Simon Johnson Appointed To auDA Names Policy Panel

A few minutes ago we received confirmation from auDA that Simon Johnson had been appointed to the Names Policy Panel.

The purpose of the panel is to:

1. Review the policy framework underlying the allocation and use of domain names in the .au domain space
2. Provide recommendations to the auDA board about what changes should be made to the policy framework.

The Panel is expected to commence work in September 2010. If you have any specifics that you would like Simon to raise, feel free to leave a comment on contact us directly. Please also note that there will be a public consultation in December 2010.

Coming To America

This time next week I’ll be flying out of Australia to the USA. Its my second trip the USA in the last 9 months (the video below is just a couple of grabs from my previous trip).

The reason for making the journey to the other side of the planet, is that I’ve been invited to speak on Domaining at a Marketing conference in San Diego. On a personal note, its interesting for me to see that buying & selling domains (including websites) is becoming more mainstream.

Obviously, I’m delighted to be invited to speak and to help raise the profile of the industry, but here’s the thing…. I also love giving back to it – especially an industry that’s given me an “Internet lifestyle” for many years…. so here’s what I’m going to do….

[FLOWPLAYER src=http://domaining.s3.amazonaws.com/usa2009.mp4, width=480, height=360]

I’m going to stay a few weeks and spend some time interviewing prominent people in the domain name industry – from CEO’s, to parking companies, to young upcoming domaining bloggers. The interviews will be recorded on video and posted up here for your enjoyment.

The $100 Million Dollar question, that I have for you is…

What do you REALLY want to know about domaining?

Just post a comment below and let me know. Remember, everyone started somewhere, so there are no stupid questions – ask away!

Are You Based in LA, San Diego, Southern California?

I’d love to hear from you! Drop me a line on Facebook or direct message me on Twitter and lets catch up!

See you next week.

Simon

P.S. While I’m travelling I will be posting photos and updates on Facebook and Twitter so keep an eye out.

Domainer Nominates For auDA Board – Needs Your Help

auDA is the policy authority and industry self-regulatory body for the .au domain space. Its Annual General Meeting is to be held on 19 October 2009. The AGM will elect four directors to the board and I (Simon Johnson) have been nominated to stand for election by the Demand class members.

In order to vote, you must qualify under clause 16.1 of auDA’s constitution and your membership fee has to be paid.

You can read my candidate statement online; in summary, I stand for reform within auDA to increase transparency and the free-market commercialization of Australian namespace.

I know that some people think that having a Domainer on Board of auDA is unthinkable (and maybe an impossible task, in terms of getting elected). That’s why I’m asking for your help.

Please have a look through the auDA Members list and see if you know anyone in the Demand section. If you do, please contact them now and ask for them to vote for Simon Johnson. You can download my (already filled in) Proxy form here.

With your support, I’m hopeful that we can change the .au landscape for the better.

The People At Traffic DownUnder 2008 – Part 1

A number of attendees have asked for copies of my photos. I’ve got a “Traffic DownUnder 2008″ set at Flickr. Go crazy kids!

Here we have myself and Ron from NamePros as well as Jessica and Jen. Of course, as the night progressed, more red wine, white wine, cocktails and beer was consumed.

Then Jonathan Frakes dropped by to say hello. Given the fact he was drinking VB (and I’m not in the movie) I thought it was worthy of posting. Incidentally, Jonathan had a great speech at TRAFFIC; and for those that don’t know him, he is one hell of a nice guy. I’ll post the presentation as soon as I receive it.

Enjoy