The U.S. Department of Commerce (“DOC”) has limited the registry fee Network Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ Symbol: NSOL) (Price: $92.00) can temporarily charge the ICANN accredited test bed participants to no more than $9 per domain name. NSOL must still comply with the cost plus reasonable profit requirement contained in Amendment 11, which controls registry pricing. The DOC has stated that it has not found or agreed that the $9 price conforms to Amendment 11.
NSOL has only received DOC authorization to operate the registry for the 60-day Phase I deployment period. The DOC’s stated objective is to terminate NSOL’s contract as soon as possible but in no case later than September 30, 2000. ICANN was designated as the DNS regulator to facilitate the termination of NSOL’s entire contract. Yesterday’s development significantly increased the certainty that NSOL’s entire contract, including its temporary control of the registry, will be terminated in accordance with the DOC’s plans. It is most important to note that the test bed participants are being asked to pay $18 up-front for 2 years of registry services. However, NSOL’s temporary registry agreement with the DOC is only for 60 days. We believe this shows that Amendment 13 is a clumsy but expeditious step towards early full termination of NSOL’s obstructive contract.
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