Consumer protection to top ICT body’s agenda

How has the Kenyan domain registration body, KENIC, been handling the non-profit groups?

Kenic has deliberately refused to allow this group’s participation at local policy making. About four yeas ago, ICT Consumers Association of Kenya applied for a seat at KENIC Board.

That was never accepted and to-date that letter has never been replied to. 

At KENIC’s AGM two years ago, I asked why that letter had not been replied to but I was not given an answer. 

Does your joining NCUC mean that Kenya will have two bodies registering domain names and what are the pros and cons?

No, or at least not yet.

Firstly, the NCUC is not a domains registrations entity. The parallel drawn with KENIC (a domains registration entity) was simply to show that such companies projecting and “selling” themselves to the public as “non-profit” firms have deeply entrenched commercial interests on the Internet.

Therefore, their representation of end users interests at ICANN policy making processes is subject to first ensuring their own domain incomes levied on end users is safeguarded before anything else.

Will you need any approval from the regulator to register domains?
We do not need, and have never needed, any approval from the regulator or government to advance users’ rights, unless we decide to also apply for a low-priced .or.ke “Public Interest Registry” license, in which case KENIC would have to cease being the registry for .or.ke domains.

But this is not of immediate concern.  But we have communicated the good news to government and the regulator as part of our “soft diplomacy” ahead of a “deep engagement”.

According to some IT experts , the current registration of domain names in Kenya is not only expensive but uncalled for, what is your take on this and how should it be done?

Their high domain price has been hurting Kenya’s internet growth. Prolonged calls for lowering of domain prices have gone unheeded.

At present, KENIC makes over Sh20 million on domains annually, in addition to sponsorship they receive from various local and international institutions.

And estimating at least doubling of .ke websites now that TEAMs cable is here, one expects domains could double in the next year thus they are likely to be making millions on their business - excluding annual international support.

The best way to arrive at the fair domain prices is to calculate how much KENIC needs to effectively run the domains registration service then compare that with registrations incomes.