Radix Registry Passes 4 New gTLD Initial Evaluations

AUSTIN, Texas and DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, May 07, 2013 – Radix Registry, the new TLD Company of Directi, has passed the initial evaluation stage on 4 of its TLD applications, .blog, .hotel, .online and .insurance.

Directi, a global leader in Internet products and Web services, under its new brand Radix had applied for 31 strings comprising several generic and mass market names. A month back, it was announced that Directi, Tucows and Namecheap will join forces to manage the .online registry, the string which successfully cleared the initial evaluation as mentioned earlier.

”All the hard work went into exploring every minute detail in building the application has paid off. Each application was custom made as per the TLD and we didn’t follow the cookie cutter approach like others”, said Bhavin Turakhia, CEO of RadixRegistry.

The applications which are next in line are .hosting, .music and .city. “Apart from customizing the applications, meeting all the ICANN prescribed standards also helped us to successfully clear the Initial Evaluations”, added Mr. Turakhia.

Radix, the largest applicant from the Asia-Pacific Region, is the sole ICANN gTLD applicant for the .space, .press and .host strings. Radix previously announced that it has invested $30 million in to the application process. To know more about the strings they have applied for, please check http://radixregistry.com/.

About Radix

Radix FZC is a Directi Business whose mission is to become the registry operator of a variety of top level domains. Radix will be an active participant in ICANN's process to expand the Internet naming system, and will aim to obtain rights to operate several new generic domains. Radix will leverage Directi's rich domain expertise, and will be led by an able team that has helped flourish some of Directi's existing registrar and web hosting businesses.

About Directi Group

Directi (http://www.directi.com) is a $300+ million group of Businesses that develops innovative mass-market Web Products serving millions of Customers worldwide. Directi businesses include ResellerClub.com, BigRock.com, LogicBoxes, Media.net, Skenzo and rank amongst the fastest growing businesses worldwide in their corresponding industry segments. The combined Product Portfolio of various Directi businesses includes - Communication and Collaboration apps, Social Networking software, Instant messaging, Context Analysis Engines, Antispam and Antivirus Solutions, Large scale Billing and Provisioning platforms, Traffic Monetization Solutions, Online Advertising Solutions, DNS Management Products, Linux and Windows Server Management Software, Web Hosting Control Panels and much more. Directi is headquartered in Dubai, UAE and has more than 800 employees world-wide across five offices in the UAE, India, United States, and China.

A few things I read about new gTLDs recently

1. Google Inc: GOOG alters algorithm in preparation for launch of new gTLDs; value of new gTLDs tipped to increase significantly, click here;
2. Public comment on the revised draft of the New gTLD Registry Agreement, click here;
3. .VIN & .WINE new gTLDs: CHAMPAGNE wines strongly support the position expressed by the GAC, click here;
4. An applicant is pissed by ICANN delays and explains consequences of these multiple delays, click here;
5. New TLD applicants can learn some lessons from .TEL, click here.

There is more on the "new generic Top-Level Domains" group on LinkedIn (almost 1200 members). It is free to join, to discuss and ask questions.

More press review about .WINE and .VIN new gTLDs

I suggest to copy and paste links:

• http://www.lepopulaire.fr/france-monde/actualites/societe/techno/2013/10/19/le-vins-d-appellation-d-origine-s-inquietent-des-futurs-sites-en-vin-1535347.html
• http://www.winenews.it/news/30938/con-i-domini-wine-e-vin-ce-rischio-di-una-mancanza-di-tutele-per-le-denominazioni-europee-lallarme-di-cnaoc-confdration-nationale-producteurs-de-vins-dappellations-dorigine-contrles-ed-efow-federazione-europea-vini-dorigine
• http://www.lyonne.fr/france-monde/actualites/societe/techno/2013/04/30/le-vins-d-appellation-d-origine-s-inquietent-des-futurs-sites-en-vin-1535347-commentaire.html
• http://www.ladepeche.fr/article/2013/04/30/1617263-la-viticulture-menacee-sur-internet.html
• http://www.lamontagne.fr/france-monde/actualites/societe/techno/2013/04/30/le-vins-d-appellation-d-origine-s-inquietent-des-futurs-sites-en-vin-1535347.html
• http://www.jianiang.cn/yejie/hangye/0501192922013.html
• http://www.lyonne.fr/france-monde/actualites/societe/techno/2013/04/30/le-vins-d-appellation-d-origine-s-inquietent-des-futurs-sites-en-vin-1535347.html
• http://www.larep.fr/france-monde/actualites/societe/techno/2013/04/30/le-vins-d-appellation-d-origine-s-inquietent-des-futurs-sites-en-vin-1535347.html
• http://www.amba.fr/viticulture-menacee-internet-20663.html
• http://mobile.lesoir.be/234005/article/actualite/fil-info/fil-info-internet/2013-04-29/vins-d-appellation-d-origine-s-inquietent-des-futurs-sites-en-vin
• http://www.vinehoo.com/news/details_18047_1.aspx
• http://www.estrepublicain.fr/education/2013/04/30/consozapping

Note some of these releases not only come from France but China and Italy.

French wine industry worried about coming .WINE and .VIN new gTLDs

Many articles were published this morning regarding .wine and .vin new generic Top-Level Domains:

• On Sud-Ouest: http://www.sudouest.fr/2013/04/29/les-vins-d-appellation-d-origine-s-inquietent-des-futurs-sites-en-vin-1039582-713.php
• Les Marchés de l'argoalimentaire au quotidien: http://www.lequotidienlesmarches.fr/vins-cnaoc-et-efow-s-inqui-tent-de-la-protection-des-aoc-sur-internet-art356244-21.html
• Vital Concept agriculture: http://www.vital-concept-agriculture.com/afpnews
• Notretemps.com: http://www.notretemps.com/internet/le-vins-d-appellation-d-origine,i27125
• Vogesmatin.fr: http://www.vosgesmatin.fr/actualite/2013/04/30/consozapping
• La journée vinicole.com: http://www.journee-vinicole.com/index.php?menu=inc&page_consult=contenu_art&rubrique=72&sousrubrique=216&art=30691&nlle_lettre=23434&theme=france&cat=&titre_url=CNAOC/EFOW%20-%20Attention%20%E0%20la%20lib%E9ralisation%20%20des%20noms%20de%A0domaines%20sur%20Internet%20!%20-%20La%20Journ%E9e%20Vinicole%20n%B023434
• Vitisphere.com: http://www.vitisphere.com/index.php?mode=breve&id_breve=61388
• Agrisalon.com: http://www.agrisalon.com/fr/permalien/article/6999418/La-Cnaoc-et-Efow-s-inquietent-des-futurs-sites-en-.vin.html

More to come I guess.

• Wine-searcher.com: http://www.wine-searcher.com/m/2013/04/growing-opposition-to-dot-wine

EFOW against racketeering on the Internet but not against wine Registries

Below is a copy of the public comment submitted by the EFOW regarding the protection of Wine Geographical Indications:


ICANN must ensure the protection of origin wines

The decision of ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), the American private domain name system technical oversight body, to recognise new generic top-level domains on the Internet worries the wine sector. EFOW, the European Federation of Origin Wines, believes that the applications related to the wine sector (“.wine” “.vin”) may lead to abuses of Geographical Indication (GI) wines. EFOW calls on governments and the European Commission to ask ICANN to put forward guarantees.

The development of the e-commerce has been beneficial for all economic sectors, including the wine sector. The creation of new generic top-level domains (nowadays there are about 20 such as “.com”, “.eu” etc.) is a real opportunity for the wine sector. Nevertheless, it also constitutes a major risk: seeing anyone use GI names to their benefit and the appearance of a speculative market around the sale of domain names.

ICANN has recently decided to recognise new generic top-level domains (“strings”). The objective is to enable a community, a brand or a territory to register a distinctive Web address on the basis of its’ activity. 4 applications related to the wine sector have been filed: 3 private firms are competing to manage “.wine” and a fourth “.vin”. Once ICANN determines which registrars obtain these strings, these firms will be able to commercialise them allowing individuals and/or organisations to combine these strings to a second-level domain name to create a personalised Web address as “chianti.wine”, “champagne.vin”, “rioja.wine”, “port.wine” and many others.

None of these four projects nor ICANN rules commit to the protection of GI wine names. More importantly, these companies have already announced their intention to auction to the highest bidder the second-level domain name. By doing so an address as for instance "bordeaux.vin" could be sold to a company or individual with no connection to Bordeaux wines. Since no objection procedure has been developed to protect GIs, unlike brands, EFOW considers that ICANN cannot accept these applications as such and must adapt the rules of the game.

At a recent meeting in Beijing, the GAC (Governmental Advisory Committee) of ICANN - whose members are governments and the European Commission - has expressed reservations about these four applications and has given these firms 3 months (until July) to further discussions with the sector. This warning is the result of the mobilisation of a part of the sector and of several wine producing governments as well as the European Commission. Nevertheless, the ICANN Board which wasn’t pleased with this recommendation has decided to open a public comment period in an attempt to circumvent this opinion.

This is why EFOW has decided to launch the debate and to warn consumers about potential frauds that they may suffer in the near future. It also wishes to alert the wine sector of potential extortions they may face (buying second-level domain names at prohibitive prices). EFOW’s President, Mr Riccardo Ricci Curbastro, considers that "the Internet is nowadays an essential tool for information and trade development. The lack of regulation of domain names by ICANN may increase usurpations and counterfeiting’s of our names. It is therefore essential to define precise rules not only protect our intellectual property rights, but also to protect consumers against frauds on the Web. We are not against the development of new domain names but we believe ICANN should establish fair competition rules”.

EFOW hopes that other stakeholders will stand by its’ side and that wine producing governments and the European Commission will intensify their efforts to reason with ICANN and force the Board to provide protection procedures for GIs.

The European Federation of Origin Wines: www.efow.eu

Public comments are open...again (protect wine Geographical Indications)

In its last communiqué, the GAC had identified certain gTLD strings where further GAC consideration may be warranted at the next GAC meetings to be held in Africa (Durban) next July 2013.

The GAC advised the ICANN Board not to proceed beyond Initial Evaluation with the a certain number of strings including .WINE and .VIN.

It is now possible for the wine Community to comment globally: it is important to remember that ICANN is the organization to provide the rules, not the applicants. Regarding the protection of wine Geographical Indications, my guess is that if a solution should be found, it should be found with ICANN, not wine applicants.

If Wine Geographical Indications should be protected on .WINE and .VIN extensions only, it would absolutely not solve the problem and allow other registries to allow the registration of any Geographical Indications as a domain name: champagne.food and champagnes.food would not be protected.

You can read the information about Public Comments here comment here or directly submit a comment by sending an email at: comments-gac-safeguard-advice-23apr13@icann.org (please copy-paste).