Domain regulator labels DNA brawl as biggest consumer issue

Chief executive of Australia's domain name regulator auDA, Chris Disspain, told ZDNet Australia that while consumers were affected by the controversial advertisement -- which the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has alleged is misleading and deceptive because it resembled an invoice and not a solicitation for a new domain name registration -- the saga wasn't the biggest issue for the regulator itself.

"From the point of view of what we do, it was a minor irritation. I mean, we've got much more important things to be doing besides faffing around with Chesley [Rafferty, director of DNA]," Disspain said.

The affair is now at the centre of a Federal Court action being spearheaded by the ACCC. The mail-out yielded 9,000 registrations at AU$237, a figure significantly higher than the average domain name registration fee of AU$85. In total the mail-out resulted in AU$2.3 million in registrations with DNA. Earlier this year, Disspain lambasted the competition watch-dog for terminating an informal policy of cooperation between the two groups. The ACCC's links to auDA were severed following the appointment of Graeme Samuel as the commission's new chairman, who took over the reins from the body's long-term principal, Professor Allan Fels. It was this lack of communication that led to separate actions being taken against DNA and Rafferty by both the ACCC and auDA, Disspain said.

"The end result of all of that was two separate actions were started when it would have been more sensible to just have one, and we're hopeful that it won't happen again," Disspain said. "Having said that, auDA acknowledges that the ACCC have very good reason to move more slowly than we do. They have their own processes that they have to go through. It's easier for us to move quickly."

The communication melt-down has since been resolved, Disspain said.

As for next year, Disspain says the introduction of state-specific domain names, such as .nsw.au and .vic.au, is high on the agenda. That change will loosen up current regulations and allow for the registration of place names as commercial domains -- the state specific domains will become a "safe-haven" for the registration of official community portals.

auDA will also continue to educate the general population on domain name basics in an attempt to reduce its susceptibility to scams and misleading mail-outs. While the media plays a part in the process, Disspain said the challenge for auDA is reaching people who don't really have an interest in technology.

"The problem with the media is... not surprisingly, the majority of press in respect to auDA is in the IT sections, where you'd expect it to be. But of course the average consumer doesn't read the IT section because they've got no reason to. So they don't necessarily know what's going on," he explained. "So we have to try to find ways to communicate with them and educating them in ways that they will see."