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AusRegistry drops the “Aus”, sets up in US

Kevin Murphy, October 5, 2011, Domain Registries

AusRegistry International has rebranded itself as ARI Registry Services and will now offer new gTLD clients the option to host their domains in either Australia or the US.
ARIThe company has built itself a registry back-end in an undisclosed location on US soil to support the move.
Dropping the “Aus” appears to be specifically designed to address the perception that locating a gTLD in Australia is somehow technologically or politically risky, which ARI says isn’t the case.
ARI CEO Adrian Kinderis explained the decision in a press release:

We are the first to admit that the ‘Aus’ reference in our previous name incorrectly positioned us as a smaller, geographically focused organisation, which did create some issues with our plans for global expansion. Despite the fact we have an office and staff in the United States and clients situated in four of the seven continents around the world, there remained some belief that our services were somewhat isolated in Australia.

Potential gTLD applicants are concerned about issues such as “overzealous governments, privacy and ownership laws, political environments and financial benefits including currency fluctuations” that can vary according to the jurisdiction a registry is hosted in, ARI said.
A choice between the US and Australia may seem like a choice between one “overzealous government” and another, but it may at least put some insular American companies’ minds at rest.
While the move makes perfect business sense for ARI, I can’t help but feel that ICANN’s goal of increasing geographic diversity in the registry industry seems a little diminished this morning.
The rebranding does not affect the company’s parent, AusRegistry Group, which provides the back-end for Australia’s .au ccTLD.
ARI’s new domain is ariservices.com.

Domain industry blasts Congress TLD hearing

Kevin Murphy, May 4, 2011, Domain Registries

Executives from over a dozen domain name companies have slammed a US Congressional subcommittee for its plan to hold a one-sided hearing on new top-level domains.
A letter, drafted by AusRegistry International’s chief strategy officer, Krista Papac, says the hearing is “not fairly balanced” and “will present a distorted picture of the new gTLD process.”
As I reported earlier this week, the House Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet called at least four representatives of the trademark lobby to discuss new TLDs.
Kurt Pritz, ICANN’s senior vice president, is the only person testifying today who could be considered wholly supportive of the new gTLD program. The other witnesses are either advocates of trademark interests or more governmental involvement in ICANN.
Papac wrote:

It is unfortunate that of the six witnesses on the panel, none comes from the perspective of an entity that plans to run a new gTLD and could discuss the innovation, consumer choice, and job growth they will provide. Nor will the committee hear from representatives who might counter some potentially over-reaching views of the intellectual property interests, such as representatives of non-commercial entities, privacy experts, and existing domain name service providers.

The letter goes on to say that IP interests have already been heard, are afforded many protections in the program, and that new TLDs will bring benefits to the US economy.
It was signed by executives from Worldwide Media, eNom, EuroDNS, Right Of The Dot, auDA, Momentous, Othello Technology Systems, Network Solutions, AboutUs.org, Cronon, Domain Dimensions, Tucows, DomainTools, Donuts, Minds + Machines and others.
The hearing begins at 10am in Washington DC today. Coverage later.