Who will this affect?
- All businesses, organisations and individuals who own a .au domain name.
Key features
- The introduction of an Official Domain Drop List which will publish the exact time and date that expired and deleted .au domain names will become available for registration.
- The introduction of a new service called "domain sync" which allows owners of multiple .au domain names to set a common expiry date for all their .au domain names, provided that the date is less than 2 years from the date of registration of each domain name.
- All expired or deleted domain names to be removed from the domain name registry at 1.00pm AEST (2.00pm AEDT) on the date of removal rather than at a random time on the date of removal as under the previous policy.
The new policy
A policy in relation to the renewal, expiry and deletion of .au domain names, which came into effect on 18 April 2010. The new policy changes the way in which expired and deleted .au domain names are removed from the domain name registry.
As was the case under auDA's previous policy, the new policy provides that a domain name may be renewed at any time within 90 calendar days before its expiry date. If a domain name is not renewed during this time, it will stop working on the expiry date and the owner will have 30 calendar days after the expiry date to renew and restore the domain name.
Under auDA's previous policy, if a domain name was not renewed during this 30 calendar day period, it was purged from the registry at a random time on the next business day. Once purged, the domain name becomes available to third parties for registration on a first come first served basis.
Under auDA's new policy, if a domain name is not renewed during the 30 calendar day period, it will appear on auDA's Official Domain Drop List, which is published daily at http://www.auda.org.au/domains/drop-list. Once a domain name appears on the drop list, it is purged from the registry at 1.00pm AEST (2.00pm AEDT) on the next day (including weekends and public holidays).
Why the changes?
auDA has stated that the impetus for the introduction of the Official Domain Drop List is to address the issue of unofficial domain drop lists and domain-catching services being provided by industry participants, many of which ordinary members of the public are not aware of or do not have access to.
The Official Domain Drop List, together which the introduction of a fixed and publicly known purge time, is intended to level the playing field and gives all third parties a useful official and authoritative tool for monitoring which domain names have expired and the exact date and time that they will become available for registration.
What you need to do
In order to avoid the risk of your domain name appearing on the Official Domain Drop List and then being registered by a third party:
- Check that your domain name registrar has your up-to-date contact details to ensure that " you receive all domain name renewal reminders and notices from your registrar.
- If you are the owner of multiple .au domain names, utilise your registrar's domain sync " service to change the individual expiry dates of your domain names to the same date. " This will make it easier for you to keep track of the expiry date for your domain names. " Keep an accurate and independent record of this date.
Also, if there is an unavailable domain name which you would like to own, use the Official Domain Drop List as a tool to monitor when that domain name might become available for registration. If the domain name becomes available, submit an application to register that domain name with your registrar immediately as it will be available for registration on a first come first served basis.
Further information
If you would like further information or have any questions about the auDA's new policy or managing your domain names, please contact us.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.