18(c) What operating rules will you adopt to eliminate or minimize social costs?

Prototypical answer:

While launching .SKOLKOVO, the Registry Operator arranges a compulsory Sunrise period for prospective registrants that satisfy the aforementioned eligibility criteria and hold the exclusive right to trade mark⁄service mark.

Where more than one application for a certain second-level domain has been submitted during Sunrise stage, then that domain name shall be set for an auction.

During the Live stage, domain names are registered on the First Come First Served basis. Registrars will forward information about a domain name to enter data into the registry database, provided the registrant has completed necessary procedures, including entering into an agreement with the Registrar, making a down payment for the services and submitting the registrant’s complete and accurate data.

.SKOLKOVO is a non-for-profit TLD with a certain mission and objectives, and as such it is created to ensure the possibility for establishment of addressing infrastructure for participants in the Skolkovo project.

The Registry Operator envisages the costs of services to registrants being relatively low in .SKOLKOVO. Meanwhile, the Registry Operator does not set prices for registrants through RRA, with prices being controlled solely by Registrars. The Registry Operator does not plan to enter into any agreements directly with registrants, either.

The Registry Operator grants equal rights and conditions to all ICANN-accredited registrars who have entered into Registry Registrar Agreement for the applied-for TLD.

The initial domain names registration in .SKOLKOVO is envisaged for the term between 1 and 10 years, but no more than 10 years and not in excess of the registrant’s participation in the Skolkovo project. Domain name renewal in .SKOLKOVO is foreseen for the term of between 1 and 10 years, but for no more than 10 years and not in excess of the registrant’s participation in the Skolkovo project. This condition is incorporate in the RRA with all the ICANN-accredited registrars.

The Applicant does not plan to raise Registrar’s fees over the initial three years.

Where the registration and⁄or domain name renewal fees are raised (including, inter alia, resulting of termination of any refunds, discounts, promotional sales and other price deduction activities), the Registry Operator will notify thereof the Registrars in accordance with paragraph 2.10 of the Registry Agreement. The timelines terms for such notifications will be specified in the RRA and they will not contradict the terms of the Registry Agreement (they may be longer, but not shorter than the ones stipulated in the Registry Agreement).

As noted above, the Applicant does not plan to enter into any direct agreements with registrants. It is Registrars that will be engaged in dealing with domain name registrants. The RRA will also foresee the Registrar’s obligation to notify registrants of price increases in advance. Furthermore, the Registry Operator will demand from Registrars to notify registrants in advance of price rises.

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