ICA has strongly opposed the current versions of the PIPA and SOPA anti-piracy bills because of the grave threat they pose to all domain name industry intermediary companies of being alleged to be trafficking in domains constituting “counterfeit marks” under the bill’s overbroad and vague definitions, and to being deprived of essential payment and advertising services as a result. The …
SOPA Could Shutter Registrars and other Domain Name Industry Intermediaries – And Terminate Their Vital Registrant Services
The Internet Commerce Association has just sent a letter to senior members of the House Judiciary Committee regarding the likely unintended but potentially devastating impact of H.R. 3261 (”SOPA”) as introduced upon ICANN-accredited registrars and other participants in the broad domain name industry, as well as upon the domain registrants who use those services. Registrants, for example, might find …
Workshop at ICANN Dakar Reveals That Trademark Clearinghouse Implementation Requires Decisions on Many Complex Questions
On Wednesday, October 26th a Workshop on the Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH) was held at the ICANN meeting in Dakar. The TMCH is a key global database that will be used for both sunrise services for new gTLDs as well as trademark claims. The workshop revealed that implementation of the TMCH involves the resolution of multiple complex issues within a very …
New House “E-PARASITE” Bill Would Cut Off Website Payment and Ad Services Without Initial Court Review
On Wednesday, October 26th Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, along with eight other cosponsors, introduced HR 3261, the ‘‘Enforcing and Protecting American Rights Against Sites Intent on Theft and Exploitation Act of 2011’’, also known as the “E-PARASITE Act”. This House bill appears to be an even more controversial counterpart to the Protect IP legislation …
$300 URS May Be Unrealistic – And Other New gTLD Emerging Realities
On Sunday, October 23rd ICANN senior staffer Kurt Pritz made a lengthy presentation on “New gTLD Program Activities” to the GNSO Council meeting in Dakar. Narrating a slide presentation, and answering questions, Pritz addressed many of the complex implementation details of the program, which kicks off in mid-January (slide presentation available at http://dakar42.icann.org/meetings/dakar2011/presentation-new-gtld-program-activities-23oct11-en.pdf). The presentation brought various aspects of …
GNSO Council Appears on Track to Initiate UDRP Reform
ICANN’s GNSO Council, which sets policy for all gTLDs, engaged in a spirited one hour discussion of UDRP reform during its first day of meetings at the 42nd ICANN gathering in Dakar, Senegal. Resisting ICANN staff recommendations that any initiation of a formal policy review of the UDRP and consideration of appropriate reforms be delayed until at least 18 months …
NTIA Actively Exploring Inclusion of Ethics and Conflict of Interest Provisions in IANA Contract
In a September 21st letter sent by Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information Lawrence Strickling to U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) disclosed that it is “actively exploring how to best meet this requirement” for “a clear and enforced ethics and conflict of interest policy” in the next version of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority …
Senators Search Google for Antitrust Compliance
Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt found himself in the crosshairs of a high-profile hearing held at the U.S. Senate Antitrust Subcommittee on September 21st. The inquiry, titled “The Power of Google: Serving Consumers or Threatening Competition?, focused primarily on whether Google’s search engine results tended to favor its growing portfolio of Internet-based businesses over those of competitors, using its search …
DOC Indicates Warming Relations With ICANN and Strong Support for Multi-Stakeholder Internet Institutions
In an afternoon keynote address presented to the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) USA meeting (http://www.igf-usa.us/) held July 18th at Georgetown University Law School in Washington, DC, Larry Strickling, the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Administrator, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) at the Department of Commerce, indicated a much more favorable view of ICANN in the wake of its adoption …
ICA Urges UDRP Reform Through An Enforceable Standard Agreement With All Arbitration Providers
This Spring ICANN staff released a Preliminary Issue Report on the Current State of the Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy, and followed up with a webinar featuring presentations by experts involved with all aspects of UDRP administration and representation. While the Report was of high quality, ICA was disappointed that the staff recommended that the GNSO refrain from authorizing further steps …