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NSI antitrust suit dismissed

Posted by Hemos on from the appeal-appeal-appeal dept.

/ writes "A federal appeals court (DC) has dismissed charges that NSI and the NSF violated antitrust laws. This overturns last year's lower-court ruling that the NSI illegally collected $46 million in dns registration fees on behalf of the NSF. "

23 comments

  1. monetary damages by / · · Score: 1

    Fine them. A lot. Try to recover some of the $46 million in question.

    Or you could weaken their monopoly by authorizing competitors to award domains too. Oh wait; we're already doing that.

    --
    "If one is really a superior person, the fact is likely to leak out without too much assistance" -- John Andrew Holmes
  2. Re:International agency needed by Paradox+!-) · · Score: 2

    'Course, ICANN is theoretically International, as is ISOC, IETF...etc.

  3. Bogus by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Seems as if they've earned enough money to become immune to the justice system.

    Yes, it's time to sersiously persue alternative DNS means on a massive scale.

  4. International agency needed by Bocephus · · Score: 2

    There needs to be an impartial international agency that handles all this stuff. (Lord only knows that the UN, with its emphasis on "intellectual property protection," isn't it.) I like capitalism, but it sure breaks down when the government hands monopolies to unethical companies.

    --
    "Even genius needs a competent technique."--Robert Fripp
  5. Uhh, wrong. by cswiii · · Score: 1

    :Last year's court ruling sided with the
    :defendants on nine of
    :10 counts, but agreed with the
    :plaintiffs that the $46 million NSI had
    :collected from customers was
    :illegal.
    ...thus, the $46 million was considered illegal.

    1. Re:Uhh, wrong. by / · · Score: 2

      Congratulations, it was considered illegal by the lower court in question. But when CNN says The entire suit was eventually dismissed, however, and the plaintiffs appealed. and previously says that A federal appeals court last week dismissed charges that the National Science Foundation and its private contractor, Network Solutions Inc. (NSI), violated antitrust laws and overcharged Internet domain name registrants. you'll see your error. Please have a good day.

      --
      "If one is really a superior person, the fact is likely to leak out without too much assistance" -- John Andrew Holmes
  6. Oh great, What next... by topdogg · · Score: 1

    I just had to post, "What next" grin.

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  7. NSI stealing our money by Gary+Franczyk · · Score: 2

    Its amazing how long this blatant theft of our money has been going on. Its so obvious to anyone with a clear mind that what they have been doing is totally illegal.
    At least they did the right thing eventually.

    1. Re:NSI stealing our money by Gary+Franczyk · · Score: 1

      Whoops... I meant "at least they had the right idea"...

  8. I have 6 domain registrations pending... by skander · · Score: 3

    ... and now I've lost all hope that it may ever get better...

    NSI is the biggest pile of bureaucracy I've ever come accross... they copy/paste from the license agreement when you ask for help, their database registration process is very buggy...

    How can you even trust an organisation like that with so much power over the net??

    what a shame... a true shame.

    1. Re:I have 6 domain registrations pending... by ajay · · Score: 1

      I've been waiting since mid-March for those incompetent jerks at NSI to delete a registration. So far I've sent two electronic requests and seven faxes, each saying the same thing, each directed to a person who would take care of it right away, each a liar. The only call-back I received from them about the problem was when I called their business line, got voicemail (of course), and told them that they were a pack of lying wesaels who couldn't get out of their own way. THAT got a call. But my domain remains nonetheless, a monument to the stupid, corrupt monopoly that is Notwork Solutions.

    2. Re:I have 6 domain registrations pending... by CodeShark · · Score: 2

      I feel for you, as I am in the same situation, though with less registrations in the pipe.

      I'm curious as to how long have they been pending, so I will might know roughly how long my on-hold hell is going to last.

      --
      ...Open Source isn't the only answer -- but it's almost always a better value than the alternatives...
  9. Where are we 'supposed' to register domains now? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Can the alternatives to NSI be used yet? Did anyone try to register a domain with any of them, and can comment on their competence? Are any of them the 'good guys'?

  10. Re:NSI isn't out of hot water yet... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    NSI is still going to charge the other domain name registrars $9 to put a domain name in their whois database.

  11. NSI isn't out of hot water yet... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4

    Fear not! Those incompetant idiots at NSI may have dodged this bullet, but there are two more on the way:

    1. NSI is under suspicion for securities fraud for having claimed in their prospectus for their Initial Public Offering (IPO) of stock that they owned .com, which they obviously do not.

    2. The new Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) now owns the "root" of the DNS, and is in the process of setting up a shared registry system. This means that NSI will not be the only company through which you can register a domain name, and given this competition, it is unlikely that NSI will survive, because they are incompetant.

    In short, NSI is still facing their well deserved doom.

  12. Sigh by NutZac · · Score: 1

    Another sure-fire sign that the government is working for US!

    --
    Linux: Because rebooting is for adding new hardware.
  13. Ruling had to be this way. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I mean what are you going to do? Punish NSI by shutting them down? You'd cripple the internet.

    1. Re:Ruling had to be this way. by EJB · · Score: 1

      > I mean what are you going to do? Punish NSI by
      > shutting them down? You'd cripple the internet.

      Not really, NSI only runs one of the root nameservers. The other root nameservers are much older than NSI.

      If NSI were shut down, it would mean that no domains could be added/changed/deleted for a while.

      A few months ago, I would have said "no difference" but lately NSI seems to be picking up some speed in the handling of these things.

  14. Re:Competetive registries? Where? When? Don't see by Mr.+Slippery · · Score: 1
    I know there's at least one that's been accredited, NameSecure.

    From http://www.namesecure.com/newsrel ease/042199.cfm

    NameSecure.com will enter into an accreditation agreement as soon as possible with ICANN and expects to begin acting as a .com, .net, and .org registrar immediately upon the conclusion of a 60-day "testbed phase" currently scheduled to end on July 9, 1999.
    (My only tie to NameSecure is as a customer.)
    --
    Tom Swiss | the infamous tms | my blog
    You cannot wash away blood with blood
  15. Re:Where are we 'supposed' to register domains now by ajay · · Score: 1

    One of the alternate registrars is the bastion of internet know-how known as AOL. That's as asinine as if the government were to open up the cable TV monopoly to, say, the telephone companies. Uh, wait a minute ...

  16. Competetive registries? Where? When? Don't see 'em by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    >Or you could weaken their monopoly by authorizing competitors to award domains too.
    >Oh wait; we're already doing that.

    So I keep hearing, yet I still don't see 'em. NSI's contract ran out how long ago? Then is was "temporarily" renewed. And there's still no other registries out there? And no one can say when they're coming. Looks like business as usual.

  17. hijack the domain name system by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    It's time to hijack the domain name system. The only power that Network Solutions over us is that which we give them.

  18. Re:Competetive registries? Where? When? Don't see by Juln · · Score: 1

    actually, i think their contract has yet to expire.

    --
    Juln