Last month the target date for AusRegistry to go live was anticipated to be earlier this month. However, this has now been pushed back until July 1.
The go live date was set for July 1 so that there was enough time for the transition of data from existing registries, according to a statement issued by .au Domain Administration (auDA) this morning. Adrian Kinderis, managing director at AusRegistry, added that the date was also set for July to allow the registrars enough time to prepare their own systems prior to go live.
auDA has indicated that final testing of AusRegistry was completed earlier this month. This included reports from Liberty RMS confirming that the registry had completed the technical specifications included in the Registry Licence Agreement.
Kinderis said that although the new technology would make it more efficient to run, registrars needed to implement technology and systems. While some registrars had already got their systems up and running, others were struggling, he added.
According to Kinderis, the transition period also allowed it more time to transition all the data it needed from the previous incumbant.
In addition to July 1 signalling when regime changes come into force, auDA's Domain Name Eligibility and Allocation Policy Rules for Open 2LDs also apply from this date.
Chris Disspain, CEO at auDA, said it had been running a series of meetings around the country about the regime changes about to come into force. "People were delighted that things were moving on," Disspain said. "We've been happy with the feedback we've had from the public in general."
Larry Bloch, CEO at Web hosting and domain registration company NetRegistry, believes a significant part of the change will be the new policies that auDA has put in place as part of the transition.
NetRegistry is one of about 10 registrars which will be vying for customers following the July go-live, and which will be bound by the new rules.
Bloch thinks the policy changes will help give Australians a more positive perception of the domain name space.
He sees the code of conduct which registrars have to sign into as giving teeth to auDA to force registrars to bring resellers into line, in regard to issues such as spamming.
-Obviously if the registrar fails to do that they stand to lose their registration," Bloch said.
