Internetworkers: http://www.ibiblio.org/internetworkers/

[Sil Greene <Sil_greene AT unc.edu>]

Reported 03.10.17 12:38 from Steven Champeon:
.:on Fri, Oct 17, 2003 at 11:12:21AM -0400, zman wrote:

.:> I think it's all a scam so they can seperate themselves and restart 
.:> their  SiteFinder Advertising 'Service' without legal ramifications to 
.:> Verisign.  

.:Uh, no - probably more like Verisign ensuring that the revenue lost by
.:the sale of NSI would be replaced by the addition of advertising revenue
.:from their abuse of the root zones. SiteFinder is Verisign, not NSI.

Well, that begs the question: who administers the .com/.net/.org TLDs 
after this sale?  VeriSign or NSI?  How will the sale of NSI alter 
VeriSign's agreements with ICANN?

It seems clear that transferring those responsibilities would remove 
VeriSign's ability to offer SiteFinder, at least in the incarnation we all 
know and love (*cough* *devilspawn* *cough*).  Since it's unlikely that 
VeriSign's given up on SiteFinder, the safe bet would be that they're 
selling NSI as registrar only, not as a TLD administrator.

This would certainly NOT remove legal ramifications for SiteFinder from 
VeriSign.


[An aside: the TLDs are administered separately, so VS could, for example, 
sell off the .org responsibilities while retaining the (more lucrative) 
.com and .net TLDs.  This might make sense: I believe the .org agreement 
placed more restrictions on the administrator than either .com or .net.  
VS may be looking to offload a "poor performer".]


Please note this is all speculation.  I haven't looked at TLD agreements 
or VeriSign press since SiteFinder came down, and I have no intention of 
revisiting those anytime soon.  Unless someone convinces me otherwise. :)

--Sil

-- 
"If you put your supper dish to your ears you can hear the sounds
 of a restaurant."  --Snoopy    (Charles Schultz 02-12-2000 RIP)
Sil_Greene AT unc.edu