1.
gTLD Update
.info
tightens trademark rules
The
.info domain name registry this week declared that it would
tighten up registration rules as it prepared to challenge
the validity of one out of every five names registered since
the summer, to ensure that only legitimate trademark holders
were awarded disputed domains.
Proof
of a valid trademark will be required before any domain
is awarded, in order to prevent one dishonest applicant
from taking a domain name from another. Trademark claims
will be verified by WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organisation).
Approximately
700 .info challenges have been filed so far, with most challengers
having won their cases. The challenge period is set to remain
open until December 26, 2001.
Corporates
urged to submit defensive .name requests
NetNames
would like to remind companies that they only have until
December 14, 2001 to submit their defensive .name registrations.
Defensive
registrations will block out speculators and domain pirates.
For further information and to submit your defensive .name
registration, please go to www.gtld.com.
2.
Industry
News
ICANN
announces new dispute resolution provider in the Asia Pacific
Region
ICANN
this week announced a new dispute resolution provider for
the Asia Pacific region.
The
Asian Domain Name Dispute Resolution Center has been formed
by the Hong Kong International Arbitration Center and the
China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission.
It will be the first organisation chosen to decide cases
in Asia in which two parties claim rights to the same domain
name. It has been authorised to begin accepting disputes
from February 28, 2002.
Playboyonline.com
wrested from anti-porn crusaders
The
publisher of Playboy magazine has claimed the playboyonline.com
domain name from anti-porn crusader Tonya Flynt, daughter
of pornographer Larry Flynt. Ms. Flynt appeared to be making
money from the domain by using it to capture stray surfers
visiting a web site at that address.
The
WIPO arbitrators ruled that the domain was confusingly similar
to the Playboy trademarks. Under the rules of ICANN's UDRP
(Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy), the domain will be
transferred to Playboy Enterprises unless Ms. Flynt chooses
to launch an alternate action in a US court.
3.
NIC News
AuDA
to auction off "generic" domain names
auDA,
the Australian domain name authority, has announced that
it has begun auctioning off so-call "generic"
Australian domain names before the end of the year, in order
to raise revenues.
4.
NetNames News
Multilingual
Domain Name Symposium
This
week Jonathan Robinson, Director of Business Development
attended the joint ITU (International Telecommunications
Union) and WIPO Multilingual Domain Name Symposium in
Geneva.
Many
of you have expressed interest in multilingual domain
names in the past and next week N3Lite will bring you
a full report on the issues raised and developments announced
at the symposium.
5.
Fact of the week
UCLA
Internet report
The
annual report from UCLA on the Internet's impact on our
lives suggests that although going online has become a
mainstream activity, enthusiasm for e-commerce is down
and broad concerns remain about Internet privacy and security.
The study also found that television is the prime victim
of increasing Internet use and that most security concerns
involve worries about the use of credit card numbers online.
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