Re: InterNIC Deadbeats (fwd)

[Michael Dillon <michael@memra.com>]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Sun, 09 May 1999 15:24:38 -0700
From: JC Dill <inet-list@vo.cnchost.com>
Reply-To: list@inet-access.net
To: list@inet-access.net
Subject: Re: InterNIC Deadbeats

On 12:29 PM 5/9/99 -0700, Michael L Judson wrote:
>How does the InterNIC feel about deadbeat domain holders in regards to  
>payment?  We register many domain names and list ourselves as the billing
>contact.  If one of those customers suddenly changes their mind after we
>submit the domain request, we're certainly not going to pay the domain
>registration fee.  Does the InterNIC keep track of all these unpaid
>domain requests and give a negative "credit" report if you have too many?
>Or do they not care?  Or should we submit a deletion request?

I have never heard of anyone being hassled about domains registered and not
paid for before the recent hoarding/spamming incident, and AFAIK the
hoarders are the only ones that NSI went after.  The hoarders were
*seriously* abusing the system, registering and not paying for hundreds of
domain names, and spamming the mail server with re-registration requests to
grab the name again as soon as it was deleted, to avoid paying for the name
at all.  I don't believe real customers (such as ISPs and hosting
providers) are affected in the new rules that affect the hoarders/spammers.

And you are submitting the domain name request in the *customer's* name,
right?  So, at most, it is a single individual (who isn't you) who decides
to not keep and therefore not pay for a domain name.

Deletion requests are theoretical.  Unless it is a deletion coupled with a
new registration (required when you are changing the name of the
registrant, such as when you sell a domain name business), in the past they
have just ignored all deletion requests.  When asked, they would clearly
say "just don't pay the invoice and it will be deleted for non-payment
after a few weeks".  I've had to deal with this several times when a
customer filled out the web form a bit sloppily and made a typo in the
domain name, or when they registered business-name.com and later decided
they really wanted businessname.com (or visa versa).  I wish I *could* get
InterNIC/NSI to process a deletion request in those circumstances so that
we could proactively prevent customers from getting the repeated
snail-mailed and emailed invoices for the unwanted domain names.

jc

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