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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72"><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'>Dears,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'>According to this new agreement, Verisign will be allowed to increase the wholesale price to registrars for .COM domains every year for 8 out of the next 10 years, and the increases don’t stop there.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'>This will mean that<b> .COM wholesale domain prices can grow by more than 70% over and above current prices over the next decade</b>. The contract also allows for other price increases, which could drive prices up further, ultimately making .COM domains less accessible and more expensive for everybody.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'>Alongside these contract changes, <b>Verisign agreed to pay ICANN an additional $20 million dollars over five years to support</b> ICANN's domain name system initiatives, without any clarity about how ICANN will spend the money, or who will ensure that the funds are properly spent on domain infrastructure.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'>Not least, <b>Verisign will also be able to operate as a domain registrar</b>. In other words, the company that controls almost 80% of the registrar pricing for domain names will compete directly with all domain registrars, maximizing its control of domain name pricing. This harms competition, choice, and domain name services.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'>I would like to know how ICANN is guaranteeing that the best economic practices are adopted and that consumers interests are protected.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif'>Best regards,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif;color:black'>-- <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif;color:black'>Erick F. Alves<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif;color:black'>PhD Fellow, Department of Electric Power Engineering<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif;color:black'>Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span lang=NO-BOK style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif;color:black'>NO-7491 Trondheim, Norway<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span lang=NO-BOK style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif;color:black'>Mobile +47 932 61 518<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span lang=NO-BOK style='font-family:"Open Sans",sans-serif;color:black'><a href="https://www.ntnu.edu/employees/erick.f.alves"><span style='color:blue'>https://www.ntnu.edu/employees/erick.f.alves</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>