>We are currently planning to hold all payments for existing
>domains until after the establishment of a competitor within
>COM.AU has been further investigated. We have sought legal
>advice about Melbourne IT's right to remove our domain if we
>fail to pay, and our advice is that it would be unconscionable
>conduct and open MIT to considerable recourse. We are advising
>all clients to withhold payment on the three hundred odd COM.AU
>domains connected through us.
>

I will note that my stance in this matter is identical to Michael's. The
100+ domains we handle for customers aren't going to be arbitarily renewed
this month, and as I have previously suggested in this forum, there are
rational ways to handle existing domain names which minimize the work to
all parties (specifically, doing exactly NOTHING with them until the end of
Calendar Year 1996 or until they are renewed with money handed over prior
to that time) and thus avoid the inherent unfairness involved in forcing
people to renew all existing names "now". 

The fact that this action on Melbourne IT's part is a grab for the existing
customer base prior to the existence of competition in this market (as they
have said themselves) is both unfair and unreasonable as a business
practice. Deleting the existing domain names would be a punitive action
which will not raise the status of Melbourne IT in the eyes of their
customer base...!

I hope that Melbourne IT think long and hard before deleting operative
domain names, which will cost them time and expense and will knowingly
causing damage to the fabric of the domain name system in the process.

I would also remind people who find themselves deciding that they *will*
pay these fees at this time that they have the option of "renewing" with
Melbourne IT for one year, not two, if they wish - check the Melbourne IT
web pages (carefully) for details.

I would note, as Michael has, that we are paying customers of Melbourne IT
with respect to NEW com.au registrations. 

Renewal of existing names is a different situation entirely since it will
involve actively generated damage to the operative com.au DNS by Melbourne
IT if they are to achieve their aim of forced renewals by all existing name
holders at this time.

In closing: My views could be modified if Melbourne IT will publically
agree to provide immediate pro-rata refunds of monies against names which
are moved from their care to the care of any other com.au DNA once these
alternative agencies exist in the future. In the presence of a guarantee
from Melbourne IT to immediately refund all pro-rated monies against names
they 'license', their attempt to force payments for all names, "right now",
might be easier to accept. Maybe.

I would invite a response from Melbourne IT on this issue of pro-rated
refunds for customers electing to take their business elsewhere in the
future.  

Please consider...

seasons greetings,

Simon Hackett
Internode Systems
---
Simon Hackett, Technical Director, Internode Systems Pty Ltd
31 York St [PO Box 284, Rundle Mall], Adelaide, SA 5000 Australia
Email: simon§internode.com.au  Web: http://www.on.net
Phone: +61-8-8223-2999          Fax: +61-8-8223-1777