07-02-97 Electronic Filings on Internet Domain Names
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Number: 18
From: David Shaw dshaw@nin.skiles.gatech.edu>
To: NTIADC40.NTIAHQ40(dns)
Date: 7/2/97 10:02am
Subject: Internet Domain Naming
I think that the naming system should remain as it is today. If it it
turned over to an international body it will become increasingly
difficult (if not impossible) and prohibitively expensive to register
domain names. I have personally set up several domains for clients and
it is not a difficult process. If we have control over it, we should
maintain that control.
--
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David Shaw SGI/HP Platform Manager, Erdas Inc.
"Endian Little Hate We"
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Number:19
From: Stephen Burley stephenb@uunet.pipex.com>
To: NTIADC40.NTIAHQ40(dns)
Date: 7/2/97 11:50am
Subject: Request for coments
The .com as an international domain is a good idea but it does not work
in practice. The biggest problem is that there is no one global legal body to
enforce the trademark law. What maybe a trademark for one product in one
country could be an different product in another. i.e. Durex is a well known
brand of condom in this country but in Australia it is a brand of sticky tape.
What i would like is to see the .com domain put on hold and as NSI are
losing the registration contract that would be an ideal time to do this. I do
not mean kill it off just allow the domains to continue and eventually fade it
out. If a company wants an international presence then they would register in
each country they want to. Trademark laws within the country could then be
applied and enforced. This would also have the effect of spreading the name
space globally rather than concentrating it in the US. If a international
domain was seen to be essential then this could be done by iana, but only if
the company matched a list of certain criteria which made them truly
international.
These are my own personal thoughts.
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Number: 20
From: thoth@purplefrog.com>
To: NTIADC40.NTIAHQ40(dns)
Date: 7/2/97 12:33pm
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/domainname/dn5notic.htm
A.e "conflicts over proprietary rights"
Some of the domain-name disputes are over a DNS name that corresponds
to a trademark (mcdonalds.com). Someone convinced me that rather than
extend trademark law into the internet, there should be a separate layer
that maps from a corporate identity into a domain name.
B.1 "What are the advantages and disadvantages of current domain name
registration systems"
Recent experiences with the Internic has convinced me that they are
having difficulty telling their ass from a hole in the ground. What I
want from a registrar is competence, economy, and stability. If a
monopoly registrar can do it, I have no objections. If we need
competition to accomplish this, then I hope it doesn't cause more
problems than it solves.
C.11 "Should additional gTLDs be created?"
I seriously doubt it. If you have .inc and .com name spaces, then the
CocaCola corporation is going to want both coke.inc and coke.com. I
think this will merely increase citizen confusion and the cost of doing
business.
My straw man above can be burned if you distance corporate identity
from the domain name space. Keep reading.
D.16. "Should there be threshold requirements for domain name registrars,
and what responsibilities should such registrars have? Who will determine
these and how?"
The "failure" of a registrar would be a devastating event. There
should be requirements in place that make this extremely unlikely (bonds?
gvmt crisis management teams?)
D.19. "Should a gTLD registrar have exclusive control over a particular
gTLD? Are there any technical limitations on using shared registries for
some or all gTLDs? Can exclusive and non-exclusive gTLDs coexist? "
I deplore name-grabbing for profit. It is currently an issue under the
.us domain space. If a registrar has monopoly control over a domain,
then there is no opportunity for a more efficient registrar to compete.
E.21. "What trademark rights (e.g., registered trademarks, common law
trademarks, geographic indications, etc.), if any, should be protected on
the Internet vis-a-vis domain names? "
also see A.e
Absolutely none. The mapping from a company identity to a domain name
is rarely obvious and different people will try different domain names to
find a certain company. There should be a separate and widely deployed
mechanism for mapping from corporate/product identity into internet
resources (whether web sites or email addresses).
E.22. "Should some process of preliminary review of an application for
registration of a domain name be required, before allocation, to
determine if it conflicts with a trademark, a trade name, a geographic
indication, etc.? If so, what standards should be used? Who should
conduct the preliminary review? If a conflict is found, what should be
done, e.g., domain name applicant and/or trademark owner notified of the
conflict? Automatic referral to dispute settlement? "
Waste of time and money to solve an unsolveable problem.
E.24. "How can conflicts over trademarks best be prevented? What
information resources (e.g. databases of registered domain names,
registered trademarks, trade names) could help reduce potential
conflicts? If there should be a database(s), who should create the
database(s)? How should such a database(s) be used? "
When you incorporate in a state, you should also provide information
about internet resources you provide. The state should administer the
database. These registries should be heirarchically grouped under a
national registry, and then the national registries should be grouped
under an international registry.
This registry should not be confused with the domain name registry.
This is a corporate identity registry.
27. "Where there are valid, but conflicting trademark rights for a single
domain name, are there any technological solutions?
When you invalidate the idea of trademark rights for a domain name, the
issue becomes moot.
--
Bob Forsman thoth@gainesville.fl.us
http://www.gainesville.fl.us/~thoth/
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Number: 21
From: "Shasta Willson" shasta@1soft.com>
To: NTIADC40.NTIAHQ40(dns)
Date: 7/2/97 12:57pm
Subject: DNS comments
Please find attached a Word document with the input of Greg Thorne,
president of 1Soft Corp., concerning:
Billing Code 3510-60
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
[Docket No. 970613137-7137-01]
Request for Comments on the Registration and Administration of Internet
Domain Names
If you have any difficulties, please contact me directly at:
shasta@1soft.com
Shasta Willson
Web Maven
shasta@1soft.com
541.822.6000 ext.103
1Soft Corp.
www.1soft.com
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A. Appropriate Principles
The Government seeks comment on the principles by which it should evaluate
proposals for the registration and administration of Internet domain names.
Are the following principles appropriate? Are they complete? If not, how
should they be revised? How might such principles best be fostered?
a. Competition in and expansion of the domain name registration system
should be encouraged. Conflicting domains, systems, and registries should
not be permitted to jeopardize the interoperation of the Internet, however.
The addressing scheme should not prevent any user from connecting to any
other site.
b. The private sector, with input from governments, should develop stable,
consensus-based self-governing mechanisms for domain name registration and
management that adequately defines responsibilities and maintains
accountability.
c. These self-governance mechanisms should recognize the inherently global
nature of the Internet and be able to evolve as necessary over time.
d. The overall framework for accommodating competition should be open,
robust, efficient, and fair.
e. The overall policy framework as well as name allocation and management
mechanisms should promote prompt, fair, and efficient resolution of
conflicts, including conflicts over proprietary rights.
f. A framework should be adopted as quickly as prudent consideration of
these issues permits.
B. General/Organizational Framework Issues
1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of current domain name
registration systems?
I think it works quite well. Since domain names cost $100, it dissuades
persons from hoarding them. I personally am very involved in the InterNet
and have reserved approximately 300 domain names at a cost of $30,000 fee
to Internic. As I set up web sites on each one, there will be additinal
costs, but I hope to do a great deal of business in many different forms on
the internet in the coming decades. I see this as an investment.
2. How might current domain name systems be improved?
It's really quite good. You might allow a few other companies to administer
the reservation of names. If the database were open it would be far easier
to search and see what names were available.
I would not increase the number of TLDs. More TLDs would only increase
confusion. It's perfect the way it is. There are plenty of good .COM names.
Witness that a reported 70,000 new domains are being reserved every month.
Websites can easily "piggy-back" off other .com names, e.g.
www.meyers.store.com or www.pacific-retailers.com/meyers.
If there were additional TLDs, where would it end? I think there would be
thousands and it would be very confusing. Suppose Meyer's is a fishing
tackle store, do you go to meyers.rec, meyers.store, meyers.fishing,
meyers.outdoors or meyers.com? If instead there was only .com, you'd know
that part. The rest could be up to Meyers to develop in their catchy
jingle, slogan or whatever. Then you could just type in "myers fishing
tackle". Your browser might even condense the spaces and default to .com
3. By what entity, entities, or types of entities should current domain
name systems be administered? What should the makeup of such an entity be?
4. Are there decision-making processes that can serve as models for
deciding on domain name registration systems (e.g., network numbering plan,
standard-setting processes, spectrum allocation)? Are there private/public
sector administered models or regimes that can be used for domain name
registration (e.g., network numbering plan, standard setting processes, or
spectrum allocation processes)? What is the proper role of national or
international governmental/non-governmental organizations, if any, in
national and international domain name registration systems?
5. Should generic top level domains (gTLDs), (e.g., .com), be retired from
circulation? Should geographic or country codes (e.g., .US) be required? If
so, what should happen to the .com registry? Are gTLD management issues
separable from questions about International Standards Organization (ISO)
country code domains?
I think geographically coded TLDs should be retired. Three letter TLDs
should be used for governments however., e.g. .USA, .FRA, .GER
6. Are there any technological solutions to current domain name
registration issues? Are there any issues concerning the relationship of
registrars and gTLDs with root servers?
7. How can we ensure the scalability of the domain name system name and
address spaces as well as ensure that root servers continue to interoperate
and coordinate?
8. How should the transition to any new systems be accomplished?
9. Are there any other issues that should be addressed in this area?
C. Creation of New gTLDs
10. Are there technical, practical, and/or policy considerations that
constrain the total number of different gTLDs that can be created?
11. Should additional gTLDs be created?
No, except very sparingly.
12. Are there technical, business, and/or policy issues about guaranteeing
the scalability of the name space associated with increasing the number of
gTLDs?
13. Are gTLD management issues separable from questions about ISO country
code domains?
14. Are there any other issues that should be addressed in this area?
D. Policies for Registries
15. Should a gTLD registrar have exclusive control over a particular gTLD?
Are there any technical limitations on using shared registries for some or
all gTLDs? Can exclusive and non-exclusive gTLDs coexist?
16. Should there be threshold requirements for domain name registrars, and
what responsibilities should such registrars have? Who will determine these
and how?
17. Are there technical limitations on the possible number of domain name
registrars?
18. Are there technical, business and/or policy issues about the name space
raised by increasing the number of domain name registrars?
19. Should there be a limit on the number of different gTLDs a given
registrar can administer? Does this depend on whether the registrar has
exclusive or non-exclusive rights to the gTLD?
20. Are there any other issues that should be addressed in this area?
E. Trademark Issues
21. What trademark rights (e.g., registered trademarks, common law
trademarks, geographic indications, etc.), if any, should be protected on
the Internet vis-a-vis domain names?
Trademarks and TLDs are different things. This whole concept of a TLD
infringin on a trademark was something that started with big business
(McDonalds, e.g.). There was someone with the last name of McDonald. It
seems to me they had the perfect right to reserve mcdonald.com and set up a
family web site. If McDonalds really wants a web site with their name, they
should pay for it. I'm sure they can negotiate a price to buy it from the
holder. Anyone with a trademark who wants to be on the web, ought to have
reserved their name yesterday, not be whining about it later. First come,
first serve. Let the free market place moderate. Good names should be
traded freely.
A holder of a TLD does not own a trademark and a trademark owner does not
automatically hold rights to a permutation into a TLD. TLD owners are
protected by having reserved their TLD. Trademark holders overlap by
industry. It is not possible to arbitrate. And there's no need. It should
be first come first serve. If I hold a trademark for "apple" records, and
Apple computer has reserved www.apple.com, then I should have to come up
with something different, e.g. www.apple-records.com. If I invent a new
word, e.g. ChiZen, and I reserve a site www.CHIZEN.com then I have been
protected. I may not even need to bother registering a trademark, easing
the burden on the PTO and everyone else worldwide.
22. Should some process of preliminary review of an application for
registration of a domain name be required, before allocation, to determine
if it conflicts with a trademark, a trade name, a geographic indication,
etc.? If so, what standards should be used? Who should conduct the
preliminary review? If a conflict is found, what should be done, e.g.,
domain name applicant and/or trademark owner notified of the conflict?
Automatic referral to dispute settlement?
No.
23. Aside from a preliminary review process, how should trademark rights be
protected on the Internet vis-a-vis domain names? What entity(ies), if any,
should resolve disputes? Are national courts the only appropriate forum for
such disputes? Specifically, is there a role for national/international
governmental/nongovernmental organizations?
Domain names may include trademarked words surrounded by other words, e.g.
www.apple.com, www.apple-walnut.com The holder of the trademark "apple" has
the option of buying the domain name, but should not automatically be given
a right to it. Afterall, the word apple is not itself a trademark. Use of
the word only infringes on registered trademarks if it used in a confusing
way, e.g. if the site were to sell "Apple" computers. That would be an
infringement. Selling Washington apples on the site would not be an
infringement.
If I think Photogenics would be a great name for a modeling agency and I
create a website called www.photogenics.com, it wouldn't be fair for
someone in Georgia who owns a 24 hour photo processing store called
Photogenics with a registered trademark to have rights to the site
(www.photogenics.com) if I have already paid for it.
24. How can conflicts over trademarks best be prevented? What information
resources (e.g. databases of registered domain names, registered
trademarks, trade names) could help reduce potential conflicts? If there
should be a database(s), who should create the database(s)? How should such
a database(s) be used?
There should be no conflicts. Ignore any bogus claims. These are imaginary.
A domain names is not a trademark. It's a domain name.
25. Should domain name applicants be required to demonstrate that they have
a basis for requesting a particular domain name? If so, what information
should be supplied? Who should evaluate the information? On the basis of
what criteria?
No.
26. How would the number of different gTLDs and the number of registrars
affect the number and cost of resolving trademark disputes?
27. Where there are valid, but conflicting trademark rights for a single
domain name, are there any technological solutions?
First come first serve.
28. Are there any other issues that should be addressed in this area?
____
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Number: 22
From: Total Web Solutions support@totalweb.co.uk>
To: NTIADC40.NTIAHQ40(dns)
Date: 7/2/97 2:14pm
Subject: DOMAIN NAMES
To whom it may concern:-
First of all let me introduce myself. I am the Sales Director for Total
Web Solutions in the United Kingdom. I along with my colleagues set up
this organisation two years ago with a reasonable understanding of what the
internet was and how it operated due to our techincal backgrounds (software
engineers). It has become aparent though that the Internet and its
resourcs are expanding at an ever increasing rate, thus meaning that it is
incredibly difficult to stay on top of the latest fad or technologies with
limited resources. Customers often ring up and ask for certain tools, or
do you support this or can you do that. It is very customer driven. It is
with this in mind that i say why not let the Internet decide, not some
company such as my own or organisation too big to realise what the people
of the planet really want.
What I propose is to have a web site hosted say by Internic which allowed
internet users to register there thoughts on which top level domains should
be introduced and whom shall have authority, giving the user some pointers
of course. This site shall be the recognised place for registering your
views as an individual. There are far to many sites relating to this issue
and to be frank its a huge pool of bullshit.
People also need to be made aware of this web site by banner advertising
and newsgroup postings along with anything else that might attract the
users attention.
The internet is for the people and not the pot bellied money lovers who see
it as a license to print money at the tax payers expense.
So, back to the web site. The web site might exist for several months but
it will be a central point to register your beliefs. It should not be a
discussion forum because in my experience these forums end up going no
where fast. It needs to be a concise and easy to navigate site with not an
information overload but with a taster of what is expected of their response.
The phrase "keep it simple, stupid" springs to mind. Once several months
worth of information is gathered and collated then and only then can this
problem be resolved once and for all. Because at this moment in time I get
around 3-5 calls a day asking about these domains and I cannot supply any
of these enquirers with a definitive answer.
Hope you read this, if not I have cleared one thing up for myself and that
is I hate long e-mails.
regards,
Miesha Vukasinovic.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Sales: +44 (0)161 485 5586 Freephone Sales: (UK) 0800 435715
Tech Support: +44 (0)161 485 5548
Total Web Solutions Fascimile : +44 (0)161 485 2226
Providing the UK's best Web space http://www.totalweb.co.uk
e-mail: enquiry@totalweb.co.uk
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Number: 23
From: Robert Friedman friedman@iname.com>
To: NTIADC40.NTIAHQ40(dns)
Date: 7/2/97 8:15pm
Subject: Internet Domain Name Allocation...
Dear NTIA--
1) The current domain name allocation system doesn't work:
Too many people are holding domain names with the sole intent of selling
"their" domain names. There needs to be fewer "entry bariers" to getting
names (e.g. lower costs) BUT more stringent requirements for i) maintaining
domain access and ii) maintaining content that pertains to a particular
domain name. Anything less is insufficient relative to domain registration
costs and the revenues collected by INTERNIC.
2) .COM, .GOV, .NET, etc. should not be proprietarily owned:
There is no excuse for maintenance and allocation of these domains to be
given to a single company (INTERNIC). That is what one calls a MONOPOLY,
and the system should be opened to the free market.
3) the system should be internationally maintained:
We are not living in a vacuum. The U.S. may have originated the Internet,
but it certainly doesn't OWN the Internet. It would be an intelligent act
of diplomacy (a la Tax Free Web Commerce as proposed by President Clinton)
to allow an international organization to maintain fairness and assign
domains on the Web.
-- Robert Friedman
Princeton University '97
______________________________________________________________________
Robert Friedman friedman@postguard.com
Post Communications (415) 551-9994
1550 Bryant Street, Suite 500 fax: (415) 431-3007
San Francisco, CA 94103
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07-02-97