see that section 3.6 of the registrar accreditation agreement requires each registrar to put its data in escrow either directly with ICANN or with an approved escrow agent. Again, we know that Registrfly didn't do so, and I wonder if anyone else does.
A failure to enforce the escrow rules is an egregious failure on ICANN's part to protect the stability of the DNS. Perhaps we should alert the Ombudsman.
R's, John
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Every registrar currently is in technical compliance with this provision because ICANN has never implemented a schedule, terms, or a format of the escrow arrangement."
Holy petunias. Regards, John Levine, johnl@iecc.com, Primary Perpetrator of "The Internet for Dummies", Information Superhighwayman wanna-be, http://johnlevine.com, Mayor "I dropped the toothpaste", said Tom, crestfallenly.
At 07/03/2007 06:24 PM, John L wrote:
Danny has proposed that the ALAC initiate research on a specific, registrant-affecting question: What are the scope and magnitude of transfer-away fees among the various registrars?
In my experience, the fees are less of a problem than registrars who don't provide the required authcodes, or who provide them very slowly.
Fees may be one way that registrars make it difficult to transfer domains, and authcodes as well. But most make it difficult just by obscurity. All registrars readily tell you how to transfer domains in - but rarely make it as easy to understand the out process. One registrar I have used use allows the owner to do virtually anything possible with their online management tool. Except unlock the domain for transfer. That must be done via e-mail... Alan
participants (4)
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Alan Greenberg -
Danny Younger -
John L -
Wendy Seltzer