Wanted: Somebody to object to new gTLDs

[Veronika11]

ICANN is looking for somebody to object to new top-level domain applications.

see: domainincite.com/wanted-somebody-to-object-to-new-gtlds/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DomainIncite+%28DomainIncite.com%29

 

[accent]

Veronika, ICANN will be getting all the objecting it can handle. Although I don't think this is what they mean. Here is the lawyer for one of several groups :

...the marketing industry and others have raised their collective voices to stop ICANN from introducing any more TLDs for many of the same reasons Manwinn (p-rn giant) has sued ICANN and ICM (.XXX owner), and more. P-rno and Madison Avenue—strange bedfellows.

The Coalition for Responsible Domain Name Oversight (CRIDO) and its 90-plus-member coalition of international trade associations and global brands have united to stop ICANN. In all candor, my law firm represents CRIDO. But CRIDO is not alone. The Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists have also publicly condemned ICANN's idea of introducing hundreds of new TLDs and the new landrush that will cost the marketing and entertainment industries billions to shelve domain names, just like I shelved douglaswood.xxx. Indeed, Esther Dyson, the first president of ICANN, and Vint Cerf, Google's chief Internet evangelist (a person who can legitimately say he had a role in inventing the Internet), have expressed serious problems with ICANN's proposal.

But why should all of this matter to corporate counsel?

Let's face it folks, the issues around introducing any more TLDs has critical implications to the entire stability of the Internet - p-rno and pure sites alike. Not only does ICANN's proposal risk irreparable damage to brands, one of the key financial engines of the Internet, it also raises serious IP and non-IP concerns for the entire Internet community, particularly non-profits and small businesses. In addition, ICANN's proposal raises troubling questions about the relationship between ICANN and its oversight by the U.S. Department of Commerce.

But wait. There's more.

Add (1) the conflicts of interests that appear rampant in ICANN, recently questioned by both Oregon Senator Ron Wyden and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, a unit within the Department of Commerce; (2) the lack of consensus for ICANN's proposal among critical groups—witness the growing voices in opposition; (3) the speculative nature of the benefits ICANN claims support the program—witness the past TLDs added by ICANN and their failure to create competition or innovation (.biz, .info, .aero, .museum, etc.); and (4) the reality that hundreds of new TLDs will allow domain name owners to forum shop, a practice conference panels have acknowledged will allow operators to avoid countries with laws that protect users.

There is one fact no one can question and that should deeply concern in-house counsel in every corporation the uses the digital spectrum as a marketing tool: The Internet is broken.

The growing incidence of consumer harm through spoofing, phishing, and related cybercrimes is indisputable. Barriers to entry are rising for both small and large businesses as they deal with SEO, behavioral targeting, and domain name packaging (upselling of names in multiple TLDs by domain name sellers). Charity scams are rampant. The ever-rising breaches of privacy are truly frightening. Incidents of malicious hacking and, in its worst incarnation, cyberterrorism have risen to unprecedented levels.

While ICANN is not responsible per se for all of this, its proposal to add hundreds of new TLDs will unquestionably make a bad situation much worse. All of this affects every corporation, every consumer, everywhere. Everyone in the Internet community, including ICANN, needs to fix the problems first before they open Pandora's Box.

Douglas Wood is a partner in the New York office of of Reed Smith LLP. He specializes in media and entertainment law and is editor of Network Interference-a Legal Guide to the Commercial Risks and Rewards of the Social Media Phenomenon, a White Paper on how social media globally impacts every level of business.

from: http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202533104723&thepage=2
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