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Industry Competition Advisory Panel

Terms of Reference

Purpose 

The purpose of the Panel is to:

• review auDA’s competition model for 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:

• registry operator – appointed by competitive tender, licensed by auDA to provide registry services for the .au 2LDs
• registrars – accredited by auDA to provide registrar services (there are 25 accredited registrars as at 1 February 2008
• resellers – appointed by registrars to provide customer sales and support services.

In 2004 auDA’s Registry Competition Review Panel reviewed the selection process and revenue model for the provision of .au registry services. auDA implemented the Panel’s recommendations as part of the registry tender process conducted in 2005.

References:

• “Competition Model for the .au Domain Space, June 2001” 
• “Registry Competition Review Panel Final Report and Recommendations, November 2004”

Activity

The Panel will review auDA’s competition model for the Australian domain name industry.

The Panel will consider the following issues:

1. The method of registry operator selection/appointment post-2010.

Reference:

• 2005 Registry Tender Process 

2. The policy and process for registrar accreditation.

Reference:

• Registrar Accreditation Application Form (2003-02) 

3. The status and regulation of resellers.

4. The policy and process for transfers between registrars/resellers.

References:

• Transfers (Change of Registrar of Record) Policy (2003-03)
• Transfer (Change of Registrar of Record Policy – Transfer Requests by Resellers (2003-06)

Chair

The auDA board has appointed Greg Crew, former director of auDA and ICANN, 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 system, 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:

The timeline is subject to change.

Last Updated: 04/03/2008 11:17