[ga] .Pro and the dilution of its professional credentials

["Richard Henderson" <richardhenderson@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I would like to ask Tim Cole (as ICANN Registrar Liaison) and Allison Feick (as Manager of Registrar Relations at RegistryPro) along with Michael Del Ciello (general manager of RegistryPro) and Thomas Barrett (CEO of EnCirca Registrars):

Why has RegistryPro been registering domains for EnCirca's "ProForwarding Service" if .pro domain names are reserved (by the terms of ICANN's Registry Agreement with .pro) for registrants whose professional credentials have been checked by the registry?

RegistryPro: "Each registrant's identity and professional license information will be verified against relevant public and third-party databases PRIOR to domain name activation." (RegistryPro's own website).

ICANN: "Registered Names are restricted to persons and entities that are credentialed by appropriate entities (such as through governmental bodies and professional organizations) to provide professional services within a stated geographic region... Because the eligibility for Registered Names within .pro will be verified, they may only be registered by persons or entities that are licensed or credentialed to provide professional services in the profession for which the PS-SLD was established... The Registry Operator shall implement technical measures reasonably calculated to enforce the requirements...All registrants of Registered Names in the .pro TLD must enter into an electronic or paper registration agreement with the Authorized Registrar that sponsors their name within the registry... At the time of an initial or renewal registration of a Registered Name (i.e. a domain name), the registrant will be required to provide to the sponsoring registrar identity and contact information about the registrant, data and supporting evidence about the registrant's qualifications to register... Authorized Registrars shall enforce the registration restrictions described in this Appendix L and shall verify all registrants' qualifications to register a Registered Name as a condition of registration." http://www.icann.org/tlds/agreements/pro/registry-agmt-appl-30sep04.htm

And yet, EnCirca, an ICANN-accredited Registrar which is recommended by RegistryPro on its own website, says:
"EnCirca, Inc (www.encirca.com)., today unveiled a new .pro service that makes it possible for all small firms and independent consultants to reserve more memorable and relevant Web addresses and search engine keywords that can be used to promote their businesses... online applicants no longer need to wait until their profession or country is supported by the registry to secure desirable .pro domains names"

Tim Cole (ICANN's Registrar Liaison) has asserted that "EnCirca's ProForwarding Service <http://www.encirca.biz/html/proforwarding.shtml> seems designed to circumvent these restrictions by allowing anybody to obtain "the full benefits of domain registration" in .PRO without having any professional credentials."

Who is right?

Why, for example, does this .pro resolve to a pay-per-click site: http://Market.pro
Has this registrant's claim to this domain been verified PRIOR to the domain name activation which has clearly taken place here? (Click and see!)
Or try http://Casino.pro
What the hell is going on, if RegistryPro is activating these domains?
And why is this domain activated and for sale? http://www.pussy.pro

According to the RegistryPro website, "Registrants who provide professional service in the medical, legal, accounting and engineering professions" may be eligible for these domains.

So why is RegistryPro activating domain names which appear to contravene both the Registry's definition of itself, and the Agreement the Registry has with ICANN?

Yrs,

Richard Henderson