Register.com CEO Supports ICANN, Deregulation

Testifying before the US Congressional Commerce Committee Thursday, register.com, inc. president and CEO Richard Forman spoke out in favor of the International Corp. for Assigned Names and Numbers and urged the government to continue to deregulate the domain name sector.

register.com was one of the first five domain name registrars to be chosen by ICANN to register domain names once Network Solutions, Inc.’s monopoly expires. It has already begun registering domain names alongside of NSI and fellow test bed participant CORE.

Forman said that the end of NSI’s tenure allows competition in the registrar sector, which should be encouraged by deregulation.

“The recent introduction of competition by way of allowing new registrars into the industry
will spawn new products and service and accelerate overall growth of the
market,” said Forman.

“If the Department of Commerce’s deregulation efforts are
impeded, consumers and Internet growth will suffer. By giving ICANN the
responsibility for transitioning the management of Internet names and addresses from the
government to industry, the Department of Commerce is allowing the Internet to grow and
mature into a global resource.”

ICANN’s operations and procedures, which have received much criticism as of late by consumer groups and federal legislators, have made noticeable progress for the domain name industry, Forman added in his testimony.

“While perhaps not providing perfect solutions, ICANN did indeed reflect workable compromises acceptable to a large majority of interested parties representing individuals, corporations, industry trade groups and not-for-profit organizations.”

Forman also highlighted the need for all governing bodies to create a level playing field for
all registrars, including NSI. He supports ICANN’s to allow NSI to register domains only if it signs the same accreditation agreement as the new registrars.

“It is imperative that all registrars, including NSI, work under the same contractual rules and obligations,” Forman said. “To date, NSI has refused to do so, asserting that it does not agree with ICANN’s terms. But until NSI recognizes ICANN’s authority, the entire process and the further growth, development and stability of the Internet may be in jeopardy.”