Thursday, November 14, 2013

.VIN & .WINE new gTLDs: NEELIE KROES writes to ICANN (again)

Here is the copy of a letter from NEELIE KROES, Vice-President of the European Commission to ICANN regarding .WINE and .VIN new gTLDs.

A few paragraphs I picked up. The complete letter can be downloaded down this page:

  1. "This letter aims at providing some clarifications concerning the need for additional safeguards for these strings and suggests possible solutions".
  2. It also highlights procedural problems concerning the functioning of ICANN'S Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC)".
  3. The EU has a large market share (around 75% globally) and has an established system of Geographical Indications (GIs) that guarantees the nature and quality of the wine products.
  4. The global scope of the gTLD and a lack of clear rules and safeguards can only amplify these problems.
  5. Without an adequate dispute resolution procedure, the legal burden placed on title-holders of potentially misused GI names is disproportionate.
  6. I still believe that agreeable solutions can be found among interested parties so that the strings can be delegated in a safe manner for both GI right holders and consumers.
  7. Someone did a very bad job on this one: The Beijing consensus advice was that further consideration was needed regarding the .wine and .vin strings and that the Board should be advised not to proceed beyond initial evaluation. There is no reason why this advice should be overruled, especially if some solution can be found between the parties.
  8. OUCH: The only possible default in case of no GAC consensus should be no advice. This is why the current discussion around .wine and .vin also raises questions concerning decision­ making procedures in the GAC, preparation of meetings by the secretariat, the role of the chair and the possibility and conditions for GAC members to vote.
  9. If there was no possible solution among interested parties because of the complexity of the matter, our position remains that the strings should not be delegated.

The letter can be downloaded here.

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