RAND Proposal

I have always had respect for the W3C. You have stood, in my mind, as a bastion of technical integrity promoting only the best solution for a particular problem. If RAND is accepted, the W3C may as well relinquish all it's responsibilities to ICANN. You will no longer be needed. Corporate interest will dominate the standards just as they dominate ICANN. The best technical solution will no longer become the driving force behind W3C's decisions. You will be bought...piece by piece. Corporate interest WILL gain control of the W3C. This may not happen overnight, but it will happen, no matter how good your intentions are today. Do not make the wrong assumption that future W3C members will be moved by the same forces that have delivered this organization to its present position. The money will corrupt. 

Rand will not help the Internet progress. Instead, I feel most developers will make do with the free tools they have today. Future licensed tools will be out of reach for individual developers. This proposal will stifle growth and turn our much beloved standards into a simple commodity. Please do the right thing and reject RAND. 

Jeff Herrin
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