Font size:
Page background:
Letter spacing:
Images:
Disable visually impaired version close
Version for visually impaired people
News

PIR sale postponed again

ICANN once again decided to postpone the deal to sell PIR, the company that runs the .ORG gTLD. April 20 was the due date for it, but on April 15 California Attorney General Xavier Becerra notified the ICANN management and its board that it should reject the takeover. This is the reason for yet another delay.

The California Attorney General’s Office demanded the deal documents in late January, and after two months of studying them Xavier Becerra decided that the registry’s transfer from the Internet Society to Ethos Capital, a private company, could affect the interests of the registrants. The Attorney General is also concerned about Ethos Capital’s non-transparent organizational structure: in particular, it is impossible to find out who its owners are due to a chain of numerous subcontractors and rogue firms.

The Attorney General’s letter puts ICANN in a tough position. Xavier Becerra writes directly that his office “will take whatever action necessary to protect Californians and the nonprofit community” (who makeup a significant share of the registrants in .ORG). The prospect of facing a lawsuit from the state where ICANN’s headquarters is located cannot but make them worried. However, if it denies the transaction, it may be sued by Ethos Capital because formally the deal does not violate any US laws, according to Domain Name Wire.

Previous News Next news