Scott,
I have asked the question many time. "What is a provider?". Once the CIDR allocation started the "Providers" came out of the woodworks. No one so far has given an answer to the question that the majority can agree with. I will not be at the regional tech meeting in CA but Mark will. I don't know a group better suited to answer the question that established providers. Do us a favor and come up with a proposed answer to "What is a provider". I will work with NSF and Postel to make it policy. This would make our life easier.
I think we have to be very careful here. When we make policy that adversely affects someone's business interests we're just begging for a suit. Especially with the *perceived* "shortage" or IPv4 addresses. It seems to me that it would be very difficult to exclude anybody from the category of "provider" (for the purpose of giving him or her addresses) who has even the flimsiest claim to being one. Perhaps some sliding scale based on demonstrated need would work. But it would have to be conservative (liberal?) and easily quantified to make it defensible. --Richard