26Apr 06

auDA trying to raise profile?

Posted by Renai LeMay @ 16:32 0 comments

It looks like the nation's domain name regulator .au Domain Administration (auDA) is trying to raise its profile in the community.

"If you own an .australian Web site you need to know who we are," screamed an orange and grey advertisement the regulator placed in several newspapers I read over the weekend.

A section from auDA's ad

The colours were obviously chosen to match auDA's corporate branding -- the regulator's Web site has the same theme.

I would say that AuDA has had a fairly low profile over the years. After all, most people registering domains rightly go through a domain registrar.

But the regulator hasn't been without its share of controversy. It's been involved in several high-profile lawsuits and regularly makes it into the press -- including ZDNet -- for enforcement actions.

Just last month NetRegistry called on auDA to change its public consultation processes to get more input from those who buy domain names.

Could this weekend's advertisements be an attempt to meet that challenge?

If so, good on the auDA for responding to criticism so quickly. But in any case, the regulator trying to communicate better with stakeholders in the domain system can only generate a more vibrant, open and democratic system.