Resource Ownership & Lifecycle
ASN sponsorship and an IPv6 PA assignment do not have the same ownership or portability. This page explains the practical difference before you order, renew, cancel, or change sponsor.
The short version
- ASN: an independent resource assigned to the End User and maintained through a sponsoring LIR relationship.
- IPv6 PA /48: an assignment from SKNK's LIR allocation; usable during the service but not portable like PI space.
- RPKI / ROA: created, maintained, and withdrawn by SKNK for the SKNK PA prefix.
- €89/year: the current recurring annual sponsorship price; no separate RIPE LIR membership invoice is sent to the customer.
Who holds the ASN?
RIPE NCC assigns the ASN as an independent resource to the approved End User. SKNK acts as the sponsoring LIR and maintains the required contractual relationship and registration. Sponsorship does not make the customer a RIPE NCC member.
Who controls the IPv6 PA /48?
The IPv6 PA /48 is assigned from Provider Aggregatable address space held by SKNK's LIR. The customer receives a contractual right to use that prefix during the active service term, but does not hold an independent RIPE NCC address resource. The same PA addresses cannot simply be moved to another sponsoring LIR.
Who manages the ROA?
SKNK controls the RPKI authority for its PA address space and is responsible for creating, maintaining, and withdrawing the ROA that authorizes the customer's ASN. The customer cannot independently manage that ROA in the RIPE NCC Portal and must tell SKNK before changing the intended origin ASN.
What does annual renewal cover?
The service currently renews at EUR 89 per year through Stripe unless cancelled. It covers ongoing LIR sponsorship, maintenance of the sponsored relationship and PA assignment, and SKNK's current RIPE NCC ASN-related charge. RIPE NCC bills SKNK as the member; it does not send the sponsored End User a separate LIR membership invoice.
What happens when the service ends?
The resources remain active until the end of the paid service period unless earlier suspension or termination is required by the agreement, law, abuse response, or RIPE NCC policy. After the service ends, the customer must stop announcing and using the SKNK PA /48; SKNK withdraws its ROA and related registration, and the customer must renumber to replacement address space.
Can the ASN move to another sponsor?
The End User can generally keep its ASN when changing sponsoring LIR, subject to a new agreement and RIPE NCC's contractual relationship change procedure. Start this process before the current sponsorship expires. The SKNK PA /48 does not follow the ASN, so replacement addressing and renumbering are normally required.
What if address portability is required?
IPv6 Provider Independent (PI) space is a separate independent-resource request with its own eligibility, agreement, and fees. It can be requested through a sponsoring LIR where policy conditions are met; becoming a direct RIPE NCC member is not the only path. PI is not an automatic conversion of the SKNK PA /48, so migration still requires a new prefix and renumbering.
What if SKNK can no longer provide the service?
SKNK will cooperate with affected customers and RIPE NCC on the formal transition of sponsored independent ASN relationships where the applicable process allows. The PA /48 remains part of SKNK's allocation and does not become portable; customers should maintain a renumbering plan for this dependency.
Official RIPE NCC sources
The distinctions and current fee references above are based on RIPE NCC's published documents. Commercial terms specific to SKNK are governed by our Terms and the signed Sponsoring LIR Agreement.
Plan before the renewal date
If you intend to cancel, change sponsoring LIR, or replace PA with PI space, contact SKNK early enough to complete the ASN paperwork and renumber your network before the paid term ends. Route acceptance and migration timing also depend on your replacement provider and upstream networks.