Competition Is Sexy - Separation or Integration of the Domain Name Sales Channel?

Back in the early days of the public Internet, Network Solutions had a monopoly on .com, .org., and .net domain registrations and charged $100 per domain for a 2-year registration. Growing complaints about that predatory pricing was one of the factors that led to ICANN's creation. NetSol established an internal "firewall" in 1998 and its wholesale prices soon dropped to $6 per domain. VeriSign acquired NetSol for $21 billion in 2000, and then sold off the registrar side of the business to private equity in 2003. Along the way, lots of competing registrars arrived on the scene and ICANN adopted a policy of registry-registrar separation. On the whole this expanded retail competition has greatly benefited consumers, including domain investors.

http://www.circleid.com/posts/20140321_separation_or_integration_of_the_domain_name_sales_channel