Re: Meeting with .mu registrars

From: Benoit Gentil <benoit_at_fodytechnologies.com>
Date: Sat, 14 Mar 2015 22:57:44 +0400

I'm also adding Mr Rabbani to the discussion as apparently he was not in
copy to this email.

If other registrars would like to comment, they should do so by 16th
March as specified by Mr. S Moonesamy.

Best Regards,
Benoit Gentil

On 14/03/2015 22:38, Benoit Gentil wrote:
> Dear all,
>
> I'm adding Jean-Philippe from Legekko Info Ltd to the discussion so
> that he can read the other registrars comments. He unfortunately
> wasn't able to attend the meeting due to personal issues.
>
> Best Regards,
> Benoit Gentil
>
> On 14/03/2015 22:01, Stephanie Lan wrote:
>> Hello S Moonesamy,
>>
>> Thank you for your follow-up mail from the meeting. Please find my
>> comments below:
>>
>> 1) Technically, we have not seen a problem with .mu. At the end of
>> the day, our main concern is technical stability. What is important
>> for us (regarding .mu domains) is to be able to provide the service
>> to our customers:
>> - register .mu domain names on their behalf
>> - renew, update those domain names
>> - attend to transfer requests etc
>> We are able to do all the above and do not encounter technical issues
>> with .mu.
>>
>> With the nature of our business, we need the best and most stable
>> internet connection. We have tried 4 of the major internet providers
>> and were very disappointed with their connection speed and stability.
>> If we have to find an issue with running a registrar, it's with the
>> internet connection rather than with the .mu itself.
>>
>> 2) Comments on what other Registrars have already mentioned:
>>
>> a) Cost $50
>> $50 is quite expensive compared to a .com domain. We've registered
>> .com domains for customers but many customers would still prefer .mu
>> domains because of the choice of names they have. The .com domains
>> are normally very restricted and longer. It is the customer's choice
>> afterall. We also had a few customers registering .mg (Madagascar) at
>> $120 and one customer wanting to register .nf (Norfolk Island). The
>> .nf domain was at $1200 . While the .mu domain is not cheap, it's
>> still more affordable than some others.
>> For small business owners in Mauritius, a cheaper option will
>> certainly be welcome.
>>
>> b) Transfers
>> My experience is that transfers can be a very short OR a very long
>> process.
>> This depends on whether the customer has the authorisation code or
>> not. With an authorisation code, we can request a transfer instantly.
>> If a staff (registrant) does not have access to his company's domain
>> name (e.g. a previous staff registered a domain and did not update
>> the contact details), yes this process can be lengthy (1-2 weeks
>> depending on how fast they can prove their current Registrar that
>> they are the actual owner of the domain name). This does NOT imply
>> there is a problem with .mu.
>>
>> Pricewise, I agree that $50 transfer fee can be reduced.
>>
>> c) Grace Period
>> We have noticed that the grace period is currently 1 day (?). Domains
>> that are expired get suspended the next day. We were able to renew
>> some domain names without any charge on the same day because some
>> customers have paid immediately. But if the domain is not renewed, it
>> is deleted within 1 day. We find that 1 day is very short for
>> customers to organise payment and would like a longer grace period
>> (1-2 weeks). A lot of customers do not renew their domain name on
>> time (they wait until last minute and other priorities come up) or
>> they simply did not receive the Registry's "about to expire" notices.
>> A longer grace period will save a lot of frustrations/griefs.
>>
>> d) nic.mu <http://nic.mu> website
>> The "problem" listed by Neetish was not a problem with .mu registry
>> but with their website.
>> Last year, there was 1 instance where the registry's site
>> (registrars' access) was down for several hours. This did not affect
>> any of our customers' domains.
>> We were unable to renew domains during that time too and renewed
>> after the site was back. If any of our customers' domains were to
>> expire on that day, we would have sent a request to the Registry to
>> renew our domains on time since their site was down.
>>
>> .mu, Is therefore a problem? I also agree that there is not an issue
>> with .mu, just a few recommendations to improve.
>> These recommendations will help run our registrar. Some of the
>> "problems" listed by other Registrars are not actually problems with
>> the .mu registry but wishes for changes to the .mu domain pricing and
>> grace period.
>>
>> Best Regards,
>>
>>
>> ***************************************
>> Stephanie Lan
>> Manager
>> Register.mu
>> email: stephanie_at_register.mu <mailto:stephanie_at_register.mu>
>> https://secure.register.mu
>> **************************************
>>
>> On Fri, Mar 13, 2015 at 9:45 PM, Icy Evolution Web Hosting
>> <support_at_icyevolution.com <mailto:support_at_icyevolution.com>> wrote:
>>
>> Hello SM,
>>
>> Thank you for providing the updates. I'd like to add the
>> following from my
>> side:
>>
>> 1. I consider the $50 fee for .mu domain expensive too, when we
>> know that a
>> USD is nearly Rs 36 today. As registrars we have no choice than
>> to increase
>> the domain retail price so that we will at least have a small
>> margin of
>> profit. We should be able to pay in Euro just like before or at
>> least use a
>> fixed price in Mauritian Rs. It's a pain to keep adjusting our
>> MUR retail
>> price based on the fluctuation of the USD.
>>
>> 2. I agree with Benoit concerning the transfer fee of USD 50 too.
>> When you
>> transfer a .com domain, you get a one year renewal together with the
>> transfer. In the case of .mu, you have to pay USD 50 to only
>> transfer the
>> domain and another renewal price to renew it. My suggestion to
>> the registry
>> is to waive this transfer fee or at-least, reduce it to something
>> like
>> $10-$15. A transfer fee which is the same as a renewal fee does
>> not make
>> sense in my opinion.
>>
>> 3. Accreditation process: As at the last update I had last year,
>> the new
>> minimum is now 50 domains, not 20.
>>
>> 4. Grace period: A major problem since even if you miss payment
>> by one day,
>> you have to pay thrice the fee to reactivate the domain. I think
>> that the
>> registry could have offered at least 1 week of grace period.
>>
>> Overall: I don't think there is a problem with .mu in itself.
>> There is a
>> problem with how the business is being done which penalizes the
>> registrars
>> as well as the clients.
>>
>>
>> Best Regards,
>>
>> Tewin Sham
>> Creative Director
>> Icy Evolution
>>
>> Tidal Waves Ltd - BRN: C13115298
>> 4th Floor Ebene Heights,
>> 34 Cybercity,
>> Ebene - Mauritius
>> Mobile: +230 57076059 <tel:%2B230%2057076059> (Orange) - +230
>> 57246634 <tel:%2B230%2057246634> (Emtel)
>> Web: www.icyevolution.com <http://www.icyevolution.com> -
>> www.mywebsite.mu <http://www.mywebsite.mu> - www.optimus.mu
>> <http://www.optimus.mu>
>>
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>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: S Moonesamy [mailto:sm+mu_at_elandsys.com
>> <mailto:sm%2Bmu_at_elandsys.com>]
>> Sent: Friday, March 13, 2015 8:30 PM
>> To: mauritius-internet-users_at_lists.elandnews.com
>> <mailto:mauritius-internet-users_at_lists.elandnews.com>; Viv
>> Padayatchy; Stephanie
>> Lan; Frederic de Comarmond; Benoit Gentil; Kamal Rambauz; Neetish
>> Khorugdharry; support_at_icyevolution.com
>> <mailto:support_at_icyevolution.com>
>> Subject: Meeting with .mu registrars
>>
>> Hello,
>>
>> I had a meeting with the .mu registrars this morning. Jude
>> Rabbani from
>> mauritius.biz <http://mauritius.biz> and Stephanie Lan from
>> registrar.mu <http://registrar.mu> were unable to attend the
>> meeting. There were only two .mu registrars, Benoit Gentil from Fody
>> Technologies and Neetish Khorugdharry from Cybernaptics at the
>> meeting.
>>
>> I gave a presentation about "whether there is a .mu problem" as an
>> introduction. I then asked for the .mu registrars to comment
>> about the
>> topic. Benoit Gentil considered that USD 50 for a .mu domain
>> name is quite
>> expensive. He commented that there isn't a margin to sell .mu
>> domain name
>> to clients. He mentioned that there is USD 50 transfer fee and a
>> USD 50
>> renewal free for a registrant to transfer a .mu domain name.
>> Benoit Gentil
>> considered the lack of automation between .mu registrars as a
>> problem; it
>> sometimes takes several days to get a .mu domain transferred from
>> one .mu
>> registrar to the other. There wasn't a proper accreditation
>> process for .mu
>> registrars; anyone with more than 20 .mu domain names can become a
>> registrar. He also mentioned that there isn't a grace period
>> after a domain
>> name expires. In his opinion, there wasn't any technical problem
>> with .mu.
>>
>> Neetish Khorugdharry did not notice any major technical issues. He
>> commented that there was a problem with www.nic.mu
>> <http://www.nic.mu> web site which lasted
>> several days last year. The renewal of a domain name can only be
>> done on
>> the day the domain name expire. He considered that as a problem.
>>
>> At the end of the meeting I asked the .mu registrars whether they
>> are of the
>> opinion that there is a .mu problem and they agreed that there was a
>> problem.
>>
>> Benoit Gentil and I met Frederic de Comarmond from goCloud in the
>> afternoon
>> as he was unable to attend the meeting. We discussed about the
>> .mu ccTLD.
>> Frederic de Comarmond commented that the issues are due to a
>> communication
>> problem between the .mu registry and the .mu registrars. He
>> suggested that
>> the .mu registrars have a meet the .mu registry to discuss about
>> their
>> problems. At the end of that meeting I asked him whether there
>> was a .mu
>> problem. Frederic de Comarmond stated that there isn't a .mu
>> problem.
>>
>> I would be grateful if the other .mu registrars could comment
>> about whether
>> there is a .mu problem or not by 16 March. If there aren't any
>> comments I
>> will consider that the other .mu registrars do not have any
>> opinion about
>> whether there is a .mu problem or not.
>>
>> Regards,
>> S. Moonesamy
>>
>>
>>
>
Received on Sat Mar 14 2015 - 18:58:07 PST

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