This document outlines the agenda and discussions for a Registry-Registrar Operations Working Group meeting. The group will discuss ongoing projects, select new projects, and establish leadership. Potential projects include developing best practices around launches, pricing, EPP implementations, and the effects of the WHOIS Expert Working Group recommendations. The group aims to collaborate on common technical and business issues to create consistent solutions for the domain name industry.
2. theDNA.org
Agenda
§ Introduc)ons
&
Review
of
15
October
mee)ng
§ Review
/
discuss
mission
statement,
charter
and
principles
of
opera)ons
§ Managing
IP
rights:
adop)ng
a
"crea)ve
commons"
type
license
§ Discuss
the
list
of
poten)al
projects
and
select
one
or
more
for
star)ng
substan)ve
work
– Best
business
/
common
prac)ces
– Varia)ons
in
EPP
implementa)ons
– The
poten)al
effects
of
the
Whois
Expert
Working
Group
recommenda)ons
– Crea)ng
consistent
terms
in
Registry-‐Registrar
agreements
– Other
topics
§ Start
the
leadership
selec)on
process
§ AOB
&
Close
§ Kurt
Pritz
(DNA)
5
min
§ Roger
Carney
(GoDaddy)
15
min
§ StaXon
Hammock
(Rightside)
10
min
§ Kurt
Pritz
5
min
– Seth
Goldman
(Google)
10
min
– Chris
Wright
(ARI
Registry
Service)
10
min
– Elaine
Pruis
(Donuts)
10
min
– Pinky
Brand
(TLD
Registry)
10
min
– TBD
§ Kurt
Pritz
5
min
§ Kurt
Pritz
5
min
3. theDNA.org
Review
of
15
October
mee4ng
in
Los
Angeles
§ Concept for formal Registry-Registrar collaboration
§ Implementation model
§ The Domain Name Association as the facilitator
§ Specific objectives / potential projects
§ Comments:
– Need for rights protection mechanism
– Potential projects to be undertaken
– Understanding ccTLD / gTLD differences
4. theDNA.org
Mission
Statement
Create a collaborative space for the domain name
industry to develop common practices and improve
the technical, business and policy environments for
delivering services to Internet users.
5. theDNA.org
RegOps
Charter
§ Registry-registrar operational issues are being solved on a one-off basis as each new
registry operator paired off with its set of registrars,
§ Resolving these issues in an industry-wide collaborative manner is preferable in order to
create operational consistency and save time, and
§ Given its multi-functional and global diversity, the DNA will be an effective place to
facilitate discussion among the broader domain name industry.
§ Issues adopted for discussion must:
– Be of interest across the domain name industry segments
– Be configured in a way to result benefit without corresponding detriment to others
– Have a foreseeable solution
– Be agreed upon by some consensus of the group
§ Keys to success:
– Open membership that protects IP interests of its members
– Able to act quickly
– Develop attractive solutions (common practices) that will be widely adopted
– Work product effectively informs the creation of policy and technical protocols
6. theDNA.org
Opera4ng
Principles
§ Participation will be open to all domain name registrars, gTLD and ccTLD registry operators, DNA
membership not required.
§ The DNA will provide resources and support: webpage support, remote conference support, secretariat and
administration. Leadership (Chair, Co-chair) will be nominated and elected by the entire Working Group.
§ The Operations Working Group members will raise issues for discussion and then decide whether to form
industry-wide teams to address single issue: creating a problem statement.
§ The decision to form a team will be made when a sufficient number of Working Group members volunteer
to participate. Team leadership will be selected by that team.
§ The use of single issue, focused teams is a good feature:
– attendance and influence will rotate around the industry,
– those most interested in a particular issue would participate,
– allow industry members to participate when it is important to them,
– avoid capture by one or of a small group of entities.
§ This is a common practices or business and technical development group. Well developed products will lead
to wider adoption.
7. theDNA.org
Managing
IP
issues
§ Assure solutions discussed are not patented by one group member to the detriment of
others
§ Common issue that has been resolved in many earlier situations
§ One candidate is a FRAND (Fair, Reasonable, and Non-Discriminatory) agreement whose
features are:
– Participants agree to license all of the standards-essential claims of its patents on a
fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory basis to other members, observers or third
parties
– Participants make a declaration that they have no essential patents or participants
disclose such patents
§ FRAND-type term sheet being developed for group consideration
§ Discussion: other solutions (compulsory license, cross-license, defensive patent license)
9. theDNA.org
Poten4al
Issues
–
for
each:
① Leader will briefly describe the scope and objective of that
potential project
② Have an interactive discussion of the topic
③ Gauge if there is enough support in the "room" to start an
independent effort (drafting a problem statement) for that
topic or one well-defined area of that topic
④ Based on that, we will start an independent discussion or, if we
decide there is not enthusiasm for that topic, we might discuss
it again at a later meeting
10. theDNA.org
Best
business
/
common
prac4ces
A
team
could
be
formed
focusing
on
one
or
more
of
these:
§ Issues regarding launch and new processes:
– launch phases
– TMCH registrations,
– new rights protection mechanisms,
– release of 2nd-level blocked names (names collision)
§ Issues regarding pricing:
– premium names,
– tiered billing solutions
– differential renewable pricing
11. theDNA.org
Best
business
/
common
prac4ces
A
team
could
be
formed
focusing
on
one
or
more
of
these:
§ Issues regarding launch and new processes:
– launch phases
– TMCH registrations,
– new rights protection mechanisms,
– release of 2nd-level blocked names (names collision)
§ Issues regarding pricing:
– premium names,
– tiered billing solutions
– differential renewable pricing
Some of these
issues include
EPP considerations Next
Slide
12. theDNA.org
Varia4ons
in
EPP
implementa4ons
§ Understanding what choices have already been made and where solutions might have not
yet been implemented.
§ Understand the most commonly adopted practices and the work of the EPP extension
working group.
§ Which parts of EPP might be standardized for voluntary adoption by others, such as:
– error messages,
– business logic,
– launch phases,
– premium name processes,
– handling of data fields.
13. theDNA.org
Varia4ons
in
EPP
implementa4ons
§ Understanding what choices have already been made and where solutions might have not
yet been implemented.
§ Understand the most commonly adopted practices and the work of the EPP extension
working group.
§ Which parts of EPP might be standardized for voluntary adoption by others, such as:
– error messages,
– business logic,
– launch phases,
– premium name processes,
– handling of data fields.
Related to
Business Practices
Previous
Slide
14. theDNA.org
Whois
Expert
Working
Group
(EWG)
Recommenda4ons
§ The proposal can be divided into:
– Improving data accuracy
– Limiting access to full data
– Data storage
§ Will create one large centralized data base
§ New entity (validators) will ascertain accuracy of data entered
§ Tiered access to data for 11 purposes
– Everyone has access to basic data, including registrant email
– There will be a qualification procedure for law enforcement, IP rights holders, investigators
and watch dogs to receives larger sets of data
§ Rules for validation and greater access not worked out yet
15. theDNA.org
Poten4al
Effects
of
the
EWG
Recommenda4ons
§ Significant cost and operations ramifications
§ Complex cost / benefit discussion; needs to be fact based
§ Policy questions left open: who should have access to data and why?
§ Modifications required to satisfy various privacy law requirements?
§ For discussion of issues, see DNA EWG Paper
http://thedna.org/documents/Whitepaper_released_at_ICANN51_EWG_WHOIS.docx
§ While a policy issue, a good place for registry-registrar discussion to:
– feed the stakeholder group discussion
– understand ccTLD environment
16. Crea4ng
consistent
terms
in
Registry-‐Registrar
agreements
theDNA.org
§ Create standard definitions
§ Create common section where business terms are
consistent
§ Discussion of business terms:
– liability
– jurisdiction
– Notice periods
17. theDNA.org
Leadership
§ Opportunities:
– Registry-Registrar Operations Group leadership (Chair, 2nd Chair)
– Working Team leadership (Team leads)
§ Why lead?
– Passionate about improvement & certain issues
– Enjoy collaboration, facilitation
– Vision: for a specific goal or how the industry could operate
§ Does: (lead)
– Sets goals and drives agendas
– Solicits volunteers, assigns tasks
– Inspires others to participate
– Reviews reports, sets a high quality standard
§ Does not: (decide)
– Represent or talk on behalf of group
– Make decisions on behalf of the group
18. theDNA.org
Next
steps
§ Email list: regops@dna.org
– Join or drop out: Melissa Bassignani mbassignani@virtualmgmt.com
§ Meeting frequency: monthly (first Wednesday / Thursday)
§ Governance: charter and rules of operation
§ Leadership selection: one month
§ Selected projects:
– Inaugural meeting to be scheduled
– Each team will be supported (conference facilities, secretariat, email list)
– Each team will:
§ Develop a problem statement
§ Define success, describe planned outcomes & deadlines
§ Decide leadership model
§ Decide meeting frequency