Re: [wg-c] Pre-sold TLDs

["Christopher Ambler" <cambler@iodesign.com>]

> Certainly there is. If a registry or registrar participates in that
activity,
> they could lose their registry and/or their accreditation.

Perhaps, were ICANN to make a rule today that this behaviour
is grounds to lose accreditation, they would stop.

But ICANN has issued no such rule, so the behaviour
continues.

Were ICANN to issue a rule that registries/registrars must
remove all pre-registrations that they have done in the past,
that rule would be challenged and certainly found unfair. Just
as you cannot pass a law making what you did yesterday
illegal such that you go to jail today, you can't retroactively
cancel existing contracts - and make no mistake, the
registrations are legal contracts.

Concentrate on what you CAN do. If you feel strongly
enough about this, then get ICANN to pass a rule making
the behaviour off-limits from now on. ICANN could say,
"look, we don't like this, so anyone who does it after
tomorrow won't be considered." Not much that anyone
could do about that.

Or you can just gripe on mailing lists.

--
Christopher Ambler
chris@the.web