ARIN /8s ?

[Stephen Sprunk]

At 15:41 29-06-97 -0700, you wrote:
>> As has been pointed out numerous times, an IP allocation is a LEASE, not a
>> SALE.  Just as a leased house is not an asset you can claim, neither is an
>> IP allocation.  Technically, ARIN will be leased a portion of the IP space
>> (just like RIPE and APNIC, and formerly NSI) from the IANA.
>
>A "lease" is, under the law of most, if not all, jurisdictions, and under
>accepted accounting principles, a property right, which, in fact, does,
>and often must, show up on balance sheets. 

Where on your balance sheets do you show the telephone numbers you have
been leased from your local telco?

According to my accountant (certified in my jurisdiction), "you never
-have- to record anything as an asset".  Also, "if you got it for
free...and you may have to give it back at any time...it's not really
yours".  IPs are never _yours_ to begin with, so you cannot count them as
assets.  She also was unable to find a better term for IP
allocations/delegations/assignments than "lease".

>To the extent that one can trace IP address space back to a US
>governmental authority, the handling of those property rights must accord
>with the various Constitutional requirements of due process.
>
>(ARIN may yet have to deal with the issue that it is (or is not) an agent
>of the US government in these matters.)

It will be interesting to see what the courts think about ARIN; I'm sure it
will be in court soon enough.

>And even if no governmental agency is involved, a "lease" doesn't mean
>that there are no reciprocial obligations on the lessor, such as a minimal
>term, the giving of notice of termination, etc. 

If there is no contract, there are obviously no enforceable conditions on
either party involved in the lease.  Up to this point, AFAIK there have
been no contracts involved in IP leases; I'm sure this will change once
money starts changing hands.

>In other words, waving the word "lease" around isn't going to offer much
>protection of a higher-level holder of IP space allocations/delegations
>[pick your word] jerks around a lower-level "leaseholder".

Until people start demanding a contract with terms and conditions signed by
both parties, there is no protection at all for the consumer.

Stephen