Re: A comment by Esther Dyson -- Icann Hires Former Cybersecurity Chief as New C.E.O. [with comments]

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Karl Auerbach <karl () cavebear com>
Date: July 1, 2009 12:29:23 PM EDT
To: dave () farber net
Cc: ip <ip () v2 listbox com>
Subject: Re: [IP] A comment by Esther Dyson --     Icann Hires Former  
Cybersecurity Chief as New C.E.O. [with  comments]


We have drifted away from a conversation about ICANN's new President  
and towards ICANN's role.

First, a nit.  ICANN's bylaws call for a "President", a person who  
fills multiple rolls, only one of which is that of "CEO".  I do hope  
that ICANN actually hired a "President" and not merely the lesser  
position under ICANN's bylaws of "CEO".

But that is a nit.  The real point is this: Lauren and Esther have  
both raised the point that the internet can live with no new top level  
domains and that to a large extent the domain name product offerings  
will be unimaginative replicas of what we have today.

That is true.  And, in addition, every wannabe Poo-Bah company from  
Overstuck to AT&T is going to want to elevate its name to be a top  
level domain.

All of that will occur and it will offend our techno-aesthetics and  
perhaps confuse a few people for a while.

But since when do we use those kinds of excuses to deny people the  
opportunity to try an idea in the marketplace?

Don't we like the idea of an open and competitive marketplace in which  
entrepreneurs are able to try out new ideas or even old ones?

If you or I don't like a new offering, a new TLD, then we can avoid  
partaking of its products.  If it can not build a customer base then  
it can wither and die.  And the bones of its customer base could be  
sold off to those yet-to-be dustmen who will make a recycling business  
out of that sort of thing.

I personally have a lot of faith that if we do open the doors to new  
TLDs that among the dross of boring new TLDs there will be a few  
nuggets of new ideas.

Not to bang my own drum or to say that my idea is worthy, but merely  
as an example that things could be different, I have a TLD of my own,  
one that is not in the ICANN root (but is in some other roots) that  
operates using a rather different business and registration approach  
than has been seen in the land O'ICANN.  Take a look at http://www.cavebear.com/eweregistry/

The larger question is this: Why do we so easily leap to the  
conclusion that free enterprise and competition should be denied or  
oppressively regulated in the domain name marketplace?  Why do we want  
to so quickly assume the role of all knowing lords of the net and deny  
people the chance to try out new ideas?

                --karl--






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