[ARIN-consult] Consultation on ARIN Fees

[John Curran]

On 21 Jul 2021, at 2:14 AM, Owen DeLong <owen at delong.com> wrote:
> 
>> The 732 customers who have over the past decade have entered into an LRSA with ARIN have done so for a variety of reasons:
>> 
>> - They’d like to have some clear legal documentation of their rights to the asserted entries in the ARIN registry 
>> - They desire some newer services that ARIN does not provide except under RSA (e.g. RPKI) 
>> - They wish to support ARIN as an organization and feel paying ’their share’ is reasonable and customary
> 
> - They wanted to do the right thing in a time when it was fee per ORG for end users and a single ORG could have
> both RSA and LRSA resources such that there was no additional cost to having both, so why not.

Mr. Delong – 

ARIN is a member-based organization that is not static, but rather will naturally experience an evolution in the fees and services over time.  Organizations should expect to that changes will indeed occur – and if the past is any predictor, then it appears that these changes trend towards fees that are more equitable across the entire ARIN community. 

> Unfortunately, the board actively worked to alter this circumstance and continues to make the situation worse
> and worse for organizations who signed on this basis.

It is true that ARIN has provided a number of disproportionate benefits to legacy resource holders over the years – this includes decades of services without any fee or contract as well as providing special fees, terms and conditions for those who enter into a formal registration services agreement with ARIN.   However, it has been more than twenty years since ARIN’s formation and it should not be a surprise to anyone that disproportionate fees for some customers are increasingly under discussion by ARIN community, as it is the community that (through the member-elected Board and related consultations) ultimately determines what are the most appropriate fees and services. 

Thanks!
/John

John Curran
President and CEO
American Registry for Internet Numbers