The U.S. Department of Commerce has once again pushed back the
deadline to open domain name registration competition. The latest move
will end the test-bed phase on Aug. 6.
The extension is a setback to registrars who are ready to compete with
Network Solutions which
formerly held an exclusive government contract to register domain
names ending in .com, .net and .edu.
In April, a “test bed” period was begun and a few competing registrars
were given access to the domain registry system which will continue to
be run by NSI. Once the test phase is over, the Internet Corp. for Assigned Names and
Numbers will accept applications from any company meeting the
qualifications to become a domain registrar.
Network Solutions said the latest extension is necessary to integrate
the five companies who now offer registration services into the shared
registration system. Register.com, Melbourne IT,
FranceTelecom/OLEANE, America Online
Inc. and The Council of Internet
Registrars have all been authorized to register names during the
trial.
In early June, Register.com became the first to tie-up with the shared
registry, followed by Melbourne IT. Last week, CORE completed the
process, leaving AOL and France Telecom/OLEANE as the only certified
registrars that have not started handling registrations.
A number of issues remain to be worked out, including how much NSI
will be able to charge rivals for their management of the shared
registration service.