[Comments-com-amendment-3-03jan20] (no subject)

[Charles Foster]

I am against the proposed change that will allow the .COM domains to increase for those of us who purchase through resellers like NameCheap. Verisign will be allowed to increase the wholesale price to registrars for .COM domains by 7% each year in 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023. After a two year “freeze”, Verisign can increase prices by 7% annually during 2026-2029, then another two year “freeze”. This cycle will continue, meaning that within 10 years, .COM domains could cost approximately 70% more than the current wholesale price of $7.85 — and the sky is the limit.

This is a money-grab for ICANN since Verisign is agreeing to pay $20million over 5 years under this agreement.

The control granted to Verisign over the .COM domain under the proposed agreement creates a near-monopoly on the .COM domain since Verisign will control 80% of the pricing for domains -- which allows Verisign to price-fix against consumers.