[LINK] .au Policy Review and Issues Paper

[Stephen Loosley]

The auDA Board has convened a Policy Review Panel to make recommendations on:

https://www.auda.org.au/assets/Policies/PRP-Issues-Paper-Registrant-Policy-January-2018.pdf


QUESTIONS

.au Structure

1.
Should the .au Domain namespace be a ‘general purpose’ domain for all Australians allowing
use for any purpose? (Eg, no .com or .org  etc)
2.
Should the net.au namespace be closed to new registrations?  If so, should existing net.au
registrants be permitted to continue to renew their domain name indefinitely?
3.
What should happen to the asn.au namespace? Should it be closed to new registrations or
retained as a dedicated namespace for associations?
4.
Should the State and Territory namespaces be used for other purposes?  If yes, why and
what are the purposes for which domain names should be registered under these
namespaces?

Reserved Names

5.
Should auDA continue to maintain a public reserved list?  Should the public reserved list be
published? What process or steps should auDA take before deleting a restricted or
prohibited name?
6.
Should auDA be able to reserve names in the public interest?  How should the public interest
be defined? What names should be reserved in the .au domain namespace?  Should the
public interest test replace the Prohibition on Misspellings Policy?
7.
Should the names identified in the discussion paper be reserved as future 2LD namespaces?
Are there other names that should be reserved for use as future 2LD namespaces and why?
8.
Should there be a requirement for auDA to publish a list of names that are reserved for use
by the registry and names that pose a risk to the operational stability and utility of the .au
domain?  Should there be any exceptions to the publication of names?

Eligibility and allocation rules

9.
How should the Australian presence requirements be defined? Should trademark applicants
and registrants only be allowed to register a domain name that is an exact match to their
Australian trademark application or registration when relying on the trademark application
or registration to establish an Australian connection?
10.
What eligibility and allocation rules should apply to the .au domain namespace (direct
registration) and the open 2LD namespaces, and why? Should the close and substantial
connection rule be retained and why? Should allocation criteria be removed, and the focus
be on registrant eligibility?  Should domain monetisation continue to be permitted in the
com.au and net.au 2LD and at the second level?  How should domain monetisers interests
be balanced against the needs of the broader Australian Internet Community?
11.
Should internationalised domain names be trialled at the second level, and under what
conditions?

Licence conditions

12.
Should a registrant be able to sublease the domain name to an unrelated party?  If yes, in
what circumstances should this be permitted?
13.
Where a domain name licence is transferred between registrants, should the transferee
receive the benefit of the remainder of the licence period?
14.
Should auDA be given the power to suspend a domain name licence?  When should auDA
suspend rather than cancel a domain name licence?  What should be the maximum
suspension period before a domain name licence is cancelled?
15.
For what purposes should auDA be allowed to collect, use and disclose registrant data?
16.
Are there any concerns with the current level of information included in the public WHOIS
service?  Should the technical contact field be utilised for agent and lessee details?


Why this review is important?  Australia has a high internet penetration rate, with over 13.7
million Internet subscribers and 26.3 million mobile handset subscribers.

Every application running on a device connected to the Internet is likely to use a domain name to connect to
other devices or services on the Internet, such as your home or work computer, mobile
phone, smartwatch or car navigation system.  The Domain Name System (DNS) is a key
enabler of the Australian digital economy and society.

Globally, the Australian DNS is recognised as a secure and trusted domain with a strong brand
connection with Australia.  Businesses, consumers and the public trust the .au domain, as they
know that they are dealing with an Australian entity or individual that is accountable under
Australian law.  The opening of the .au domain namespace to registrations provides an ideal
opportunity to review the policies that govern the registration of a .au domain name to ensure
that they continue to meet the needs of the Australian community and digital economy.


The Panel acknowledges that there may be other issues that require reform, especially
relating to technical or operational matters.  The Panel encourages stakeholders to raise these
issues in their submission.

Making a submission

8.
The Panel invites written submissions by close of business on 4 March 2018.  Submissions can
be emailed to

policy.review at auda.org.au

or by post to:

Policy Review Panel
c/o .au Domain Administration Ltd
PO Box 18315
MELBOURNE VIC 3001

9.
All submissions will be made publicly available on the auDA website

www.auda.org.au/policies/panels-and-committees/2017-policy-review-panel

unless marked confidential.  In the absence of a clear indication that the submission is confidential,
the Policy Review Panel will treat the submission as public.  The Policy Review Panel will not
consider nor publish anonymous submissions.