About
Our mission
CENTR stands for the Council of European National Top-Level Domain Registries (CENTR). Its objectives are to promote and participate in the development of high standard of Internet Country Code Top-Level Domain Registries (ccTLDs) for the benefit of its members and the Internet. The organisation has a European focus.
Together with similar organisations with focus on other regions of the world, CENTR will achieve its objectives through consensus building, coordination and collaboration; respecting cultural and historical variations amongst the ccTLDs and their Local Internet Communities.
Objectives
1. CENTR shall support activities based on any technologies and naming policies which may be used for registration services and are in the interests of the Local Internet Communities within the membership.
2. CENTR shall promote the advancement of knowledge and information for its members.
3. CENTR may represent the membership in discussions with other organisations where there is a common CENTR position. The following lists some examples:
- governments and the Commission of the European Union - to promote ccTLD development, to advise on policy issues relating to ccTLDs and on regulatory matters;
- international bodies - to ensure the development of open common understanding of issues, like best practice, privacy, dispute resolution and legal matters;
- bodies for global coordination of names, addresses and protocols for the Internet (such as ICANN) - for securing the stability of the Internet;
- industry - to encourage participation in research and development in general, and to provide feedback to industry on the emerging developments in DNS-related technologies and to stimulate suppliers of products and services for the benefit of the membership;
- other regional ccTLD organisations and non-associated ccTLDs - to encourage information exchange.
4. CENTR shall maintain a policy of subsidiarity whereby CENTR will not undertake activities which are best provided at a local level.
The wording of the Mission Statement was adopted by the CENTR Membership on 5 September 2002.
How to become a member
CENTR has two types of Members (Full Members and Associate Members) and can grant Observer status to organisations with which it maintains a close relationship. Applicants should complete the application form and return it to the CENTR Secretariat. All applications are voted on by the Members during the General Assembly.
Full Member
Full Membership is open to organisations, corporate bodies or individuals that operate a country code top level domain registry. Registries that qualify for Full Membership are asked to voluntarily select from seven fee bands (the most appropriate to their situation).
CENTR Fee Bands:
Band 1: EUR 3,310
Band 2: EUR 5,750
Band 3: EUR 9,260
Band 4: EUR 13,800
Band 5: EUR 18,515
Band 6: EUR 21,850
Band 7: EUR 25,785
Band 8: EUR 33,065
Band 9: EUR 42,320
Band 10: EUR 48,750
Band 11: EUR 57,500
Associate Member
Associate membership of the association may be given to any organisation or corporate body that operates an internet domain registry and the General Assembly considers that CENTR would benefit from such bodies or organisations having Membership of CENTR.
Applications are restricted to non-European ccTLDs and TLDs with strong connection/ties to Europe (such as city and regional TLDs), and are restricted to six per calendar year allowing applicants to present their organisation at the General Assembly.
Associate Members are welcome to choose their membership fee in line with the self-selection mechanism applicable for full members. The minimum fee for Associate Members is 8,050 EUR.
The membership term of associate members is three years, after which the membership expires and a new request to become an associate member may be submitted.
Observer
Observer status may be given to corporate bodies or legal representatives representing such bodies if, at its sole discretion, the General Assembly considers that the association would benefit from such bodies or individuals having Observer status. No person or corporate body who qualifies for full or associate membership shall be appointed as an Observer.
The Observership will be reviewed by the members on a yearly basis.
Background and history
CENTR is the association of European country code top-level domain (ccTLD) registries, such as .de for Germany or .si for Slovenia. CENTR currently counts 53 full and 9 associate members – together, they are responsible for over 80% of all registered domain names worldwide. The objectives of CENTR are to promote and participate in the development of high standards and best practices among ccTLD registries. Full membership is open to organisations, corporate bodies or individuals that operate a country code top level domain registry.
The project that became CENTR was formed in March 1998 and was informally funded by participant registries. In 1999, it was legally established as a not-for-profit company in the UK. Since 2006, CENTR is registered as a non-for-profit organisation based in Brussels, Belgium. CENTR activities are funded by membership fees, and performed by a secretariat based in Brussels, Belgium.
The organisation has a European focus, but there are no geographical restrictions to membership. In addition to more than forty of the countries in the region, CENTR is very pleased to have as members the country code registries from a number of countries outside of Europe (such as Iran, Japan, New Zealand and Canada). CENTR welcomes the application from all country code managers.
CENTR provides a forum to discuss matters of policy affecting ccTLD registries and acts as a channel of communication to Internet governing bodies and other organisations involved with the Internet. It promotes the interests of ccTLDs and advocates on their behalf.
The rules and registration procedures of ccTLD registries vary considerably and CENTR aims to collect information on, and document the practices of ccTLD registries. It provides a focal point for enquiries on such matters and encourages amongst ccTLDs the provision of better service for users.
CENTR also facilitates collaborative projects on technical managerial and legal issues affecting ccTLDs.
Partnerships
In the spirit of fostering collaboration with the wider Internet community, CENTR has established partnerships with organisations also involved in the digital and DNS fields.
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