The Internet Commerce Association has filed its comment letter with ICANN regarding the revised contract under which VeriSign will operate the .Net registry from July 1, 2011 going forward. A major focus of the comment letter was strenuous objection to the proposal, put forward by ICANN’s Intellectual Property Constituency, that the untested Uniform Rapid Suspension (URS) system that has been …
DOC Says GAC Should Be Satisfied Before New gTLDs Launch
“I don’t see how new gTLDs can be approved in Singapore if the GAC isn’t satisfied that its concerns have been fully addressed”. So spoke Assistant Secretary for Commerce Lawrence Stickling in his keynote luncheon speech delivered at a Global Internet Governance workshop held at American University in Washington, DC on May 5th. (The quote is transcribed from our hastily …
Congress Advises ICANN to Follow its Example – and Kick the New gTLD Program Launch Further on Down the Road
The ongoing debate about the burgeoning U.S. federal deficit has been short on bipartisan agreement – except for the proposition that “we can no longer kick the can down the road”. Yet that is pretty much what senior members of the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet asked ICANN to do with its new gTLD …
ICANN to Hold Webinar on Current State of the UDRP
On Tuesday, May 10th ICANN will hold a webinar on the Current State of the UDRP. Details can be found at http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-21apr11-en.htm; those who wish to participate need to send an e-mail to gnso.secretariat@gnso.icann.org to receive the details. The Webinar will last for two hours and commences at 15:00 UTC (11 am Eastern time in the USA; check http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html for …
American University to Hold Program on Global Internet Governance
On May 5-6 American University in Washington, DC will host a program on “Global Internet Governance: Research and Public Policy Challenges for the Next Decade”. Registration for the event, which will also be webcast, is free and can be made at http://www.amiando.com/GigaNET-DC-2011.html?page=518918. The program will feature a May 5th keynote speech by Assistant Secretary for Commerce Larry Strickling, who harshly …
ICA Counsel Interviewed on Webmaster Radio’s CyberLaw and Business Report
On Wednesday, April 20th ICA Counsel Philip Corwin was interviewed on Webmaster Radio’s CyberLaw and Business Report. A podcast of the wide-ranging discussion with host Bennet Kelley can be listened to or downloaded at http://www2.webmasterradio.fm/cyberlaw-and-business-report/. Topics covered in the interview include: • The origins and activities of the Internet Commerce Association • The direct search business model that underlies the …
ICANN’s Latest gTLD Guidebook Issued Without Waiting for GAC Response on Trademark Issues — But Still Nicks AT URS
Sticking rigorously to it’s the timetable (http://icann.org/en/minutes/draft-timeline-new-gtlds-18mar11-en.pdf ) for pre-launch wrap-up of the new gTLD program, ICANN has issued the latest and near-final version of the Applicant Guidebook (http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-2-15apr11-en.htm ). However, while ICANN is sprinting toward a mid-June Singapore meeting finish line, its Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) seems to be in no similar haste. The timetable called for the GAC …
ICA Comments on Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy Report
While not every ICANN policy issue generates as much controversy or notice as new gTLDs, many seemingly mundane matters can nonetheless have a substantial impact on domainers and other registrants. One of those is the Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy (IRTP) that sets the rules for domain transfers between registrars. Good rules facilitate the workings of the secondary domain marketplace and help …
ICANN Board Locks Down New gTLD Timeline, Approves .XXX Contract
ICANN’s Board of Directors moved decisively toward final implementation of the new gTLD program with a unanimous vote in favor of setting a timeline that contemplates final approval of the Applicant Guidebook (AG) at the June 2011 ICANN meeting in Singapore. The Board also voted to move forward and sign a contract with ICM Registry to operate the controversial .XXX …
Glacial Progress in San Francisco ICANN Board/GAC Discussions
The second day of public consultation between ICANN’s Board of Directors and its Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) ended on Thursday, March 17, 2011 with scant narrowing of remaining differences on multiple issues in the proposed Applicant Guidebook (AG) for new gTLDs – but with the revelation that opaque exchanges of views on trademark issues have taken place in apparent disregard …