We cannot really stop anyone from becoming a LIR... -- RIPE Hostmaster

The following is an extract from a series of communications on the subject
of RIPE having recently authorised the addition of another LIR in the UK,
which uses the same trading name of an existing member.  It is our feeling
that RIPE should not have allowed the addition of this LIR on the basis that
the company in question trades using a name which could easily confuse the
general public as to which company is which and that since our company was
an existing member, and had previously been a LIR in another country as
well, they should have decline the application of the LIR on the basis that
their trading name could cause a conflict and confuse the general public,
and would further cause damage to an existing member's company and
reputation.


Greg Lloyd Smith
uk.firstnetonline


[RIPE NCC Hostmaster writes]
Good morning Greg,


[uk.firstnetonline writes]
 "FirstNET Online PLC" <webmaster at gb-host.com> writes:
 * Thank you for your continued discussion on this matter....  What you
could
 * have done, was determined whether or not RIPE needed (yet) another LIR,
and
 * base that decision on the same factors I was presented with in Greece...
 * That is..  Could they have obtained their IP addresses from their up line
 * connectivity provider, and was there another member using the name
FirstNET
 * or something similar...  These were the questions I was asked when I
applied
 * to RIPE.  I am very distressed by the fact that about a week ago there
was
 * no other member of RIPE using our name and now there is and (most
 * important), there is no connection between our companies.

[RIPE NCC Hostmaster writes]
Yes we did all that. Its standard procedure as written in ripe-160.

[uk.firstnetonline writes]
 * I would point out for the record that of the 20 companies I own two of
them
 * (FirstNET Online Management Limited and FirstNET Online PLC), and that
only
 * three of them are purporting to be ISP's and therefore the change of 20
of
 * them asking you for membership would be limited to the company about
which
 * we are complaining and our own 2 companies.
 *
 * I would therefore ask that we be allowed to appeal to someone within the
 * RIPE organisation to have their membership revoked or repealed since it
 * should not have been granted in the first place.  I was vetted and I
suspect
 * that if there had been a company in Greece using the name Firstnet, you
 * would have rejected my application.  Why was their application approved?

[RIPE NCC Hostmaster writes]
If your argument is that FirstNet Services should not have been
allowed to become a Local IR because they partly use the same name as
you then you have no agreement according to current policy. We cannot
really stop anyone from becoming a LIR, only recommend them to go
elsewhere for their address space.

But if you feel strongly about it why don't you write to the LIR
working group mailing list, <lir-wg at ripe.net>, and state your case
there. Policy is brought about here by the community, not by us.