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Jon Nevett named new CEO of PIR (.Org)

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Donuts co-founder will lead the .org registry.

Jon Nevett, new CEO of Public Interest Registry.

Jon Nevett has been named the new CEO of Public Interest Registry (PIR), the non-profit that runs the .org top level domain name. Nevett will take over for Jay Daley, who was the interim CEO after Brian Cute left.

Nevett left Donuts–a company he co-founded–in October. Since then, rumors have been swirling that Nevett would take over the top job at PIR. He was the first person people named when I asked around at the ICANN meeting in Barcelona that month. The timing of his departure could have been attributed to Abry Partners acquiring Donuts, but Nevett’s background and sudden availability made him a front-runner.

It seems like a good fit for both Nevett and PIR. Nevett has a unique combination of experience with both the policy and business sides of running top level domain names. This will come in handy at PIR, a non-profit that effectively reports up (and donates its proceeds) to Internet Society.

Nevett has a law degree from Harvard and an undergraduate degree from Binghamton University. He already lives in Washington, D.C., where PIR is located.

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Public Interest Registry (.Org) tax return provides insight into registrar marketing deals

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Latest tax return doesn’t reflect new Afilias contract.

Public Interest Registry (PIR), which manages the .org top level domain, has filed its 2017 tax return (large PDF). It provides fresh insight into the non-profit’s finances for 2017.

It doesn’t include a number that many in the industry are eagerly waiting for: how much PIR is paying Afilias to manage the backend registry services under its new contract.

PIR put the contract out to bid in 2016. It received 20 bids and decided to stick with Afilias.

The new contract didn’t start until 2018, so we don’t yet know how much of a haircut Afilias took under the new agreement.

The 2017 tax return reveals that PIR paid Afilias $37.8 million in 2017, down slightly from $38.0 million in 2016.

Overall, PIR’s program revenue (excluding investment income) was $90.8 million in 2017, up from $85.0 million in 2016.

From a registrar cooperation perspective, PIR paid GoDaddy $1.5 million in marketing fees in 2017, up from $0.8 million in the prior year. Marketing fees are typically paid for placement and rebates.

PIR also paid Name.com $0.5 million in 2017.

In 2016, PIR paid PDR (Endurance International Group) $0.7 million. It didn’t report a payment to the firm for 2017.

The company is changing how it works with registrars starting next year. Learn more by listening to this podcast with interim CEO Jay Daley.

Public Interest Registry is expected to name a new CEO next month.

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The Registry/Registrar Sales Channel with Jay Daley – DNW Podcast #202

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.Org operator is changing how it works with registrars.

dnw-podcastPublic Interest Registry (PIR), the group that operates the .org top level domain name, recently announced changes to how it’s approaching marketing through the domain name registrar channel. On today’s show, PIR interim President and CEO Jay Daley discusses why the organization is making these changes. Jay discusses the current state of registry marketing and sales through registrars, how we got here, and what might change in the future. It’s a great interview.

Also: AWS.com, DomainTools injunction, Sedo gets into expired domains, and Verisign’s (NASDAQ:VRSN) .com contract.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 29:57 — 24.0MB) | Embed

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Subscribe via iTunes to listen to the Domain Name Wire podcast on your iPhone or iPad, view on Google Play Music, or click play above or download to begin listening. (Listen to previous podcasts here.)

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PIR (.org) makes changes to its sales practices

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No more volume discounts, focus on quality over quantity.

Public Interest Registry (PIR), the non-profit registry that runs the .org top level domain name, is making changes to how it markets its domains.

Jay Daley, Interim President and CEO of PIR, said in a blog post that the organization is nixing volume discounts. These discounts are only attainable by the largest registrars; new incentives and rebates will be designed so that all registrars can participate.

It will also start judging results by more than just registration numbers. It will look at how domains are used in an effort to favor positive use and avoid spam and other nefarious uses.

Reading between the lines, it also appears that the company will stop participating in pay-for-placement deals with registrars in which it takes on all of the risk.

Daley admits that its headline domain stats might dip in the short term as a result of these changes.

He says the changes mean the organization is moving from a sales-led organization to a marketing-led organization. The company has made several marketing hires as a result.

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.Org non-profit is looking for new members of Board of Directors

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Want to be on the board of a non-profit domain name registry?

Public Interest Registry (PIR), the non-profit that runs the .org top level domain name and a few related new TLDs, is looking for new members for its Board of Directors. Nominations, including self-nominations, are due by December 11.

This role is not to be taken lightly, as the description and time commitment makes clear. Board members are expected to attend 15 full days of face-to-face meetings (not included travel time) each year and correspond daily over email.

PIR wants people with a strong financial background, experiences with startups or new ventures, and a solid understanding of the non-profit world that PIR serves. Experience outside of the domain name industry is a plus.

Compensation is quite limited (up to $12,000 per year), so Board members definitely need to look at this as a volunteer opportunity.

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