fyi: an example individual response to Verisign spin

[Jeff.Hodges () KingsMountain com]

Subject: [IP] Yesterdays WJS article on Versign
http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/200310/msg00057.h
tml

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Date: Tue, 07 Oct 2003 04:45:48 -0400
To: ip () v2 listbox com
From: Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
Subject: [IP] Yesterdays WJS article on Versign

> Date: Mon, 06 Oct 2003 15:17:34 -0700
> From: Dave Crocker <dcrocker () brandenburg com>
> Subject: Today's WJS article on Versign
> To: newseditors () wsj com
> Cc: Nick Wingfield <nick.wingfield () wsj com>, Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
>
> Re:  Nick Wingfield's article
> <http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB106519977252395300,00.html?mod=dartTechtod
ay>
> Hello,
>
> "VeriSign's critics, of course, see it differently, accusing VeriSign of
> undermining the collectivist culture of the Internet, through which engineers
> hash out key changes to the network through standards groups. Unlike the Web
> and e-mail, which have become thoroughly commercialized through advertising,
> the low-level Internet routing software that VeriSign altered with its new
> service has remained relatively insulated from efforts to make a profit." ...
>
> Although notably better than most of the articles on this topic, Mr. Wingfield
> still managed to buy Verisign's spin, both its erroneous facts and its
> erroneous perspective.
>
> First of all, the service that Verisign runs has been for profit for as long
> as it has run it. That's roughly ten years. In addition the problems caused by
> Verisign were not just in the eyes of "technologists".
>
> Second of all, consider the service they suddenly changed in terms of its
> equivalent in the world of telephone. Imagine dialing a non-existent number or
> asking 411 for the number of a non-existent entry, and not being told that
> there is no listing. Instead, you are given a phone number that feeds you
> advertising. Would you view this as "a valuable navigational aid for users who
> might otherwise hit an online dead-end?" Probably not.
>
> The problem, here, is not a culture-clash between commercial ventures and
> naive technologists. Verisign contracted to provide a critical infrastructure
> service that maps domain names to Internet addresses. The only "clash" is
> between responsible and irresponsible approaches to providing that service. If
> Verisign cannot operate it at a profit, without breaking it, there are others
> quite willing and able to do the job.
>
> d/
> --
>  Dave Crocker <dcrocker-at-brandenburg-dot-com>
>  Brandenburg InternetWorking <www.brandenburg.com>
>  Sunnyvale, CA  USA <tel:+1.408.246.8253>

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