ICANN UPDATE

ICANN recently concluded their 38th meeting, June 20th – 25th in Brussels, Belgium.

At the Brussels meeting, the ICANN board approved the delegation of Chinese Internationalized Domain Names to:

• CNNIC (China Internet Network Information Center)
• HKIRC (Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited)
• TWNIC (Taiwan Network Information Center)

In addition, the ICANN board voted to allow the application for the controversial .XXX top-level domain (TLD) to move forward. The ICM registry applied for the .XXX sponsored top-level domain as a potential community site for the adult entertainment industry. The Board approved a detailed set of next steps for the application, including expedited due diligence, negotiations on a draft registry agreement, and consultation with ICANN's Governmental Advisory Committee.

As in meetings past, the new gTLD Program also continued to serve as a focal point of discussion and debate. A fourth draft of the Applicant Guidebook was released two weeks prior to the meeting and included the following important revisions:

• Role and purpose of public comments
• Restrictions on Registrar / Registry cross-ownership
• Clarification surrounding "Community" definitions and guidelines
• Registry operator "Expectations"
• Addition of Trademark Clearinghouse (TC), Uniform Rapid Suspension (URS),

Post-Delegation Dispute Resolution Procedures (PDDRP) and Registry Restriction Dispute Resolution Procedure (RRDRP)

While definitive timelines have yet to be provided, it appears the launch of new gTLDs will occur in 2011.

® 2010 MarkMonitor Inc. All rights reserved. MarkMonitor® is a registered trademark of MarkMonitor Inc. All other trademarks included herein are the property of their respective owners. MarkMonitor solutions are protected by US patent rights, including US 7,346,605. Other patents pending.

Subscription Center | Contact Us | Careers | Privacy | Legal | Glossary | Site Map

© 2010 MarkMonitor Inc. All rights reserved.