On 1 January 2025, I stepped into the role of CEO at auDA. Having served as auDA’s Chief Operating Officer from 2018-2024, I've seen the significant public benefit the .au domain provides to both the Australian and international community.
The auDA team is dedicated to supporting Australians online by delivering a secure, reliable and trusted .au, and I’m looking forward to building on the successes we achieved together under the leadership of previous CEO Rosemary Sinclair AM.
Pictured: auDA CEO, Bruce Tonkin.
In 2025, among other important projects, we’ll develop auDA’s Strategy for 2026-30, and commence a review of the .au Licensing Rules as part of our continuous improvement processes.
Below I share more information with you about these and other key activities, what to expect in 2025 and how to get involved.
Developing our 2026-30 Strategy
This year we’re developing a new auDA strategy that will see us through 2026-30. We started this work last year through auDA’s Future Scenarios Project, which was designed to broaden our perspectives and help us consider potential future scenarios.
Other inputs to the process include feedback from our stakeholders through stakeholder, member and material themes surveys, consideration of the technology landscape, and insights from auDA staff and Board based on their day-to-day experiences and expertise.
Just as we did for our 2021-25 Strategy, we’ll develop a draft 2026-30 Strategy for public consultation. We expect to do this in Q4 financial year 2024-25, providing an opportunity to gather feedback from .au members and the public.
Contributions from the community will help us establish a strategy that continues to provide value to Australians through .au, while delivering our core functions and navigating future complexity.
.au Licensing Rules Review
This year, we’ll appoint an independent Policy Advisory Panel to carry out a review of the .au Licensing Rules. This is typically done on a four-to-five-year cycle.
The .au Licensing Rules set out the requirements for people and organisations to register .au domain name licences. The multi-stakeholder community reviews the rules periodically to make sure they remain fit-for-purpose and reflect the needs of Australian internet users, which change over time.
The current rules have been in effect since 2021, including the launch of .au direct (e.g. getyour.au) in 2022. With a few years of operation, it’s a good time to review their effectiveness.
In line with our commitment to the multi-stakeholder model of internet governance, the Panel will make a range of opportunities available for in-person and online community participation. We expect the review will take some months to complete to ensure the Panel has adequate time to work with the multi-stakeholder community, consider suggestions and formulate its recommendations to the auDA Board.
Before I joined auDA, I was involved in a number of advisory panels, so I understand how important community feedback is to shaping .au. I hope all those interested get involved when the review is underway.
Other priorities for 2025
Other priorities in 2025 include continued support to uphold effective multi-stakeholder decision making processes as part of internet governance. The United Nations’ 20-year review of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS+20) will take place this year. This important milestone could lead to a movement away from the multi-stakeholder decision making model that is common in internet governance bodies like ICANN and IETF, towards a government-based decision making model at national level or treaty level between governments. However, through our efforts we hope it will instead be an opportunity to strengthen multi-stakeholder decision-making processes that have been a feature of the internet’s development since the 1960s.
We’ll also continue promoting the benefits of .au to Australians, to help them build a trusted online presence, support a competitive .au market through our Co-Marketing Program with registrars, and deliver benefits to Australians through our Public Benefit Program.
The security and resilience of .au is always a priority at auDA. Through our ongoing work, and collaboration with .au registry operator Identity Digital Australia Pty Ltd and .au registrars, we will continue to build on our strong security and resilience systems and processes.
How to get involved at auDA
When consultation opens for our Strategy and the multi-stakeholder decision making process opens for the Licensing Rules Review, we’ll share information on how you can be involved – but the best way to stay up to date with news and information from auDA is to become a .au member. As a long-standing .au member of more than 20 years, I know it’s a great way to contribute and stay connected with others who are passionate about the .au domain.
auDA also hosts a range of events and webinars throughout the year. I hope to see many of you at these events and forums during 2025. If you see me, come and say hello. I’m keen to hear about your experiences with .au and auDA.
It promises to be an exciting year and I’m pleased to lead auDA in this next phase as we continue to support Australians online through a trusted, reliable .au.
Bruce Tonkin is the CEO of auDA. He served as auDA’s Chief Operating Officer from 2018 to 2024 and has been involved in the .au, domain names and the tech sector for more than 20 years.