Decentralized, local ONS and Discovery Services model highlighted in new white paper

NICE, FRANCE - 6 October 2008 - Today, at the Internet des Objets, Internet du Futur Conference, Afilias released a white paper that details a decentralized and interoperable model for implementation of Object Naming Services (ONS) and supporting Discovery Services. This model is intended as one solution to an international debate on the potential problems associated with a single, authoritative ONS system and to promote the widespread adoption of Internet of Things technology for track-and-trace and supply chain management.

"Questions are currently being asked as to whether an Internet of Things architecture can be implemented without a unique, single point of control, or ONS, at the root level," said Brian Cute, Vice President of Discovery Services at Afilias. "Afilias believes that a decentralized, interoperable ONS architecture, combined with Discovery Services, is the ultimate model that will provide success for the evolution of the Internet of Things."

The white paper details how the DNS system used to route Internet domains (Web addresses) today can serve as a model for the initiatives focused on the future of an "Internet of Things" for tracking objects. It also describes how decentralized ONS systems can be implemented in a similar fashion to the DNS to serve the needs of businesses, governments and the public alike.

Afilias also advocates for the use of Discovery Services in conjunction with a decentralized ONS architecture. Afilias has helped lead the effort in the IETF to build a standard for Discovery Services called the Extensible Supply-chain Discovery Service (ESDS) open protocol. This protocol provides a unique, interoperable method for businesses implementing RFID networks, ONS systems or applications that track and trace objects to share and store information.

About Afilias Discovery Services

Afilias offers commercial Discovery Services which provide a common journal to store thin data about key events for products using any type of identifier, whether RFID, bar codes, UPC codes, or proprietary identification. This allows a business to have a complete record of who handled their products and when. Afilias Discovery Services provide secure and selective visibility based on various security parameters, customizable by the owner of the information, thus enabling access but preserving competitive and sensitive data. For more information on Afilias Discovery Services please click here.

About Afilias

Afilias provides global registry services that leverage proven technology to deliver fast, reliable and secure service. Afilias' technology supports a wide range of applications, including Internet domain registries such as .INFO, .ORG, .aero, .mobi, .asia, .me, and many country code domains. Afilias also provides services in the RFID market with its Afilias Discovery Service, which enables real-time lookup of event histories across RFID networks. Afilias maintains international headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, sales offices in London, England, sales and operational facilities in Toronto, administrative offices in the U.S. near Philadelphia, PA, and operational offices in New Delhi, India.

Attachment	Date	Size
Afilias Internet of Things White Paper The Internet of Things (IoT) has evolved using standards that are based in part on DNS design and utilize the Internet to support aspects of IoT services. The new IoT architecture currently consists of ONS (root service), EPCIS (standardized interface for data exchange) and Discovery Service (secure and selective visibility of event data). This paper puts forward an architectural approach to ONS that addresses these questions and could serve as a model for a decentralized and interoperable IoT root system. It provides a model for localized ONS that could support a multiplicity of IoT networks and further clarifies the respective functions of Discovery Services.	11/08/08 3:36 pm	829.44 KB

Dublin, Ireland – July 29, 2008 – Afilias, a global provider of registry services, will provide advanced domain name technology to support the release of three character airport codes in the .aero domain this winter. This advanced technology will ensure fast resolution, reliability, and 100% DNS uptime.

"The .aero domain is in use by thousands of aerospace industry organizations and airports around the globe and is therefore a critical resource," said Ram Mohan, Chief Technology Officer of Afilias. "Through its agreement with SITA, Afilias has pledged to provide the most advanced technology to support .aero domains, so users of .aero's new three character airport codes can be sure that there sites will maintain the highest reliability for consumers who access the sites for important flight information."

SITA, the registry operator of the .aero domain, has released plans to begin registration of three character airport code domains in December 2008. Afilias provides domain name registry services in support of the .aero domain ensuring that these Web sites are provided with the most advanced DNS, security and reliability in the industry which has already been proven to support more than 13 million domains worldwide including the popular .INFO and .ORG domains.

About Afilias

Afilias provides global registry services that leverage proven technology to deliver fast, reliable and secure service. Afilias' technology supports a wide range of applications, including Internet domain registries such as .INFO, .ORG, .aero, .mobi, .asia, .me, and many country code domains. Afilias also provides services in the RFID market with its Afilias Discovery Service, which enables real-time lookup of event histories across RFID networks. Afilias maintains international headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, sales offices in London, England, sales and operational facilities in Toronto, administrative offices in the U.S. near Philadelphia, PA, and operational offices in New Delhi, India.

.aero registry receives service upgrade to enhance domain

DUBLIN, IRELAND – 21 February 2006 – Afilias Limited today announced that it has successfully completed the transition of registry services for .aero, the top-level domain for the aviation industry. This transition, which was completed on behalf of SITA, the sponsoring organization for .aero, brings significant technical improvements to the .aero domain including faster DNS resolution, enhanced security and disaster recovery procedures, an upgraded distribution interface, and industry standardization.

“Afilias is pleased to bring .aero into the Afilias family of customers that it services with state of the art domain registration technology that is fast, reliable and secure,” said Hal Lubsen, President and CEO of Afilias. “We are looking forward to a successful partnership with SITA to improve the value, technology, distribution, and prosperity of the .aero domain.”

The .aero domain is open for registration by all members of the aviation community including airlines and airports, pilots and crew members, air services providers, cargo and other related entities. Thousands of existing .aero domains were migrated when the transition was completed during a twelve-hour window between 15 and 16 February 2006. As of result of the migration onto Afilias’ technology, the .aero registry will now operate on the world-standard Extensible Provisioning Protocol (EPP) which Afilias pioneered in launching domain name registries. The upgrade to EPP allows increased flexibility, standardization, and access to a broader distribution channel of ICANN-accredited registrars. The .aero registry will also deliver DNS resolution speed increases, reducing the time from registration-to-resolution of a domain name to under 5 minutes.

“SITA is pleased to be able to deliver these enhancements, improving the technology, service, and availability of .aero domains,” said Marie Zitkova, Head of .aero. “By working with Afilias, SITA believes that the .aero domain can fulfill its potential by leveraging Internet technology to connect the entire aviation community and facilitate communication between people and entities which provide efficient, safe and secure transport of people and cargo by air.”

Background

On 11 January 2006, SITA announced the selection of Afilias as the new Registry Operator for the .aero Domain. A thorough application process was followed by SITA in which a Request for Proposal (RFP) was issued and Afilias proved to be the registry operator best suited to provide registry services to the .aero TLD. Afilias now adds .aero to its growing list of registry customers which already include: .INFO, .ORG, .AG (Antigua and Barbuda), .GI (Gibraltar), .HN (Honduras), .IN (India), .LA (Laos), .SC (the Seychelles), .VC (St. Vincent and the Grenadines), and .MOBI. Afilias’ technology now powers more than 7 million domains worldwide.

About .aero

.aero is the world’s first industry-based top level Internet domain (TLD), introduced in March 2002 as an initiative run exclusively by and for the aviation community. As a sponsored domain, .aero can define and implement its own policies designed to safeguard the integrity of the domain, something that cannot be achieved in the original public domain structure (.COM, .NET etc...). SITA acts as the sponsor of the .aero top level domain under a sponsorship agreement with Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). SITA’s obligation is to manage and develop the TLD on behalf and in the interest of the aviation community on a not-for-profit basis.

About SITA

SITA SC is the only global Communication Services Integrator dedicated to the travel and transportation industry (TTI), providing consultancy in the design, deployment and management of complex communications solutions and reliably implementing, integrating and managing communication services. SITA SC is a commercially-managed not-for-profit organization, set up and wholly-owned by the air transport community. Further information can be found at www.sita.aero

About Afilias

Afilias Limited, a leading global provider of domain name registry services, maintains international headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, sales offices in London, England, sales and operational facilities in Toronto, Canada, administrative offices in the U.S. near Philadelphia, PA, and operational offices in New Delhi, India. Afilias provides a full range of registry services leveraging proven technology that is fast, reliable and secure. Afilias provides registry services support to the .ORG gTLD (under contract to Public Interest Registry), the .INFO gTLD and several country code and sponsored TLDs.

GENEVA, Switzerland – JANUARY 11, 2006 – SITA SC, the only global communication services integrator dedicated to the travel and transportation industry (TTI), today announced that it has signed an agreement with Afilias who will provide registry services for .aero, the top level domain (TLD) of the aviation industry.

The agreement was signed following a thorough application process in which a Request for Proposal (RFP) was issued by SITA SC, and where Afilias proved to be the registry operator best suited to provide registry services to the .aero TLD. The selection process was monitored, and the final choice made in consultation with the Dot Aero Council (DAC) – a representative body of the aviation community that supports SITA, as sponsor, in defining the policies and development plans for the .aero domain.

“We chose Afilias because of their technical expertise, reliability, and dedication to providing quality registry services.” said Marie Zitkova, Head of .aero. “They operate world-class technology supporting some of the largest generic TLDs in the world, and have been intimately involved in the development of standards such as DNSSEC and enum – standards significant to the continued development of .aero for the aviation community.”

.aero domain registrants will benefit from near real-time updates to their information, more competitive pricing, and better access to domain registration services.

Under the terms of the agreement, Afilias will manage registry operations (including ensuring high availability and diverse DNS service) and will provide technical and administrative support. Through their system, SITA SC will continue to manage eligibility verification of registrants and allocation of domain names to ensure the integrity and exclusivity of the domain.

“We are pleased to have been selected by SITA to assume registry operations for the .aero TLD,” said Hal Lubsen, President and CEO of Afilias. “We are confident that our superior service offering and vast experience in the transitioning of large-scale domain registries will ensure not only a successful and smooth transition, but an improvement in the overall service for .aero customers worldwide.”

About Afilias
Afilias, a fully integrated global provider of domain name registry services, maintains international headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, sales offices in London, England, sales and operational facilities in Toronto, administrative offices in the U.S. near Philadelphia, PA, and operational offices in New Delhi, India. Afilias provides a full range of registry services leveraging proven technology that is fast, reliable and secure. Afilias provides registry services support to the .ORG gTLD (under contract to Public Interest Registry), the .INFO gTLD and several country code TLDs.

For more information please visit www.afilias.info

About .aero
.aero is the world’s first industry-based top level Internet domain (TLD), introduced in March 2002 as an initiative run exclusively by and for the aviation community. As a sponsored domain, .aero can define and implement its own policies designed to safeguard the integrity of the domain, something that cannot be achieved in the original public domain structure (.com, .net etc.).

SITA SC acts as the sponsor of the .aero top level domain under a sponsorship agreement with Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). SITA’s obligation is to manage and develop the TLD on behalf and in the interest of the aviation community on a not-for-profit basis.

About SITA SC
SITA SC is the only global Communication Services Integrator dedicated to the travel and transportation industry (TTI), providing consultancy in the design, deployment and management of complex communications solutions and reliably implementing, integrating and managing communication services. SITA SC is a commercially-managed not-for-profit organization, set up and wholly-owned by the air transport community.

Local, globally, SITA delivers solutions and services to the TTI and to international organizations and governments over the world’s most extensive communication network. As a community of 600 airline and GDS members and 2,000 customers, SITA SC supports the TTI in driving down costs, removing complexity and improving operational performance. As a cooperative, any profit it generates is returned to its member customers. It is registered in Brussels.

Further information can be found at: www.sita.aero.