1.
gTLD Update
.biz
lottery scrapped
Neulevel,
the company responsible for administering the new .biz gTLD
this week announced that it would cancel the current allocation
system for the new names, and start afresh in February.
Around
50,000 domains had been placed on a reserved list pending
the outcome of litigation filed in California. The action
claimed that the application procedure constituted an illegal
lottery under Californian Law.
The
new process will involve the resubmission of all applications
on hold. This will be done by the appropriate registrar.
Neulevel will then match applications against its IP database,
created when IP claim forms were submitted earlier this
year. If an application matches an IP claim, the domain
name applicant will have approximately two weeks to confirm
that they wish to proceed with their application.
Please
note that NetNames will inform all affected clients of the
actions required of them, with timelines, in due course.
In a
separate development, it was announced this week that more
than 500,000 .biz domain names had been registered thus
far.
This
contrasts with 675,000 .info domain names registered this
year.
.aero
contract signed
ICANN
this week signed the contract with the .aero registry, paving
the way for the suffix to take its place in the Internet's
worldwide naming system.
One
of seven new Internet domains approved for launch by ICANN
in November 2000, .aero is a sponsored suffix that will
be set aside for airlines and other entities directly involved
in the air travel industry.
In signing
the contract, Stuart Lynn, the ICANN president, rejected
the argument that the language of the final .aero registry
agreement unfairly allows the air travel industry (rather
than the larger air travel community) to control .aero.
2.
Industry
News
No
special rights given for famous web names in China
The
Chinese Internet domain name registry has been told that
it can't put aside Chinese domain names for famous brands,
unless their owners make a formal application showing they
have a legal right to them.
A Beijing
Intermediate People's Court ruled that the China Internet
Network Information Center, which manages .cn, did not have
the right to reserve Chinese domain names purely for companies
that are well known.
3.
NIC News
.me.uk
ballot launched
Nominet,
the .uk registry, this week sent out voting papers to all
its members, asking them to vote on the introduction of
.me.uk - a second level domain designed for personal use.
Results
of the ballot will be announced on January 11. As long as
it is approved by the majority of those voting, .me.uk will
go live at one minute past midnight on the following Monday.
