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Such a scenario is, admittedly, unlikely but if proposed structural changes to Nominet, the company that runs the UK's internet registry, go ahead next month, there is a risk that the .uk domain system will become just one part of a larger global operation. Driven by a need to satisfy shareholders, Nominet could be forced to cut costs - and corners.

Nominet is not well-known outside the confines of the internet industry but that may soon change if the current management team gets its way. The not-for-profit company is run by members rather than shareholders and has a firm commitment not to pay any kind of dividend.

But at an extraordinary general meeting on March 16, proposed changes to its Memorandum of Association will, if accepted, pave the way for Nominet to enter new markets, takeover or merge with existing companies and pay dividends to shareholders of those companies. It will also make it easier for Nominet members to overturn the rule prohibiting payment of dividends - the first step to Nominet becoming a fully commercial company.

Why is this bad news for anyone with a .uk domain name?

Nominet has a well-deserved reputation as a stable and reliable registry. Freed from shareholder pressure, it has been able to concentrate on the management of .uk domains and has done so to the highest standards. That focus is no mistake however. The company is constrained by a clause in its own rules to maintenance of the .uk registry. There has never been the slightest possibility that the company might focus on other areas of business to the detriment of this core business.

But all that could change, and management of .uk become just one small sector of the overall portfolio of a future Nominet. A recent re-branding has already seen the removal of .uk from the corporate logo, and the proposed new Objects clause doesn't even mention .uk as part of the company's remit.

What Nominet does at the moment could easily be compared with a public service. And we all know how such "service" tends to deteriorate when shareholders require returns on their investment. A recent YouGov poll found that "the public is clear about what it wants from its public services - and it isn't more of the market."

Nominet does need to change. The current situation is too constraining and many members would support enabling Nominet to expand its operations in an ever-changing Internet world. But any expansion should be within clearly defined limits and need not be accompanied by increased commercialisation.

By holding the registry for all .uk internet domains, Nominet is not an ordinary company. It must be impartial and remain uninfluenced by either commercial interests or political interference. Much of the UK business community has significant interest in the continued smooth running of the .uk registry and the consequences of any failure are too enormous to contemplate.

Some argue that such a responsibility should fall under the purview of government. To date, I have always opposed this view, believing that a registry run free from political interference is preferable to one run by a quango. But faced with the choice of a Nominet run by unaccountable commercial interests or a Nominet run by an elected government, I would be tempted to opt for the latter model.

Hazel Pegg is an elected member of the Nominet UK Policy Advisory Board. More of the debate about Nominet's status can be found here

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