Published on May 3rd, 2013
As an IPv4 broker, we are often asked by IPv4 owners if they should undertake an 8.2 Merger and Acquisition IPV4 transfer. I fundamentally agree with the need for an accurate registry. However, ARIN attempts to have the IPv4 owner sign a Registration Services Agreement (RSA) when a registry entry is brought up to date.
Never sign an RSA as part of bringing your registry entry up to date, unless you are in the process of a transfer for an IPv4 sale. You will lose all legacy rights.
While ARIN will tell you that legacy rights have no value, and no court has yet been engaged to confirm that ARIN has no jurisdiction over legacy IPs, if there is no ARIN agreement, what can ARIN do in situations outside its region? In fact, the value proposition of legacy IPv4 addresses is starting to peek through in spite of ARIN’s attempt to control the world market for IPv4 addresses.
RIPE NCC is about to pass policy 2013-03, which will do away with needs justification for transfers. ARIN says it will then not allow transfers from ARIN to RIPE, once inter-RIR transfers are allowed by RIPE, because there is no “like” needs based policy. But, if a legacy owner has no agreement with ARIN, and tries selling IPV4 addresses to a RIPE based buyer, the RIPE NCC has expressed willingness to register the IPs. Then what can ARIN do? Refuse to unregister ips for which it has no agreement? It seems clear there will be global community pressure for ARIN to adopt an enlightened position and honor legacy rights and unregister the ips. Then the legacy seller will be able to sell to RIPE whether ARIN allows RIPE-bound inter-regional ipv4 transfers or not.
And will APNIC be far behind?
So don’t sign an 8.2 RSA. Remain patient and watch for RIPE policy proposal 2013-03 approval and adoption, and later for RIPE approval of Inter-RIR transfers. At that point, you are eligible to IPV4 transfer to a RIPE based buyer, and you can bring the IPv4 registry up to date in the RIPE database.
- By Sandra Brown
IPv4 Market Group: