French banks to apply for the .BANQUE new gTLD

The .BANQUE generic Top-Level Domain:

6 major French banks apply for the French string .BANQUE (bank in Eglish):

1. BNP PARIBAS;
2. BPCE;
3. CAISSE CENTRALE DU CREDIT MUTUEL;
4. CREDIT AGRICOLE SA;
5. LA BANQUE POSTALE;
6. SOCIETE GENERALE.

Gexban SAS's objective is to develop .banque domain names for eligible entities and banks regulators.

More about Gexban SAS here.

Promote your Top-Level Domain

Promote your Top-Level Domain with the "New gTLD expansion program"

Since June the 13th, all new gTLD applications have been made public and for those who will not be in competition, it is important to start raising interest.

As a person who has been involved in the first and second level domain business, for many years now with a Registrant, a Registrar and a Registry experience, I have decided to innovate and offer new gTLD applicants what they are going to need in the coming months: raise awareness for their domain names.

Simple, cheap and efficient, the objective with this service is to have registrants to be kept informed so that they are ready to buy, when registries launch.

For more information about this program, visit Jovenet Consulting.

Wineries apply for Top-Level Domains

A major American winery launches two generic Top-Level Domains which represent two of its brands:

1. The .GALLO Top-Level Domain (ex: www.wine.gallo);
2. The .BAREFOOT Top-Level Domain (ex: www.wine.barefoot).

Both Trademarks belong to Gallo Vineyards, Inc. , a leader in the U.S. wine industry and a leading provider of California wines in select markets outside the U.S.

The new .gallo and .barefoot domain name extensions will operate as restricted registries, in which Gallo Vineyards Inc. (Gallo) can create and control domain spaces that promote their brand identity and authenticity.

Given the restricted nature of both .barefoot and .gallo gTLDs, the projected number of registration is likely to be limited. It is anticipated that a more limited number of domain names (50x2) will be registered in the first year for each extension. However, over the next few years, the number of registrations is likely to increase to about 350 (x2) domain names as Gallo develops and implements new services and marketing campaigns.

Protection of Geographic Names

Gallo intends to create relevant domain names for use including geographic names in the second or third level domain names. In accordance with registration policy and the proposed measures for protection of geographic names, Gallo will use geographic names to localise its websites in the countries in which it operates. The use of geographic names is intended to:

• connect internet users with relevant information as applicable to the territory; and;
• comply with required rules and regulations in the national territory.

All Two-character labels and Country and Territory Names will be initially reserved.

Gallo intends to use any Two-character label and⁄or Country or Territory Name domains in Gallo’s discretion, and to participate in or implement a process by which any Government may reasonably object to that use. Gallo envisions a number of possible scenarios for ensuring Government agreement to the use of Country and Territory names:

1. Gallo will send a letter to the chair of the Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) informing the GAC of its intention to use geographical names in the .barefoot and/or .gallo gTLD. The letter will outline the reasons for using geographical names and provide Governments with the opportunity to contact Gallo within 90 days to reserve their respective geographical name from use in the .barefoot or .gallo gTLD.
2. Gallo will send a letter to the Government concerned and inform it of Gallo’s intention to use geographical names in the .barefoot and/or .gallo gTLD. The letter will outline the reasons for using geographical names and provide the Government with the opportunity to contact Gallo within 90 days to reserve its respective geographical name from use in the .barefoot or .gallo gTLD.
3. Gallo will send a letter to the Government concerned and inform it of Gallo’s intention to use geographical names in the .barefoot and/or .gallo gTLD. The letter will outline the reasons for using geographical names and request the Government’s approval or non-objection to the proposed use of the geographical name. Should the Government not respond to the Gallo within 90 days, Gallo will understand this to mean that the Government does not object to Gallo’s proposed use of the geographical name.

Read more about the first winery worldwide to have applied for generic Top-Level Domains: .gallo and .barefoot gTLDs

The .WIKI Top-Level Domain

What is the purpose/mission of this proposed, .WIKI generic Top-Level Domain?

Wiki websites are a growing phenomenon on the Internet and an innovative, easy-to-use peer-production method of creating and presenting information.

They are generally open and editable and often community-driven; furthermore, individual wikis and the wiki platform are in constant flux in much the same way that the Internet as a whole is in flux.

Wikis, like the broader Internet, are repositories of information that depend on each individual user to create value; they are meeting points and revolutionary ways to share ideas and knowledge; and they are both set to be expanded through the implementation of ICANN’s New gTLD Program, and a .wiki TLD specifically.

• The .wiki TLD will be an open TLD with wholesale pricing higher than currently available gTLDs;
• The TLD will be targeted at subject matter wikis;
• .WIKI will have an open registration policy targeted at wiki owners who use wikis;
• .WIKI TLD will bring greater attention and market success to all kinds of wikis;
• There will be no proof of legitimacy required for registration although we will encourage that the domains utilize wiki software.

Operating rules

• Standard Sunrise Period reserved for those entities with appropriate IP and Trademark claims, which we anticipate to last about 3 months;
• Landrush Period that will be open to the public, and which will last a few weeks to a month;
• At the conclusion of each period we will hold closed auctions for the domains that have been applied for by more than one party;
• We reserve the right to create a list of domain names within our .wiki TLD to be set aside and then sold or auctioned off to interested parties.

Read the complete application details here.

2 good ideas to fasten the new gTLD process

I read Twitts and many blogs, a lot of press, forums, and all source of information I can find related to new gTLDs and I found the 2 following ideas quite good to stop wasting more time entering the ICANN validation process:

• In a Twitt, Rob Hall (from Momentous, Pool.com) wrote: " ICANN‬ should start putting new ‪gTLDs‬ in the root today. Put in 2 per day. Start testing stability. The rest is just about who owns it". Good idea but it would require the back-end registry provider to be selected;
• Michael Berkens, President of Worldwide Media, Inc. wrote an article in CircleID entitled: "What if new gTLD applicants held private auctions where losing applicants, not ICANN gets the money?" This article introduces a very good idea: a benefit to private auctions over ICANN auctions is that: "parties can hold private auctions at anytime, rather than waiting for whenever ICANN is ready to hold them, thereby giving clarity on many strings which are in contention to all applicants".

I recommend reading this article on CircleId.

Prague Public Forum

The ICANN Public Forum is a conference where Stakeholders can listen to up-dates and express themselves regarding issues. It defines itself as: "The public forum is the Community's opportunity to make comments and ask questions on the main topics at each meeting directly to the Board and in front of the rest of the community". It is possible to follow the Public Forum watching a live video.

It usually happens at the end of all ICANN meetings. Yesterday was Prague's Public Forum meeting and new gTLDs were discussed in the end of it.

I will remember a few things from this forum:

• The ICANN wants more stakeholders to participate.
  I am myself a member of one of these groups but I admit it, vocabulary used is the ICANN one (a difficult one to understand) and it is not in my native language so I do not participate so much. The basis of these exchanges is done through emails and sometimes through conference calls. You can also meet the groups but you must travel to do so (and pay your plane ticket).
• Far too complex for the Internet Community to follow and understand.
  Internet users, in the case if new generic Top-Level Domains, are not the Registries who will launch soon to sell domain names but :
• Brands who will use their domain name extension for themselves and;
• "Registrants": those who are going to buy domain names to Registries through the network of Accredited Registrars. It is these people - brands and individuals - who are concerned and unfortunately, they are not the one to talk.
  It is these people who represent, probably 99% of the stakeholders who will buy these new domain names.
  It is these people whom are concerned by new gTLDs because they are the one who are going to face what comes next...
• This 14 years old Asian kid who came to talk to the micro to expressed himself about the .KIDS new gTLD: on of the rare person concerned by the launching of new gTLDs.
• Most of the people who expressed themselves have a financial interest in the launching of new gTLDs.
• I wish I was not involved in these new gTLDs because I would have asked the right questions: those no one would dare asking.
• I was happy to be able to follow the conference from my office here in Paris.

More details about the Public Forum can be found here: http://prague44.icann.org/node/31829

I shall soon (probably) submit comments here or provide feed-backs.

Update on the Trademark Clearinghouse - Part2

This post follows my previous post.

The PDF presentation to be downloaded down the page explains:

• The Trademark Clearinhouse (definition);
• Key design principles;
• Project schedule;
• Project status: accomplishments;
• "Going forward";
• Process and Function Overview:
• Verification process;
• Correction process;
• Registry support;
• User Support;
• Sunrise Services;
• Trademark Claims;
• Third Party Dispute;
• Testing Process.
• "Next steps".

Download PDF presentation down this page.

Update on new gTLD Objection & Dispute Resolution

These 4 presentations are a must-read for anyone who wants to object or face an objection(s).

The new gTLD Objection and Dispute Resolution window opened on 13 June 2012 and is scheduled to run for approximately seven months. There are 4 grounds for objection: String Confusion, Legal Rights, Limited Public Interest and Community.

• Who will administer objections?
• Did you know an applicant facing an Limited Public Interest or Community objection must pay to answer it ?
• Did you know the objection prevails if the objection is not answer in time?
• Did you know the procedure can be done in English only?
• Did you know the ICC (International Chamber of Commerce) appoints the experts whose hourly rate are € 450 (ICC Administrative Expenses normally: 1 Member Expert Panel: € 12 000)?
• Did you know a failure to timely reply  a string confusion objection is a default?
• Did you know...these objection mechanisms are a perfect scheme to... :-)

Find these answers in the 4 presentations to be downloaded down this page.