Registrar
A registrar has direct relationships with domain name registries and is authorized to sell domain names. In order to become a registrar, one has to be accredited via an ICANN process,[1] in which they must meet certain business and technical requirements.
See our list of registrars.
Related Terms
- Accredited Registrar: A Registrar that has been certified as meeting certain minimal criteria to act as a Registrar for a specific TLD. This term is almost solely used when referring to Registrars that have been certified by ICANN. ccTLD Registries also accredit registrars, and though they may use differing terms, the concepts are largely the same.
- Sponsoring Registrar: The Registrar responsible for the submission of the domain name to the Registry.
- Registrar Operator: A term used to denote the entity providing the technical services to a Registrar in support of their registration services. Also referred to as a "Registrar Outsourcer" or "Registrar Provider"
Registry and Registrar
Background
From 1993 to 1998 Network Solutions was the only Registrar and Registry Operator for .com, .net and .org top level domain names (TLDs) based on a Cooperative Agreement between the company and National Science Foundation (NSF).[2] The Department of Commerce (DOC) extended and amended the Cooperative Agreement with NSI when the contract expired in 1998. Under the new Cooperative Agreement, NSI will continue to serve as a Registry Operator and to implement a Shared Registry System (SRS) by June 1, 1999. The SRS will be accessible to unlimited number of registrars to be accredited by the new non-profit organization that will takeover the technical management of the DNS.[3] The Agreement was modified twice to adjust the date of the deployment of the SRS from June 1 to June 25, 1999 [4] and the inclusion of a registration fee for new domain names; $9 for one year and $18 for two years and the Registrar License Agreement.[5]