[ga] .com registry-registrar agreement

[Danny Younger <dannyyounger@xxxxxxxxx>]

>From the registrars list:

All:  I just sent this note to VeriSign.  I hope that
VeriSign will handle this issue shortly, but we are
waiting until it is resolved before taking any action
with the draft agreement.  Thanks.  Jon

________________________________

From: Nevett, Jonathon 
Sent: Tuesday, December 12, 2006 11:35 AM
To: Dahlquist, Raynor
Cc: 'mshull@xxxxxxxxxxxx'; 'Gomes, Chuck';
kurt.pritz@xxxxxxxxx
Subject: RRA Changes
Importance: High

 

Dear Raynor:

 

We received a letter yesterday from VeriSign dated
December 6th requesting that we execute an attached
copy of the new Registry-Registrar Agreement for the
.com regsitry.  The letter states that the agreement
provided is "the new ICANN approved .COM
Registry-Registrar Agreement that will take effect and
supersede your existing .COM Registry-Registrar
Agreement with VeriSign, Inc on 30 December 2006." 

In the abundance of caution, we compared the copy of
the agreement attached to the letter with the
agreement actually approved by the ICANN Board and the
U.S. Department of Commerce as Exhibit 8 to the .com
Registry Agreement
(http://www.icann.org/topics/vrsn-settlement/revised-appendix8-clean-29j
an06.pdf), and there are both substantive and
non-substantive differences between the version
VeriSign sent to us for execution and the version
approved by ICANN and the DOC.  These changes include
adding
various VeriSign-affiliated parties to the agreement. 


 

I brought this situation to ICANN's attention. 
According to Kurt Pritz, ICANN was aware of 
VeriSign's request to ICANN to make the substantive
and non-substantive changes, but stated in no
uncertain terms that ICANN has not "approved or
adopted" any changes to the RRA as required in
Section 6.1.  Therefore, VeriSign's statement that
ICANN approved the version of the agreement sent to us
is false.  Moreover, not only did VeriSign
misrepresent that it received ICANN approval to change
the agreement, it also failed to inform registrars of
the changes from the version posted on the ICANN
website.  

I find it remarkable that VeriSign would try to change
the terms of the RRA in this manner, regardless of the
substance of the changes.  This
kind of behavior is unacceptable and violates the
terms and spirit of our relationship.  Indeed, we
should be trying to engage in a period of healing
after the long and sometimes bitter dispute over the
advisability of the new .com registry agreement. 
Instead, VeriSign apparently is engaging in deceptive
and obfuscating behavior.

First, please let me know how you plan on rectifying
this situation.  Second, we should discuss a procedure
for making future changes to the .com and .net RRAs so
we don't continue to repeat this same scenario every
few years.   As per the terms of the contract, ICANN
must approve any changes to the agreement.  As a
transparent organization, ICANN
should give the other party to the agreement - the
registrars - an opportunity to review and comment on
proposed changes before they are approved.  It is
irrelevant whether VeriSign or ICANN believes that
such changes are substantive.  Any changes to a
contract to which registrars are a party should be
shared with us before they are approved.
Something that may appear to be benign to ICANN or
VeriSign might have some unintended consequence to
other parties to the agreement.  

Third, if VeriSign does seek to change certain
provisions of the agreement from the version ICANN and
the DOC recently approved, I suggest that it seek
to delete Section 6.15(a)(6), which still refers to a
Surety Instrument that VeriSign removed from all other
parts of the contract.

I look forward to hearing back from you.

 
Best,
Jon



 
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