Re: One question
"Seriously - what do they do that couldn't be done by a bloke in a shed at the bottom of his garden?".
The same as any other major TLD. Operate a registry that processes thousands of add/renew/delete/update requests every day - and never fail. Run a DNS service that handles billions of queries per day - and never fails. Run a whois service that handles billions of queries per day - and never fails. Provide a dispute resolution service and policy making procedures. Interact with law enforcement, government, regulators and so on. Plus the cuddly stuff like outreach, member engagement, participation in ICANN and other industry forums. Then there's the usual business stuff - sales, marketing, finance, contracts, HR, etc.
This takes a bit more resourcing than "a bloke in a shed at the bottom of his garden".
Biting the hand that feeds IT
