OpenSRS is one of the olderst ICANN accredited registrars. OpenSRS is somewhat pricey compared to other registrars. However their API is widely supported. However be sure to read OpenSRS agreement through for the fineprinted information. Their web site is at http://resellers.tucows.com/ They support 23 TLDs

OpenSRS is one of the olderst ICANN accredited registrars. OpenSRS is somewhat pricey compared to other registrars. However their API is widely supported. However be sure to read OpenSRS agreement through for the fineprinted information. Their web site is at http://resellers.tucows.com/ They support 23 TLDs

OpenSRS support is somewhat differing in quality depending on the situation. My experience is that if your question's end result will favour OpenSRS then they are quite fast, otherwise they take it slow.

 Advantages:

• Very well supported API. There are many applications which support OpenSRS API.
  
• Value added services
  SSL Certificates http://resellers.tucows.com/wholesale_services/SecurityAndIdentity/
  E-mail and e-mail defence services http://resellers.tucows.com/wholesale_services/email/
  
• Web Site Builder
  http://resellers.tucows.com/wholesale_services/webpublishing/websitebuilder/index_html
  
• Managed DNS http://resellers.tucows.com/wholesale_services/manageddns/
  
• Blogware http://resellers.tucows.com/wholesale_services/webpublishing/blogware/
  
  

Disadvantages:

• Expensive prices for .com/.net/.org registrations
  
• Their support replies might be slow
• Their agreement has fineprints which allows them to register your deleted domains and keep indefinetely.

Tucows/OpenSRS has great API which is widely supported but their agreements are not so customer friendly.

http://resellers.tucows.com/contracts/tld/exhibita

15. RENEWALS AND FORFEITURE. Domain names are registered for a finite
period of time. You will receive reminders immediately prior to the
expiration of your registration inviting you to renew your domain name. In
the event that you fail to renew your domain name in a timely fashion, your
registration will expire and we may, at our discretion, elect to assume the
registration and may hold it for our own account, delete it or we may sell
it to a third party. You acknowledge and agree that your right and interest
in a domain name ceases upon its expiration and that any expired domain name
may be made available for registration by a third party.

The paragraph above from the OpenSRS contract means that expired domain names are not under your control anymore. (Sure, they cant sell it to 3rd parties before it is deleted though). What OpenSRS does is that when your domain expires, they put it to 'parked pages' program and they track the hits the page is receiving. So in a way they are probing if it is worth registering. Once the domain gets deleted, if it was a popular domain then they register it themselves. Great system for OpenSRS, but you are losing to possible to register the domain again. Their explanation is that the domain could have been registered by somebody else if they didnt do it.

 Also if a domain that OpenSRS registered doesnt make enough money, they offer you to sell the domain for the same price as redemption period recovery price.  If it is making money, then forget about getting your domain back.

 At first glance the parked pages program seems like a way to counteract expensive domain registration prices of OpenSRS however in reality the popular names rarely get deleted or let to expire by their owners. I personally prefer ResellOne instead there are other registrars with great APIs also.