On Sep 7, 2016, at 2:51 PM, Steve Howard <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

On 09/07/2016 02:39 PM, James Renken wrote:

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On Sep 7, 2016, at 08:33, Jason Hanke <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Up to this point MICE has been fairly successful without any required port fees for members. There have been minor difficulties paying hardware support and annual ARIN fees. We have reached a long-term (5 year) agreement with Cologix to continue the existing no cost relationship for space and power.

Do you see the finical current model as sustainable for MICE? What changes would you suggest on the business side?

I’m not sure we can stay with our current model over the long term. We can rely on our great (and mutually beneficial) relationship with Cologix for space and power, but I don’t think we can assume we’ll always be able to get financial or hardware donations, especially on short notice. The industry is only getting more challenging; we should work towards self-sufficiency. That would mean port fees.

I think we should base port fees on our budget: ARIN fees, hardware support, and accumulating enough savings to replace our core switch with a newer, refurbished model by the end of its useful life. We should also plan to gradually save extra for emergencies like legal fees; I agree with Owen, saving over a period of maybe five years.

I’d also like to consider whether we should exempt non-profit and government entities from port fees. There are few enough that it doesn’t seem like a large burden for the rest of us.

Why would we want to exempt non-profit and government entities? 

MICE is a cooperative exchange.  Every member should be treated the same. 

If you'd like to support non-profits and governmental entities, you are free to pay their fees.  Don't force others to pay somebody else's fair share.

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