[Icp2-review] MAINTAINING IP CONSISTENCY WITHIN RIRS

[Andrew]

No.

It is HIGHLY undesirable to have portability of IP addresses: this is going to cause venue shopping, and resources will leave places where they are required and go to places where they are commercially attractive.  

Specifically, IP4 brokers WILL invent fraudulent reasons that IP4 resources have to be moved between RIRs, and the move those IPs to a venue where they get a better commercial arrangement, or less rigorous examination of their fraudulent reasons for holding the IPs.

If we're going to have RIRs subverting themselves with this scheme, then any scheme for portability MUST include safeguards:

* Complete public documentation of the process, including correspondence with the motivating end users

* Membership-wide voting approving the transfer, both by the sender and the recipient RIRs

* A slow process (a year minimum)

* No permanent transfers: an annual vote of resource members of the sending RIR must approve the continued loan of the resources to the destination RIRs, and any unapproved resources must be repatriated (over the following year).



On Thu, 30 Oct 2025 17:01:05 +0300
Lauraine smith <laurainesmithh at gmail.com> wrote:

> Title: Maintaining IP Consistency Within RIRs
> 
> 
> Dear colleauges,
> 
> Because inter-RIR IP address transfers are not always supported, the global
> register has gaps. For example, IPv6 portability across regions does not
> exist, and AFRINIC has no rules for address transfers between RIRs. "Number
> portability," modeled on the telephone system, has been proposed as a
> solution: organizations should be able to retain their IP allocations when
> switching providers or relocating operations.
> 
> Proposed Operational Enhancements
> 
> To address this, Article 4.1 could include a clause requiring that all RIRs
> allow IPv4 and IPv6 allocations to be portable across service regions and
> providers. Resource Holders should retain their allocations whenever
> operational control moves, with only necessary constraints applied to
> ensure responsible management. Inter-RIR cooperation is essential to
> guarantee that transfers are handled efficiently, transparently, and
> without capricious restrictions.
> 
> 
> Maintaining Open and Equitable Procedures
> 
> Transfer procedures must be fair and well documented.  A RIR should never
> reject a valid request unless there is a strong legal or policy reason to
> do so. Where Resource Holders find a new policy or contractual clause
> unacceptable, they should be able to transfer IP addresses promptly,
> safeguarding operational continuity and registration integrity.
> 
> Member-Driven Governance Oversight
> 
> Equally important is member-driven oversight. Although ICANN audits are
> feasible, there isn't a straightforward way to examine governance or handle
> board member concerns. Petitions endorsed by 100 members or 5% of the
> membership should be able to initiate a comprehensive review by the NRO
> Executive Council through a Member-Initiated Compliance Review procedure.
> The RIR under review must work completely with the process. Findings and
> recommendations for resolving problems, including potential sanctions or
> dismissals of members of the governing body, should be included in public
> reports.


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