18(c) What operating rules will you adopt to eliminate or minimize social costs?

Prototypical answer:

List of content
i- Multiple applications for one particular domain name
ii- Cost benefits for registrants
iii- Magnitude of price escalations

i- Multiple applications for one particular domain name
One operating rule to eliminate social costs has been to assign domains on a first-come first-serve basis if there are multiple applications for one particular domain name. The reason is that DocCheck AG introduces “.med” gTLD in order to benefit interested parties especially with healthcare background. This way, all relevant parties should be granted with the opportunity to register their preferred domain name.
Otherwise by choosing to resolve multiple applications for a domain by conducting an auction, potentially only privileged registrants would be provided with their preferred domain name. As DocCheck AG intends to avoid such a situation, a decision has been made in favour of a first-come first-serve allocation.

ii- Cost benefits for registrants
Moreover, DocCheck AG commits itself to follow a pricing policy that sets reasonable prices, balancing prices on behalf of the registrants as members of the community, but to be able to finance registry services. Albeit the prices will be based on the registry business in which DocCheck only has little control of the prices registrars are passing on to the registrants.
Only during the time of the execution of the landrush phase domains will be sold in auction modus. This method ensures that the most attractive second level domains will go to those parties that are most committed to making the domain a success.

iii- Magnitude of price escalations
Having to do with price increases DocCheck AG cannot make any binding commitment today that no price increases will occur over the following ten years while running the registry services for the gTLD .med. Nevertheless DocCheck AG will only increase prices if necessary to follow economic or currency developments that necessitate price changes. They will not occur in order to maximize profit.
However if price increases occur, DocCheck AG will inform all registrars as well as ICANN following the Registry Agreement requiring written notice in advance of price increases.

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