I'm a little "late to the party" for this discussion, but I'd like to add a few of my thoughts:

First off, I'd like to thank Dave for coming up with great ideas and points for discussion.

MICE is a cooperative (not a charity).  As a cooperative, we need to treat everybody equally.  I feel that everybody should have to pay membership dues at some level, perhaps an amount based upon port size.  If we fail to require the payment of dues, we will have different classes of users and the potential for discontent as some people don't pay their fair share.  Like Martin said, "Classes create inequities".  If people don't pay, they need to be disconnected (after a reasonable grace period).  The dollar amounts due will likely be very small, the exchange has gotten by without any payments required for several years.  I don't think that the fees that would need to be charged would be anything that an organization connecting to the exchange cannot absorb.  If they can't handle ~$9/month (using Dave's example numbers), they won't be around long in this industry.

I agree with Richard Laager's points about enforcement.  We need to enforce whatever policy is decided.  I don't like any scenario where the board might have the option to waive fees.  That will create the feeling of the "good 'ol boy" system. 

I also think that all newly connected members should get their initial connect period free, primarily as a sales tool.  I'd like to give new members a chance to "try before you buy" to see if it works for them.  Perhaps we bill annually and they don't pay until the next billing cycle starts (or some variation thereof)?  Until they pay, they should be subject to their port being assigned to somebody else, not be official members, and not able to vote.

How do we handle members that are connected to remote switches?  Is the switch owner the member?  The downstream users?  Both?  Who pays the port charges?  Only the switch owner?


Steve


On 09/08/2016 01:05 PM, David Farmer wrote:
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I'm not a candidate and will not be a candidate for the Board. However, I propose the following Membership and Sponsorship Model, including both Membership Dues and Sponsorship levels for MICE Members and Non-Member Sponsors.

The dollar values are just my suggestions, I think they should work but they are primarily intended to illustrate the model.  

With this Model, any network may connect to the Exchange, but all networks participating in governance, known as Members, will have some minimal skin-in-the-game.  Further, the Model implies Networks with 10G or larger ports probably should participate at a more significant level, but this is not a requirement for access to 10G or larger ports or even to participate in governance.

The Friends of MICE Sponsorship level is intended to be accessible to anyone interested, including individual users of the Internet.     

My proposal;

As an Open Internet Exchange any network with a uniquely registered Autonomous System Number (ASN) may connect to MICE.  However, Non-Member networks are provided ports on the Exchange on an as-available basis only and Non-Members do not participate in the governance of the Exchange or the MICE Organization, but may observe and participate in its discussions.

Networks connected to the Exchange, or Data Centers hosting an Exchange switch, may become Members and participate in the governance of the Exchange and the MICE Organization by paying Membership Dues at either level listed below. Members are provided prefered access to 1G Exchange ports, and are provided access to 10G or larger Exchange ports on an as-available basis.  

Sustaining or higher Members are committed to sustaining and growing the Exchange by electing to pay Sustaining Membership Dues and/or paying Basic Membership Dues and providing other Sponsorship to the Exchange of a value totaling $1000 or more.  In recognition to this additional commitment, Sustaining or higher Members are provided prefered access to 10G or larger Exchange ports. 

Basic Membership Dues - $100 
Sustaining Membership Dues - $1000 
(Dues are paid in cash or cash equivalents only, and may not be provided through in-kind services or equipment)

Beyond Dues from Members, MICE accepts Sponsorship both from Members and Non-Members Sponsors as cash, cash equivalents, in-kind services or equipment. Sponsorship is recognized at the following escalating levels based on the total value provided annually.

Friends of MICE - Sponsorship of $50 ore more annually
Sustaining Members or Sponsors - Sponsorship of $1,000 or more annually
Silver Members or Sponsors -  Sponsorship of $2,500 or more annually
Gold Members or Sponsors - Sponsorship of $5,000 or more annually
Platinum Members or Sponsors - Sponsorship of $10,000 or more annually

Sponsorship of $20,000 or more are recognized with multiple years at the Platinum level.

Friends of MICE are list on a page on the MICE website.  Sustaining or higher Members are annotated as such in their listings on the MICE website.  All Sustaining or higher Members and Sponsors are listed on the MICE website, with higher levels receiving more prominent placement.  Silver or higher Members and Sponsors are recognized in MICE marketing materials, with higher levels receiving more prominent placement.

Thanks

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David Farmer               Email:[log in to unmask]
Networking & Telecommunication Services
Office of Information Technology
University of Minnesota  
2218 University Ave SE        Phone: 612-626-0815
Minneapolis, MN 55414-3029   Cell: 612-812-9952
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