October 23, 2012 at 09:42GTLD administrators will provide registration services directly
Following a meeting at a conference in Toronto, ICANN decided to remove all restrictions on cross-ownership and vertical integration of public domain zone administrators (gTLD registries) and registrars. This means that registries will soon be able to provide second-level domain registration services directly, without the mediation of independent registrar companies.
That is, VeriSign, Neustar and Afilias will have the right to open a subsidiary, and through it to provide second-level domain registration services in .COM, .BIZ and .INFO zones, respectively.
At the same time, domain zone administrators will have to conclude a new contract with ICANN in order to remove existing restrictions on vertical integration, and their subsidiaries will need to obtain registrar accreditation in the same manner as independent registrar companies. Also, registries will not have the right to provide their branches with more favorable terms of the contract than the terms of the contract with other registrars.
According to ICANN, at the moment there is no point in linking registries with restrictions on vertical integration, especially in light of the fact that next year there will be dozens of new gTLDs, the owners of which will also be able to provide registration services directly.
Representatives of the US Department of Commerce and the European Commission also supported ICANN reform.
That is, VeriSign, Neustar and Afilias will have the right to open a subsidiary, and through it to provide second-level domain registration services in .COM, .BIZ and .INFO zones, respectively.
At the same time, domain zone administrators will have to conclude a new contract with ICANN in order to remove existing restrictions on vertical integration, and their subsidiaries will need to obtain registrar accreditation in the same manner as independent registrar companies. Also, registries will not have the right to provide their branches with more favorable terms of the contract than the terms of the contract with other registrars.
According to ICANN, at the moment there is no point in linking registries with restrictions on vertical integration, especially in light of the fact that next year there will be dozens of new gTLDs, the owners of which will also be able to provide registration services directly.
Representatives of the US Department of Commerce and the European Commission also supported ICANN reform.