Drop-catching and Whois are the subjects for the .NL Domain Name Debate 2012
[news release] SIDN, the company behind .nl, is organising the 2012 Domain Name Debate at the Koninklijke Schouwburg in The Hague on 28 September. SIDN uses such debates to gauge stakeholder opinion on proposed changes to the rules governing the Netherlands’ internet domain. At the debates, any interested party can have a say and thus help to shape future policy. The fourth Domain Name Debate focuses on drop-catching and further restriction of the amount of information about private registrants available from the Whois.
Drop-catching
Every day, SIDN releases several hundred .nl domain names whose registrations have been cancelled by their old registrants. In principle, released names are available for anyone to register on a first-come, first-served basis. In practice, however, many are snapped up within seconds by specialist ‘drop-catchers’. In 2011, about 35% of all reregistered domain names were taken within ten seconds of being released. The drop-catchers involved typically resell the names to the highest bidder.
This practice is not against the existing rules for the .nl domain. Nevertheless, some people regard drop-catching as undesirable. SIDN therefore believes that it is important to have a public debate about the acceptability of drop-catching and, if relevant, about possible ways of preventing it. SIDN’s proposal is that the existing rules and procedures should remain unchanged.
Whois
Following the 2008 Domain Name Debate, the amount of information about registrants available from the Whois has been restricted. The Whois is a utility that anyone can use to check the status of a domain name and look up information about existing domain names. Since the restrictions were introduced, the only information about a registrant available from the Whois on SIDN’s website has been the registrant’s name. SIDN is now proposing that, where private registrants are concerned, even the name should be withheld. At the same time as further restricting the amount of freely available information, SIDN would like to make it easier for anyone with a legitimate interest to obtain a registrant’s full details.
Rough consensus
Roelof Meijer, SIDN’s CEO said, “Where policy issues such as these are concerned, we don’t make decisions without first consulting our stakeholders in a Domain Name Debate. A Domain Name Debate is a meeting that anyone with a stake in the .nl domain can attend and speak at. The aim is to try and reach a ‘rough consensus’ as to the best way forward. We are inviting all our stakeholders to attend the debate, so that the outcome reflects the majority view and gives us a framework within which we can define policy. You can already respond to our proposals and discuss points of view on www.domeinnaamdebat2012.nl/en/.”
Background
On www.domeinnaamdebat2012.nl/en/, SIDN’s proposal on each topic is presented, along with the reasons behind it and extensive background information. Visitors can also respond to the proposals on line. All feedback provided via the website will be taken into account during the physical debate. It’s also possible to register through the site to attend the debate.
This SIDN news release was sourced from:
https://www.sidn.nl/en/news/news/article/dropcatching-en-whois-onderwerpen-domeinnaamdebat-2012-1/
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