[registrars] ICANN Task Force on Funding Update

["Richard Forman" <rforman@register.com>]

Fellow Registrars,

As some of you may know, ICANN has created a task force on funding to
review ICANN's sources of revenue and to recommend to the Board how to
fund ICANN going forward.

The ICANN board asked a number of individuals to participate in this
task force, myself included.  The other members include representatives
from the IP address registries, ccTLD registries, gTLD registry and
other registrars (specifically Peter Gerrand from Melbourne IT, Don
Telage from Network Solutions and Per-Anders Hurtigh from Port
Information System). As you can tell, the task force is quite diverse
from both a geographic and a business perspective.

I wanted to take this opportunity to share some of the initial
recommendations of the committee and solicit your input so that I may
take it back to the full group when we convene again in a few weeks.  I
would like to reiterate that these are initial thoughts.  Nothing has
been finalized as of yet, which is why I wanted to get your input now.

On a personal note, I believe that a variable cost allocation method
(e.g., $1 fee per domain name) will continue to promote the taxation
debate.  This is not just a US issue.  The European Union will not stand
for anything that smells like a tax. Therefore, I am strongly in favor
of finding a solution to the ICANN funding debate.

Specific issues that are now on the table include:

A) Should all ICANN constituencies contribute to the ICANN budget?
B) What % of the overall cost should gTLD registrars absorb?
C) Of that %, should individual registrar contributions be flat or
tiered?  If tiered, what are the boundaries?
D) Are there other sources of funding that should be considered?

I am interested in hearing your thoughts on the four issues listed
above.  

ICANN will be posting the minutes from our first meeting on the ICANN
web site shortly.  I will also keep you updated on any new
developments.  Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Sincerely,


Richard Forman
President & CEO
Register.com, Inc.