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2012 Industry Advisory Panel

Terms of Reference


Purpose

The purpose of the Panel is to:

  • review the structure and regulation of the Australian domain name industry; and
  • provide recommendations to the auDA Board about what changes (if any) should be made to the competition model.

Background

In June 2001 auDA's Competition Model Advisory Panel recommended a model for the introduction of competition in the .au domain name industry, to replace the historical monopoly-based structure.

The industry structure introduced by auDA on 1 July 2002 is as follows:

  • 2LD registry operator – appointed by competitive tender, licensed by auDA to provide registry services for the .au 2LDs (the current 2LD registry licence held by AusRegistry Pty Ltd is due to expire on 30 June 2014)
  • registrars – accredited by auDA to provide registrar services (there are 35 accredited registrars as at 30 November 2011)
  • resellers – appointed by registrars to provide customer sales and support services (there are 4 751 resellers notified to auDA as at 30 November 2011).

Aspects of the industry structure and regulatory arrangements were reviewed in 2004 and 2008.

References

Activity

The Panel will review the structure and regulation of the Australian domain name industry.

The Panel will consider the following issues:

1. The method of 2LD registry operator selection/appointment post-2014.

2. The policy and process for registrar accreditation.

References:

3. Registrar security.

4. The status and regulation of resellers.
 
5. The policy and process for registrar transfers.

References:

6. The status and operation of the .au Domain Name Suppliers’ Code of Practice.

Reference:

 

Chair

The auDA Board has appointed Craig Ng to chair the Panel.

Members

The Panel will consist of 15 members other than the Chair. It is intended that the Panel will represent the key stakeholders in the Australian domain name industry, including auDA Board members, auDA members, auDA accredited registrars, domain name resellers, domain name holders (registrants), business, consumers, government, legal sector, IT industry and Internet users.

Panel members will be appointed by the auDA Board on the basis of their individual skills, experience and knowledge of the domain name industry. The Board will also seek to achieve a fair balance of stakeholder interests.

Membership of the Panel is on a voluntary basis, although auDA may assist with expenses (refer to Operations below). Panel members must be prepared to commit their time and effort for the duration of the Terms of Reference (refer to Timeline below).

Operations

The Panel will determine its own operational procedures and timetable, although the auDA Board may request the Panel to prioritise some of the issues under consideration.

The Panel will undertake at least two public consultations during the course of its work.

The Chair will provide regular progress reports to the auDA Board.

auDA will provide secretariat and other operational support to the Panel.

auDA may provide financial assistance to Panel members where required, for example in the case of not-for-profit organisations and individuals whose participation in the Panel is not funded by their employer. Such assistance will be provided at auDA’s discretion.

Timeline

An indicative timeline is as follows:

Activity

Timing

auDA issues call for Panel nominations

December 2011

auDA Board confirms Panel membership

February 2012

1st Panel meeting

March 2012

1st public consultation

June 2012

2nd public consultation

October 2012

Panel's final report to auDA board

December 2012

The timeline is subject to change.

Last Updated: 13/12/2011 14:45