Domain Names

Artful Misrepresentations of UDRP Jurisprudence

The jurisprudence applied in adjudicating disputes between mark owners and domain name holders under the Uniform Domain Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) is essentially a system that has developed from the ground up; it is Panel-made law based on construing a simple set of propositions unchanged since the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) implemented them in 1999. Its strength lies in its being a consensus-based rather than dictated jurisprudence. more

Yes, 3 Billion Net Users by End of Year, but What Will the Majority in Emerging Markets Do Online?

The United Nations International Telecommunications Union (ITU) announcement that by end 2014, there will be nearly three billion Internet users -- two-thirds of them from the developing world -- with mobile-broadband penetration approaching 32 per cent. This information is so timely that it needs to be put in proper perspective by asking: What will the majority of these two-thirds do online? And how do we in the ICANN community deliver on our mandate of serving the global public interest? more

.Nxt - You Are All Cordially Invited

There are only a few occasions in any of our lifetimes where what we know and have grown used to is turned on its head. We have now lost the generation that heard radio for the first time; there are only a few who can recall the first television pictures; but many, many more saw color appear on their screens for the first time. more

What Domain Names Get Transferred: Why and Why Not?

Think of trademarks situated on a continuum with famous and well-known at one end and less well-known or unrecognized by average consumers at the other. On one end there is certainty of infringement... at the other end, certainty of having the complaint denied either for lack of proof or overreaching... At some point along the continuum, it becomes uncertain whether respondents registered accused domain names in bad faith, and the question has to be answered by examining the facts. more

Losing a UDRP Case: Questionable Decision or Questionable Submission?

Complainants naturally want to prevail on their claims of alleged infringing conduct and respondents (when they appear) naturally do their best to resist having their domain names taken from them in proceedings under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP), but their success depends on their submitting the right constituents of fact and proof. In a forum that has adjudicated over 60,000 cases, it would be surprising if there were no questionable or badly reasoned decisions. more

Thoughts on the Proposed Copyright Alternative Dispute Resolution Policy

A proposal from the Domain Name Association (DNA) would provide copyright owners with a new tool to fight online infringement -- but the idea is, like other efforts to protect intellectual property rights on the Internet, proving controversial. The proposed Copyright Alternative Dispute Resolution Policy is one of four parts of the DNA's "Healthy Domains Initiative" (HDI). more

The UDRP and Judicial Review

The courts of the United Kingdom have set themselves outside the mainstream of Internet consensus policies on trademark/domain name disputes. A U.K. court decision regarding the UDRP reflects an unfortunate tendency to overlook one of the fundamental principles of the UDRP, namely the opportunity to seek independent resolution of a trademark/domain name dispute by court proceedings. more

Over 750 Domain Name Registrars Expected to Shut Down in the Next 12 Months, ICANN Predicts

ICANN estimates over 750 accredited domain name registrars are likely to close within the next 12 months as a result of the over-saturated drop-catching market. more

CENTR Reports TLD Slowdown Partly Due to Deletes by Chinese Investors Which Had Peaked in 2016

The Council of European National Top-Level Domains Registries (CENTR) in its quarterly report released today, says global domains under all TLDs have contracted slightly due to declines in several larger new gTLDs. more

Namecheap Files ‘Request for Reconsideration’ Against ICANN’s Removal of .ORG Price Caps Decision

One of the largest domain name registrars, NameCheap, on Monday filed a Request for Reconsideration with regards to ICANN's recent decision to remove historical price caps for the .org top-level domain (TLD) from the Public Interest Registry (PIR) contract. more

In Support of ICANN’s New Trademark Protection Rules (Mostly)

Yesterday, I sent ICANN my comments about the draft recommendations from ICANN’s Implementation Recommendation Team (IRT), which has been tasked with coming up with a trademark protection scheme for new top-level domains. For the most part, I think they did an excellent job... more

Thinking of Applying for a Truly Generic TLD, but Restricting Ownership to a Single Registrant?

As it's coming down to brass tacks and companies are now seriously considering applying for their own .Brand Top-Level Domain (TLD), questions about whether to also apply for a truly generic TLD keep popping up. Many large corporations want to know whether it's even possible to apply for something like .Shoes AND to restrict registrations so that only a single specified registrant is allowed. After all, for the right company it seems that something like .Shoes could be a valuable namespace -- short, easy to remember, and easy to spell. more

The Dangers of Building a Brand on a Tenuous Country Code

About two years ago I wrote with concern about Bit.ly's use of Libya's country code. I noted that It's always important to keep in mind that a company can't "own" a domain the way it owns real estate. Now it appears that companies that have built brand names on Libya's country code are facing difficult times. more

Brand Owners, Representatives of WIPO and ICANN Discuss New gTLD Concerns

Managing Intellectual Property, in association with Finnegan, has released an article based on a recently hosted discussion regarding ICANN's approved plans to open the domain name system to an unlimited number of generic top-level domains (gTLDs) and how the Implementation Recommendation Team's (IRT) recommendation will affect brand owners. Topics included the main concerns with new gTLDs from a brand owner's perspective, the role of IRT, enforcement issues, and navigating the new domain name space. Finnegan partners David Kelly and Jonathan Gelchinsky participated with J Scott Evans of Yahoo! Inc., Elisabeth Roth Escobar of Marriott International, Inc., Erik Wilbers of WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center, and Kurt Pritz of ICANN for the roundtable. more

5 Million Domain Names Registered in Q3 of 2012, Total Domains Pass 246 Million Worldwide

The third quarter of 2012 closed with a base of more than 246 million domain name registrations across all Top- Level Domains (TLDs), an increase of 5.7 million domain names, or 2.4 percent over the second quarter of 2012, according the latest Domain Name Industry Brief report from Verisign. From the report: "Registrations have grown by 26.4 million, or 12 percent, year over year. The base of Country Code Top-Level Domains (ccTLDs) was 104.9 million domain names, a 4.6 percent increase quarter over quarter, and a 20.7 percent increase year over year in the base." more