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The .au Domain Administrator has approved recommendations to scrap the close and substantial connection rule, raising concerns among experts that millions of local websites could be affected, while the body maintains most holders will meet new identity-matching requirements.
The country's domain name governing body has outlined new rules that have industry experts concerned. However, other experts suggest the changes will not be as dramatic as they are being made out to be.
A quiet policy shift within Australia's web address regulatory body has industry experts concerned that millions of local websites could be pushed offline, even as the government urges a wait-and-see approach. Last month, the board of the .au Domain Administrator approved "in-principle" recommendations from an independent panel that would overhaul eligibility rules for domestic website registrations. The decision, recently announced by auDA, will see the long-standing "close and substantial connection" rule scrapped.
Companies and organisations will soon no longer be able to register web addresses based on products, services, or events, but will instead have to link their websites to their name alone. Domain industry experts estimate that "potentially millions" of Australian websites could be impacted and that "confidence" in the .com.au domain address could be shaken if the proposed changes go ahead. auDA said in a statement to SBS News that rule changes have yet to be finalised and that "most" domain name holders are expected to meet the new requirements.
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox. Under the current rules, businesses are allowed to register website names that are related to their services — such as applepies.com.au for a bakery — but under the new rules, they could need a much more closely aligned Australian company name to match the site.
"The independent review recommendation is intended to strengthen the connection between a com.au or net.au domain name and the domain name holder's official business identity, helping maintain the trust Australians place in .au domain names," the auDa statement said. "The Panel found the current criteria can create inconsistency in how the allocation rules are applied, can be seen as unfair to small businesses, and in some instances may result in consumer harm.
"Former auDa chair and domain lawyer Erhan Karabardak voted against the change on the divided advisory panel. He said the policy "throws the baby out with the bathwater" and will fail to address the problem it was designed to. He said the policy change stems from a desire to curb domain investors and "monetised" web portfolios from claiming generic domain names to sell them to legitimate businesses.
However, he argued commercial domain investors will simply work around the change by registering multi-word business names with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and that everyday users will end up paying more.
"Whenever a business wants to register a generic name, product, or service, they're going to have to firstly pay for a business name — $47 a year — and then pay for a domain name," he said. "It's effectively doubling the cost of registering a .com.au or .net.au domain name. " Schools, charities, and small businesses that want a temporary domain name to promote an event could struggle to do so under the new rules.
Registrants will see the process as "more red tape" and opt to use a different domain address like .com where there are fewer rules, Karabardak said. While the announcement of the change has sparked concern among industry insiders, some have urged caution until the full details are known.
Patrick Myles, an independent domain industry consultant, told SBS News that he expects the number of registrants who might be impacted will be "pretty small" and that updates to business organisational practices are a routine part of day-to-day operations.
"I'm in this category myself," Myles said. "I have multiple domains, and some of them are less associated with my business than others so might impact me a bit, but it doesn't worry me at all. " In an era of declining trust in global institutions and declining relevance of domain names as artificial intelligence changes how users access the internet, Myles said protection of national domain names is increasingly important.
"If you don't support the policies around your country code ... it basically becomes existential," Myles said. Myles, who has worked for auDA previously, said the changes proposed are "one of the best ways to ensure that the brand of .au is retained and it is kept as strong as it can be in a very, very cloudy world".
While the requirements for registering a .com.au domain could become stricter, Myles advises anyone who fails to meet the new standards to register an .au address, which has fewer requirements. Sign up now for daily news from Australia and around the world. You can also subscribe to Insight's weekly newsletter for in-depth features and first-person stories.
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