DNS.be

Type:	Non-Profit Organization
Industry:	Registry
Founded:	February 2, 1999
Founder(s):	Agoria, ISPA Belgium & Beltug
Country:	Belgium
Website:	www.dns.be
LinkedIn:	DNS.be
Twitter:	@DNSbe
Key People
Philip Du Bois, General Manager

DNS.be is the registry operator of the .be country code top level domain name (ccTLD) for Belgium. It is a non-profit organization established by ISPA Belgium, Agoria and Beltug in 1999. The organization is currently managing 1,291,780 .be domain names.

History

The registrations of .be domain names was originally performed by Pierre Verbaeten of the of the Computer Science department of the Catholic University of Leuven from 1989 to 1994. During that time, there were only 129 domain names registered. Prof. Verbaeten requested to transfer the responsibility of registering domain names to DNS.be which was formed on February 2, 1999. DNS.be assumed the responsibility on January 1, 2000. In 2006, DNS.be confirmed its commitment and cooperation with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers in ensuring the security, stability and interoperability of the Domain Name System (DNS).

Responsibilities

As the registry operator for the .be ccTLD, DNS.be is responsible in carrying the following task:

• Develop the registration rules & regulations, policies and procedures for the .be ccTLD.
• Organize the quality assurance for domain name registration in Belgium.
• Maintain all the required technical aspects related to the domain name registration.
• Establish agreement with domain name registrars.
• Coordinate the domain registration at a national level.
• Represent the .be ccTLD within the international regulatory bodies and work groups.
• Implement the latest technology available for the domain name industry.
• Promote standardization and cooperation among Internet Service Provides (ISPs).

New gTLD Proposals

In March 2012, DNS.be announced its application for the .vlaanderen and .brussels generic top level domain names (gTLDs) after receiving 10-years contracts from both the Flemish and Brussels governments to manage the operations of the proposed gTLD strings respectively.

Management Team

The management team of DNS.be include:

• Philip Du Bois- General Manager
• Lut Goedhuys & Hilde Van Bree, Marketing and Communications
• Peter Vergote, Chantal Lurkin, Karen Van Rillaer, Miet Huyghebaert, Cécile Van der Borght and Véronique Van der Borght- Legal and Administrative Services
• Maarten Bosteels, Loesje Hermans, Johan Heylen, Kevin Jacquemyn, Stijn Niclaes, Pieter Vandepitte- Development
• David Goelen, Dimitri De Graef, Leander Dierckx , Thomas Dupas, Veerle Ternier, Kristof Tuyteleers, Koen Zagers- Operations

Structure

DNS.be is supervised by its Board of Directors assisted by a Strategic Committee, which is comprised of representatives from ISPA Belgium, Agoria and Beltug. Their representatives include:

Agoria

• Christian Vanhuffel (Member of the Board & Strategic Committee)
• Francis Walschot (Member Strategic Committee)

ISPA Belgium

• Jan Torreele (Member Strategic Committee)
• Tomas Cautereels (Member Strategic Committee)
• Piet Spiessens (Chairman of the Board & Strategic Committee)

Beltug

• Daniëlle Jacobs (Member of the Board & Strategic Committee)
• Paul De Cooman (Member Strategic Committee)

Jan Vannieuwenhuyse is also a member of the Strategic Committee representing Belgian Institute of Postal and Telecommunications Services (IBPT). Prof. Pierre Verbaeten is still active in the DNS.be Board. Philip Du Bois also serves as General Director of the Board.

Country code top-level domain