But what the industry shouldn't overlook, especially in the face of the expected critical responses this week and next, is that the Governmental Advisory Committee's (GAC's) formal advice from the ICANN Beijing meeting represents an opportunity for the domain name industry to lock-in self-regulation at a critical point in its evolution.

IFFOR has been focused for some time on the question of what registries will need to do in a world where domain names can end in any word. As such, we see the GAC advice as a simple reflection of genuine, and understandable, concerns from a body whose main job is to identify public policy issues.

It is also nothing new: IFFOR went through this exact process to find policy solutions to questions raised by GAC over the dot-xxx top-level domain. Many of the same issues are present in this most recent advice — something we highlighted at the beginning of the year.

So here is the good news: it is perfectly possible to find a simple, effective and lightweight solution that will meet the concerns of governments — including that it be contractually binding — while keeping ICANN firmly out of content regulation.

It is also possible to do it right now without compromising business plans, redrawing financial projections, or seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in new investment.

So what is this solution?

As part of the process for reaching agreement with both ICANN and the GAC over the dot-xxx top-level domain, a set of "baseline policies" was created (by IFFOR) to demonstrate a clear commitment to resolving concerns.

Those baseline policies covered issues such as:

• Scanning domains for malware, spam and phishing
• Audit and compliance systems
• Enhanced trademark protections
• Handling complaints
• Registrant verification
• Tackling child abuse images
• Disqualifying applicants that consistently break the policies

The implementation of those policies was then left up to the registry operator — ICM Registry — and IFFOR was also given the role of auditing the subsequent systems.

In response to the GAC advice in Beijing, IFFOR is close to completing a new set of "Safeguard Policies" designed specifically to encompass the six most broad safeguards that the GAC wishes to see apply to all new gTLDs.

In so doing, we have drawn on our original "baseline policies" to develop policies for the gTLD market as a whole, and have used our experience as a registry policy body to ensure all six GAC safeguards are fully addressed.

In an effort to make this work as widely accessible as possible, we plan to simply license these policies for a low annual fee. As well as the right to use, publish and reference the Safeguard Policies, each license will come complete with documentation to help registries implement each policy in the way most suited to their circumstances. We will also extend IFFOR's internal information service that provides ongoing information on related policy and regulatory topics to all licensees. Again, for one, low annual fee.

We believe this approach solves a number of issues:

• It provides applicants with a simple, swift and low-cost answer to government concerns
• It answers government calls for new safeguards
• It builds on a contractual solution that has already been shown to work within the ICANN system
• It removes the need and cost for applicants to develop their own policies
• It keeps the new gTLD program on track

Perhaps most importantly, adopting such an approach will give the industry a chance to demonstrate that it is committed to be a good actor while retaining the flexibility to develop the right systems for the right markets in the right way.

The mark of a self-regulated market is how well it responds to issues identified by a third party. With the right mix of creative pragmatism, the GAC safeguard advice can act as a catalyst for this industry.

If you are interested in learning more about IFFOR's Safeguard Policies, please visit our website at http://iffor.org/safeguard.

Written by Kieren McCarthy, Executive Director at IFFOR; CEO at .Nxt

"i2Coalition is thrilled to have Afilias, the world's leading provider of technical solutions that make Internet addresses more accessible and useful, on our side as we fight for an open Internet and the environment of growth and innovation that it fosters," said Christian Dawson, i2Coalition co-founder and Board Chair. "Afilias will be the first registry to join i2Coalition, and we are excited to add their global expertise in the field of registry services to our ever-expanding alliance of industry-leading organizations."

i2Coalition is the principal voice and leading advocate for the Internet infrastructure industry, educating the general public about the Internet industry and working with lawmakers to help them understand how public policy might affect the free and open Internet. i2Coalition promotes market-driven standards and facilitates public policy, education and advocacy in an industry-unified voice. Members of i2Coalition will receive the support and tools they need to be heard in Washington and by their state and local officials.

"The Internet continues to grow at a blazing pace, supporting communications and careers for billions of people around the world," said Roland LaPlante, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Afilias. "And now, with the advent of hundreds of new generic Top-Level Domains about to go live, it is more important than ever to ensure global interoperability on both technical and regulatory levels. We embrace the mission of the Internet Infrastructure Coalition and, as a member, will work closely with other like-minded industry players towards an open Internet that works for everybody."

About i2Coalition

The Internet Infrastructure Coalition (i2Coalition) supports those who build the nuts and bolts of the Internet, and we treat it like the noble profession that it is. We believe the continued growth of the Internet is vital for growing an environment of innovation in America and seek to engage in ways to foster success of the Internet and Internet infrastructure industry. We seek to influence decision makers to weigh decisions on whether they are good or bad for the Internet economy and its foundational industries. In short, we seek to foster growth within the Internet infrastructure industry by driving others to harness the Internet's full potential. To learn more about i2Coalition, visit www.i2Coalition.com.

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, visit 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.

The registry contract (Registry Agreement or RA) negotiations have been going on for much less time and really only picked up in earnest after several registries made outspoken, sometimes angry, comments at the way they felt ICANN was handling the negotiations.

Subsequently, a registry negotiating team was set up to work with ICANN in a similar fashion to the registrars (who have been locked in negotiations with ICANN for getting on to almost 2 years now). For ICANN and new gTLD applicants, time is of the essence as the program obviously cannot launch without proper contracts in place to cover the whole domain name registration, management and distribution chain.

This impacts registries as well of course, as many of them are either applicants themselves, or working for applicants.

On April 29, ICANN's VP for DNS Industry Engagement Cyrus Namazi posted an upbeat report on the negotiations on the ICANN blog. "I am delighted to report that we have now posted a proposed final draft of the New gTLD Registry Agreement," Namazi wrote. "Similar to the proposed 2013 Registrar Accreditation Agreement (RAA) that was posted for public comment on 22 April 2013, the ICANN community is now able to review and comment on this final draft before it is approved and adopted."

Namazi's comments are clearly drafted to get the message across that all is well and that the registries and ICANN left the negotiating room as BFFs. "A new and highly spirited sense of mutual trust has catapulted us into a fresh atmosphere of collaboration," he added. "The spirit of teamwork, productive dialogue and partnership that has underpinned this negotiation process is tremendously heartwarming, as it has allowed us to bring to fruition a robust contractual framework for the New gTLD Program."

Really? In a letter sent to ICANN, senior managers at Verisign, the most powerful registry by market share, are extremely critical of the way ICANN has handled the negotiations and of the end result.

Issues appear to center around a clause which would give the ICANN Board a unilateral right to amend the contract. This has been strongly criticized by both registries and registrars, and Verisign is not happy with what it sees as a tool to allow ICANN to change the rules of engagement for its contracted parties at will.

The letter is a strongly worded as Namazi's post is lovey-dovey. So who is right? The proposed new RA was posted for public comment on April 29 for 42 days. Comments will then be collated and summarised for the ICANN Board, so that it can decide whether to approve the contract or not.

This is a major test for today's ICANN. On the one hand, it needs to show that it can control its supplier chain and provide Internet users with a safe and stable environment. But it also needs to show that it can provide the businesses in the domain industry with such an environment, especially with an expected 1,200 new TLDs coming online in the next few years. And lastly, ICANN needs to show that the bottom-up policy development process that gives it its unique position in the world of Internet governance is sacrosanct. Right now, the registries seem to think that ICANN is ready to throw the model under the bus whenever it suits its own devises.

Written by Stéphane Van Gelder, Chairman, STEPHANE VAN GELDER CONSULTING

With the growing need to differentiate an individual's business and skills on the Internet, the .PRO domain gives professionals who need a website a one-of-a-kind address that helps them to brand themselves as the professionals they are. The inclusion of .PRO in the market-leading DomainsBot domain search tool demonstrates the growing popularity of .PRO as a global identifier of professional status.

DomainsBot's "name spinner" tool is designed to help developers, site owners and marketers find available domain names when a first-choice domain name is already registered. DomainsBot offers a wide variety of results — including domain names that are available, expiring and for sale — to ensure that professionals can easily find the best domain name available.

"The inclusion of .PRO into the DomainsBot search and suggestion tool is another milestone in the success of the .PRO TLD," said Roland LaPlante, CMO of Afilias. "More professionals are setting up websites every day, and the integrity of .PRO sets it apart in the world of Internet addresses. All .PRO registrants must certify that they meet strict eligibility requirements, and may be required to submit proof to the registry. To further ensure the integrity of .PRO, all registrations are subject to .PRO's monitoring and verification process."

"As the Internet continues to grow, so does the need for distinct professional branding. Given that, we felt it was important to include .PRO domains as part of our services," said Daniel Ruzzini Mejia, Co-Founder & CSO, DomainsBot. "The .PRO domain now plays a significant role on the Web; we wanted to ensure our customers could take advantage of the branding benefits that come with the .PRO domain."

To qualify to register a .PRO domain, registrants may be asked to provide their professional credentials to confirm they meet eligibility requirements, which include providing professional services, being validated by a government certification body or government-recognized jurisdictional entity and being in good standing with its authority. In addition, registrants may be asked to provide identification, contact information and profession-specific information like ID numbers.

About DomainsBot
Since 1999, DomainsBot — a privately held company headquartered in Rome, Italy — has lead the "domain name suggestions" market with its self-learning Semantic Engine, a one-of-a-kind domain name search technology. As a supplier of domain name suggestion products to the majority of the world's best-known Internet domain name retailers, DomainsBot offers a unique and powerful way for Technology and Marketing professionals to search for domain names with suggestions that embody the concepts sought by the customer. To learn how to integrate DomainsBot offerings into the domain registration process, visit http://www.domainsbot.com/partners.

About RegistryPRO
RegistryPRO, a subsidiary of Dublin,IE-based Afilias, is the ICANN-designated operator of the .PRO top-level domain: the Internet for Professionals. Since launching in 2004, .PRO has emerged as an important tool for businesses, organizations and individuals in building trusted relationships throughout the world. In many languages, "pro" is synonymous with dedication, skill, and vision; the .PRO name allows people to capture that distinctive character. Whether developing a brand, refining an identity, or promoting a specialty, .PRO offers businesses and professionals the opportunity to enhance their image by adding a powerful, easy-to-identify name to their online presence and Web-based products. To learn more, visit http://registry.pro.

Specifically at issue is ICANN staff's unilateral decision to adopt the "trademark +50" proposal for new domains, which would provide trademark holders who have previously won a UDRP or court decision with rights to 50 additional derivations of their trademark in ICANN's Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH). Under staff's plan, large trademark holders that register in the clearinghouse will be provided thousands of derivations of their trademarks since each separate country's registration of the same trademark provides the brand owner with an additional 50 entries in the TMCH.¹ Entries in the TMCH trigger infringement warning notices to domain name registrants which can lead to increased liability for registrants, discourage lawful registrations, and chill speech on the Internet.

ICANN's bottom-up community-developed process for creating policy had approved of a TMCH model that allowed "exact matches" of trademarks only to be placed in the TMCH. In 2007, ICANN's GNSO Policy Council, including representatives from the Intellectual Property and Business Constituencies, approved the GNSO recommendations that created special protections for trademark rights by a supermajority vote.² As part of the multi-year consensus process, both the subsequent Special Trademarks Implementation (STI) Team and the Implementation Review Team (IRT) considered the issue of providing rights to exact matches or additional derivations, and both community-developed teams specifically opted for exact matches only to be placed into the TMCH. ICANN's CEO testified before U.S. Congress in 2012 that expanding the scope of the TMCH further would be inappropriate since it would create new rights that do not exist in law and ICANN should not be creating unprecedented rights.³

Many months after the final TMCH model of exact matches only was published in ICANN's Applicant Guidebook and new domain businesses relied on it when filing their applications, ICANN's Intellectual Property and Business Constituencies lobbied ICANN's new CEO to make drastic changes to the community-developed policy and grant additional trademark rights in the TMCH.

After the October 2012 Toronto ICANN Meeting, a "strawman solution" was proposed by ICANN's new CEO which included a number of IPC/BC's substantive policy proposals to give trademark holders additional privileges in the domain name system, including changing the exact matches only standard approved of by the community.

Yet ICANN's CEO recognized that expanding the scope of the trademark claims service was a policy matter requiring GNSO Council guidance, as he stated on his blog⁴ in December 2012; and the CEO did write to the GNSO Council to request guidance on this policy proposal. Under ICANN's Bylaws, staff may not change GNSO-approved policy, except under a strict process that involves consulting with the GNSO and a 2/3 vote of the Board of Directors.

NCSG filed comments on the proposed policy changes and warned against re-opening previously closed consensus agreements and circumventing ICANN's stated bottom-up policy development process.⁵ In addition to the flawed process for adopting this policy, NCSG also detailed substantive concerns with staff's proposal to expand trademark rights beyond anything that exists in trademark law. It came as no surprise that only members of the IPC and BC supported the strawman proposals in ICANN's comment period.⁶

In the GNSO Council's February 29, 2013 response to the CEO regarding the proposal to expand the scope of trademark claims, the GNSO Chair wrote, "the majority of the council feels that proposal is best addressed as a policy concern, where the interest of all stakeholders can be considered."⁷ Thus the GNSO Council also determined this specific proposal to be a policy matter, requiring consultation from the entire community before such a change could be made to existing GNSO Council approved policy.

Yet with only an email sent on 20 March 2013, ICANN staff announced in an attached memorandum that it would expand the scope of the trademark claims service to give trademark holders rights to 50 additional derivations of their trademark, in contradiction to GNSO developed policy of exact matches only and the subsequent requested GNSO Council guidance on the matter.⁸

Staff's only explanation for such a drastic shift in the creation of new rights: "this proposal appears to be a reasonable add on to an existing service, rather than a proposed new service". Thus with a single line of evasive text, years of hard-fought community consensus policy was brushed under the rug and the new era of policy development via ICANN staff edict was solidified.

On 19 April 2013 NCSG filed this Request for Reconsideration of the staff decision because ICANN did not follow its stated process for changing GNSO-approved policy. If ICANN wants to deviate from Supermajority GNSO-approved policy, it must follow the process outlined in the organization's Bylaws, Annex A Section 9.⁹ As an organization that holds itself out as a champion of the bottom-up policy development process, ICANN is obligated to comply with community-developed policies, unless the Board of Directors can muster the necessary 2/3rd vote to over-turn the community decision. That mandatory process was not followed by ICANN's staff or Board in over-turning the community-approved policy in favor of staff's policy to expand the scope of TMCH.

ICANN's Board Governance Committee has thirty days in which to make to a recommendation to ICANN's Board of Directors regarding the NCSG's Request for Reconsideration or report to the Board on why no final recommendation is available and provide a timeframe for making a final recommendation on the matter. ICANN's entire Board should consider the recommendation of the Board Governance Committee at its next regularly-scheduled Board meeting.

Under Article IV Section 2 of ICANN's Bylaws, the Request for Reconsideration process is a mechanism intended to reinforce ICANN's accountability to the community for operating in a manner consistent with its Bylaws.¹⁰ Because the staff's unilateral decision to change GNSO-approved policy was not consistent with ICANN's Bylaws and contradicted ICANN stated policy, NCSG filed the Request to correct the error and bring ICANN into compliance with its Bylaws and stated policies.

NCSG requests that the Board reinstate the community-developed policy of giving trademark holders rights to include exact matches of their trademark only in the TMCH, which was the policy stated in ICANN's Applicant Guidebook when ICANN accepted applications for new domains.

• NCSG's Request for Reconsideration (PDF)
• Attachments to NCSG's Request for Reconsideration (PDF)
• ICANN Website on Requests for Reconsideration

¹ http://domainincite.com/...

² http://gnso.icann.org/en/issues/new-gtlds/...

³ http://www.internetcommerce.org/ICANN_Amnesia

⁴ http://blog.icann.org/2012/11/a-follow-up-to-our-trademark-clearinghouse-meetings/

⁵ http://ipjustice.org/wp/2013/01/14/...

⁶ http://forum.icann.org/lists/tmch-strawman/msg00096.html / See also:
Comments of Registrar Stakeholder Group
Comments from New TLD Applicant Group
Comments of Non-Commercial Stakeholder Group
Comments of the Internet Service Provider Constituency
Comments of Public Interest Registry

⁷ http://gnso.icann.org/bitcache/...

⁸ http://newgtlds.icann.org/en/about/trademark-clearinghouse/...

⁹ http://www.icann.org/en/about/governance/bylaws#AnnexA

GNSO Policy Development Process

Section 9. Board Approval Processes. a. Any PDP Recommendations approved by a GNSO Supermajority Vote shall be adopted by the Board unless, by a vote of more than two-thirds (2/3) of the Board, the Board determines that such policy is not in the best interests of the ICANN community or ICANN. If the GNSO Council recommendation was approved by less than a GNSO Supermajority Vote, a majority vote of the Board will be sufficient to determine that such policy is not in the best interests of the ICANN community or ICANN.

b. In the event that the Board determines, in accordance with paragraph a above, that the policy recommended by a GNSO Supermajority Vote or less than a GNSO Supermajority vote is not in the best interests of the ICANN community or ICANN (the Corporation), the Board shall (i) articulate the reasons for its determination in a report to the Council (the "Board Statement"); and (ii) submit the Board Statement to the Council.

c. The Council shall review the Board Statement for discussion with the Board as soon as feasible after the Council's receipt of the Board Statement. The Board shall determine the method (e.g., by teleconference, e-mail, or otherwise) by which the Council and Board will discuss the Board Statement.

d. At the conclusion of the Council and Board discussions, the Council shall meet to affirm or modify its recommendation, and communicate that conclusion (the "Supplemental Recommendation") to the Board, including an explanation for the then-current recommendation. In the event that the Council is able to reach a GNSO Supermajority Vote on the Supplemental Recommendation, the Board shall adopt the recommendation unless more than two-thirds (2/3) of the Board determines that such policy is not in the interests of the ICANN community or ICANN. For any Supplemental Recommendation approved by less than a GNSO Supermajority Vote, a majority vote of the Board shall be sufficient to determine that the policy in the Supplemental Recommendation is not in the best interest of the ICANN community or ICANN.

¹⁰ http://www.icann.org/en/about/governance/bylaws#IV

Written by Robin Gross, Founder and Executive Director of IP Justice

And when we need the facts, where are we most likely to turn for credible, reliable information?

So where do you turn for the most trusted source of information for a cause or charity? Would it be through social media or the organization's website? We recently conducted a survey through ORC International to measure the level of trust consumers have in .ORG and their sentiments towards other online resources, such as social media, and found that 82% of survey respondents still think a website is the most trustworthy place to get information on a charity or social cause. Despite the growing rise and popularity of organizational social media pages and accounts, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn were respectively ranked second, third and fourth most trustworthy

At Public Interest Registry, we fully believe in the power of the Internet as a useful medium to spread knowledge, ideas and support for the common good. As the not-for-profit-operator of the .ORG domain, we have a responsibility to help maintain the integrity of the Internet by providing a trusted place online for organizations, companies and individuals to tell their stories and to mobilize their communities.

We were pleased to find that a large majority of all respondents (90%) associate a .ORG web address with the words "non-profit," "trusted," "exclusive," or a combination of all three. Furthermore, nearly half (49%) of the respondents polled would choose to purchase a .ORG domain to relay information about a cause that they were passionate about. Other key findings include:

• Assuming there are four websites, all with similar content but each with a different domain name, 39% of all respondents surveyed indicated they would trust .ORG the most; 23% chose .COM and 25% said they would trust them all equally (.ORG, .COM, .INFO, .NET).
• In a time of crisis, 33% of all respondents would look for information on a .ORG, followed by .COM (31%) and .INFO (17%).

While these survey findings certainly help us validate our daily efforts to give more causes around the world a trusted online venue, they also demonstrate how audiences seek to connect with these causes and communities across the many Internet options available. As hundreds of new generic Top Level Domains (gTLDs) become available online in the months ahead, Public Interest Registry is working with the global community of non-profit and NGOs to ensure that the transformations coming to the Internet expand the opportunities for organizations and their causes around the world.

Written by Thuy LeDinh, Senior Marketing Communications Manager

dot Brand or dot What? Afilias new gTLDs research report 2013 – The results of the report are designed to help organizations who have already purchased (or who intend to purchase) their own gTLDs understand consumer concerns in relation to the new domains and how they can overcome any apprehensions end users have to ensure "dot Brands" will be accepted and embraced in the internet ecosystem.
(Click to Download Report)

Afilias Limited, a global provider of domain registry services, has announced the results of research on consumer attitudes towards the hundreds of new generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs) that will launch beginning in 2013. The results? At this moment, the major online initiative where companies like Google, Microsoft, Nike and Amazon will create and use their own "dot Brand" domains to promote their websites has fallen on deaf ears among the UK and US public.

The program, in which 1,000-plus new gTLDs will be launched by organizations and household brands, was only known by 21 percent of UK adults and 22 percent of US adults. Internet governing body ICANN created the new gTLD program to foster innovation and improve consumer security on the Internet. However, the research revealed that 73 percent of UK adults would prefer to visit traditional Web addresses like "www.adidas.com/shop" rather than "www.shop.adidas." In the US, 61 percent of adults would prefer to use a "heritage" gTLD.

The results have been published in Afilias' "dot Brand or dot What?" report, which polled 2,054 UK and 2,000 US consumers in conjunction with YouGov, examining perceptions about and understanding of the new gTLDs.

"The advent of new TLDs coming over the months ahead will result in major changes to the Internet. Some of the world's best-known companies will roll out a dot Brand extension, but our research shows consumers are unaware that these changes are coming and would avoid the new gTLDs due to their unfamiliarity," said Roland LaPlante, CMO, Afilias. "However, the new gTLDs offer consumers great benefits, such as reducing the risk of purchasing counterfeit goods online. Our research demonstrates that businesses need to seriously consider the ways that they will integrate the new gTLDs into their online strategies and how they will educate consumers about their benefits."

Consumer Response To: Companies will soon be able to run their own website addresses and not have to use .com, .co.uk, etc. For example, imagine "sale.nike" instead of "www.nike.com/sale." were you aware that these new website addresses were being introduced?The survey also found that UK and US consumers have trepidation concerning Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs), domains that use non-Roman characters (as in Russian, Chinese and Devanagari.) Only eight percent of UK and US consumers recognized IDNs as domains designed for foreign-language communities while 65 percent of UK consumers and 60 percent of US respondents said they would navigate away from IDNs. This figure reaches more than 70 percent for "over 55s" in both markets.

LaPlante added, "Education is also needed to ensure the growth and support of IDNs. Consumers should understand that if a domain name isn't written in a script they recognize, it doesn't mean the site is dangerous. In reality, websites using IDNs will create an improved, more relevant Web experience for consumers around the world."

The Afilias "dot Brand or dot What?" report is available for downloading from the Afilias website.

Afilias provides registry and DNS services for more than 21 million domains, including seven million .INFO domains and one million .MOBI domains registered worldwide. In addition, Afilias supports .ORG, .AERO, .ASIA, .PRO, .AG (Antigua and Barbuda), .BZ (Belize), .GI (Gibraltar), .IN (India), .LC (St. Lucia), .ME (Montenegro), .MN (Mongolia), .SC (the Seychelles), .VC (St. Vincent and the Grenadines) and .XXX.

The results for八卦 (gossip) and 集团 (conglomerate) were announced on March 23, 2013 and 网店 (online shop), 商城 (mall), 我爱你 (i-love-you) and 娱乐 (entertainment) were announced on March 30, 2013.

"Applications that pass Initial Evaluation may be eligible to proceed to contracting with the execution of the Registry Agreement as early as 23 April 2013.", according to ICANN. Zodiac looks forward to signing the Registry Agreement with ICANN and to offer these new gTLDs to the market as soon as possible.

In January 2013, renowned industry veteran Wang Jian (Mack), former General Manager of Xinnet, joined Zodiac as COO. Mr Wang was the Vice President of HiChina and General Manager of Xinnet — the two largest registrars in China today. During his tenure at Xinnet, he led the commercialization of virtual private server (VPS) leasing services. At HiChina, Mr Wang was entrusted to set up the cloud solution Business Division, with the solution entering the market within 4 months.

Another domain name industry veteran, Tang Li Hong, has joined Zodiac as Vice President of Operation. Mdm Tang spent the last 10 years at HiChina. During her tenure at HiChina, Mdm Tang led the effort in standardization and automation of the back-end operation of HiChina. Her team of nearly 200 staff has won numerous company awards for efficiency and customer support. Mdm Tang will be responsible for Zodiac's service operation.

In addition, Zodiac recently appointed Allan Ma as the group's General Counsel. Formerly with Cadwaladar, Wickersham & Taft LLP (Beijing) and King & Wood Mallesons (Hong Kong), Mr Ma has in-depth experience in cross-border transactions and is specialized in venture capital, private equity, corporate finance and corporate structuring

These new additions, joining the existing team of former CNNIC staffs including ex-Deputy Director of CNNIC Eugene Li, bring impressive domain name industry experience and will further bolster the Zodiac team and readiness to market."

"With the release of the Initial Evaluation Results, Zodiac will continue to rapidly expand our team in China.", Mr. James Seng, the CEO of Zodiac commented. "There is tremendous excitement and anticipation for our new gTLDs in China so we would like to be the first to market."

Zodiac is also announcing its "China Advisory Services" for new gTLD applicants who are interested in entering China domain name market.

China has the largest Internet population in the world, estimated to be around 560 million. China is also the second largest world economy with a GDP of US$8300 billion and over 50 million registered companies. According to Verisign's December 2012 Domain Name Market brief, the ccTLD for China (.CN) has the highest quarter-to-quarter growth of 43%.

On 7th April 2013 during ICANN 46th meeting in Beijing, Zodiac will be hosting a seminar titled "A New Beginning - Domain Name Market in China”. Speakers are well-known experts in China domain name industry from the Internet Society of China, the China Domain Name Promotion Alliance, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and others.

While China offers tremendous opportunities, it also presents many challenges for a foreign company. Founded in 2008, Zodiac has accumulated unique experiences and broad contacts in China. Zodiac's China Advisory Services look forward to work with new gTLD applicants to exploit the China domain name market.

For more information, please contact advisory@zodiacregistry.com

Launched as the Professional Web at the ICANN Meeting in Toronto, .PW is a new namespace operated by the Directi Group and is meant for professionals around the world looking for first-choice domain names to establish their online identity at an affordable price point. The Registry received more than 4000 orders within 30 minutes of the General Availability launch.

"The internet space is getting cramped with thousands of new users going online every day. Distinguishing your online identity from this crowd is getting harder. With com, net, org and other major TLDs running out of quality domain names, .PW provides customers with short, generic and first-choice domain names to stand out from the rest of the crowd", said Bhavin Turakhia, Founder and CEO of the Directi Group.

The extended Sunrise period saw many Fortune 500 brands like Apple, Pfizer, Volkswagen and Nokia securing their trademarks in the .PW namespace. Similarly, the Landrush phase attracted a lot of interests from domainers with more than 8000 quality names being released from the reserve list.

"We thank all our Registrar partners for the support, as .PW is now available to more than 25 million customers worldwide through them", added Mr. Turakhia.

.PW domain names can only be registered via their list of accredited registrars which includes industry stalwarts such as eNom, Network Solutions, Register.com, InterNetX, Key-Systems, Name.com, ResellerClub, Domain Monster and many more.

Zodiac Holdings Limited ("Zodiac") is hosting a seminar on "Domain Name Market in China” during ICANN 46th meeting in Beijing:

When: Sunday April 7, 2013, 09:00 - 12:00
Where: Beijing International Hotel, Grand BallRoom
Who should attend: new gTLD applicants, ICANN accredited registrars, general ICANN participants interested in China domain name market

China has the largest Internet population in the world, estimated to be around 560 million. China is also the second largest world economy with a GDP of US$8,300 billion. Over 50 million companies are registered in China. In contrast, there are merely 13 million domain names.

According to Verisign's Dec 2012 Domain Name Market brief, the ccTLD for China (.CN) has the highest quarter-to-quarter growth of 43%, much higher than the average of 4%. It is not surprising that China has the most number of new gTLD applications in Asia.

Regardless whether you are a registry or a registrar, one cannot ignore the potential market opportunities China has to offer. We invite you to join us to hear from experts and learn more about the general landscape, regulations as well as opportunities and challenges of the domain name industry in China.

Agenda:

1. 09:00 – 09:15  Opening, Welcome Speech, by James Seng, Zodiac Holdings Limited
2. 09:15 – 09:45  General landscape and recent development in China, by Sun Yong Ge, Internet Society of China
3. 09:45 – 10:00  Introduction to the Chinese domain name eco-system by Cao Hua Ping, China Domain Name Promotion Alliance
4. 10:00 – 10:30  Analysis of the Chinese domain name market by Liu Yue, China Academy of Telecom Research (CATR) of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT)
5. 10:30 – 11:00  Coffee break
6. 11:00 – 11:30  China's legal framework and regulations for domain name industry by Prof Hong Xue, Beijing Normal University
7. 11:30 – 12:00  Chinese domain name dispute resolution practice by Dr. Li Hu, China Internatonal Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission

Please register early! You may also RSVP via email to event@zodiacregistry.com.

Vertical Integration Solution for New gTLDs
LogicBoxes provides a suite of services for every New gTLD Applicant; from ICANN Accreditation Consultancy to the world’s most complete Registrar Automation Platform backed by access to a Distribution Network of over 100+ Registrars and 100,000+ Resellers. Learn More

The solution is meant for those New gTLD operators that wish to set-up a Registrar subsidiary to distribute their TLDs to resellers, end-customers or internal users, without depending exclusively on existing Registrars.

"The electric fence that divided registry and registrar operations since 1999 has been torn down. gTLDs will soon out-number the active Registrars but their shelf space will be very limited. Incumbent Registrars will not be able to focus on all gTLDs as they do today. New gTLD operators need to plan their distribution strategy and evaluate the need to setup a registrar subsidiary" said Sandeep Ramchandani, Business Head of LogicBoxes.

The solution consists of a comprehensive package which offers consultancy to take New gTLD bidders through the ICANN Registrar Accreditation process, front-end and back-end registrar software set-up (using OrderBox), process and compliance management (to ensure that all clients are prepared to manage Registrar functions), and even includes white-labeled end-customer support. Once integrated, all New gTLD clients will be in an advantageous position to channel their string to LogicBoxes' existing base of 100+ Registrars and 100,000+ Resellers. You can find more information on LogicBoxes' latest New gTLD offering on their website.

About LogicBoxes

LogicBoxes is a Technology & Consultancy Company providing Business Solutions exclusively to the large players of the Web Products & Services Industry — including New gTLD Applicants, ICANN Registrars, Domain Registries, Large Web Hosts and Domain Resellers. LogicBoxes is the world's premiere ICANN Accreditation Consultancy provider. Over 20% of the world's ICANN Accredited Registrars have been accredited through the LogicBoxes Consultancy Service. Additionally, LogicBoxes also offers a renowned turnkey SaaS platform - OrderBox, which provides end-to-end business automation to clients. LogicBoxes currently powers over 7 Million domains across the world through an extensive network of over 100+ registrars and 100,000+ resellers. 


The .PW Landrush is a unique opportunity where several premium domains including savings.pw, properties.pw, credits.pw, designers.pw and many more including 2-3 character names are available at non-premium rates. Last week, the Registry announced its partnership with industry giants like Network Solutions and Register.com, Web.com brands.

"There are some really great names that we've released from the reserve list, specifically for Landrush. This is a great opportunity for start-ups, business owners and professionals to buy the name they always wanted, at a very reasonable price. We've even put up a list of our top picks”, added Ramchandani.

The Registry also recently announced the sale of "p.pw" and "w.pw" for $8,000 each, in a private transaction to a hosting company. .PW will enter the General Availability phase from March 25, 2013 with 110 registrars including eNom, Network Solutions, Register.com, InterNetX, Key-Systems, Name.com, ResellerClub, Hostinger.com and Domain Monster.

About Directi:
With over a decade in the internet industry, Directi is a $350m+ group of businesses, providing various web products and services to millions of global users. Directi businesses include ResellerClub, LogicBoxes, BigRock, Skenzo, Media.net and Radix Registry. Over 1000 employee strong, Directi currently has 5 offices across 4 countries. Directi businesses rank amongst the fastest growing businesses worldwide in their corresponding industry segments. For more information, visit http://directi.com

• Established brands need to focus on enhancing customer experience in a new .brand world; and

• New gTLD businesses or registries will find security/stability to be critical for gaining public trust and connecting with representative communities.

Big Brand Decision Making Case Study – CITIBANK (.citi)

Mr. Louis Cohen, Citibank SVP of Internet and Digital Marketing, identified the critical questions that informed Citibank's decision making. The first question was "what extensions might be relevant?" Because Citibank has a wide scope of financial products/services, the Citibank team came up with hundreds of potential strings to consider, including .fin, .bank, .mortgage, .citibank, .creditcard etc. Next, Citibank considered how it might use a new string, and whether that use would enhance Citibank's customers' experience. Lastly, Citibank looked at whether its competitors would gain an advantage by pursuing certain strings and whether there were any "risks" to the Citibank brands. According to Mr. Cohen, Citibank "spent months" thinking through these questions.

Ultimately, the value proposition for Citibank, according to Mr. Cohen, was to work toward creating a better consumer experience. The result will be taking Citibank's very large/diverse digital footprint and consolidating it into one .citi footprint that will be simpler for consumers and easier to protect from a security standpoint. "Citbank sees opportunity in consolidating its digital footprint into something only we can control" and will allow it to unite its global internet presence "making it easier across the board", stated Mr. Cohen.

Mr. Cohen noted that Citibank would still be active in the .com/.net world and that it would have considerable work to do on the SEO front in order to make sure it adapts its content to be searchable in a New gTLD world and an increasingly "mobile first environment." Citibank is also considering the possibility of giving its customers their own .citi email address and contemplating how to treat 2nd level domains in a .citi TLD.

Donuts – A Data Driven Process

Mr. Richard Tindal, COO of Donuts, also spoke at the Congress and discussed the evolution of Donuts and its business plan. Donuts has garnered a lot of press because it applied for 307 New gTLD strings.

Mr. Tindal explained that the Donuts process of picking strings was "intensely data driven." They considered terms which scored high in tests gauging factors such as longevity, usage, rate of entry, potential for conflict with existing brands etc. Donuts has created a proprietary algorithm to consider all these factors.

Mr. Tindal stated that Donuts views its business as being similar to a "content agnostic" Internet Service Provider that would offer consumers "great domains" in interesting spaces and that Donuts planned to implement trademark/brand protections beyond those required by ICANN.

Overall, Mr. Tindal estimated that Donuts would likely end up owning over 200 of the 307 gTLD strings it applied for.

Innovation in the New gTLDs

The final panel of the Congress focused on innovation and the future of the New gTLD space. Mr. Roland LaPlante, SVP and CMO at Afilias, Mr. Hal Bailey, Strategic Partner Manager at Google and Mr. Tim Switzer, CFO and COO of DotGreen, all spoke on the issue.

The panel first discussed the existing challenges to the New gTLD system. Mr. LaPlante offered that the biggest challenges would be government interference and attempts "to control the [Internet's] naming system" as well as how ICANN and consumers respond when TLDs fail or are decommissioned. He wondered how this type of "shock" to the DNS system might affect Internet stability.

From Google's perspective, Mr. Bailey explained that "consumer confusion" was a huge issue because the general public "doesn't know and doesn't care" about New gTLDs, and that it will confuse people and require a transition for users over a "consumer confidence" barrier, which he believes can be made rapidly.

On the ICANN side, Mr. Switzer of DotGreen explained that many of the details regarding New gTLDs are "still in play," including important issues like the registry agreements. These would need to be resolved quickly in order for ICANN to meet its deadlines and will be important topics at the upcoming ICANN meeting in Beijing. He also noted that DotGreen has taken a hands-on approach to its involvement with the relevant "green" community by working with green organizations in local communities and creating "green" partnerships. This type of interaction will be an important part of making sure that DotGreen (and other gTLDs) connect with consumers.

The panel also discussed the future of the DNS system in a New gTLD world. Mr. LaPlante cited unpublished research commissioned by Afilias (to gauge potential consumer attitudes and behaviors) which seem to indicate a positive reception for New TLDs:

• 78% of consumers are unaware of New TLDs
• 39% of consumers would likely trust a .brand TLD
• 28% of consumers less likely to trust a .brand TLD
• 48% of consumers believe .brand security would be better than generic TLD
• 37% of consumers believe not having a .brand shows lagging behind competitors

Lastly, the panel agreed with Mr Bailey's assessment that there would be "a very large upward swing in technology over the next few years" and that the New gTLD system could bring innovation and fresh ideas to businesses.

Written by David Mitnick, President DomainSkate LLC

.PW, the Professional, Web has partnered with industry giants like eNom, Key-Systems, ResellerClub, Gandi, Name.com, Ascio and many more. With 100 registrars aggressively promoting the namespace, .PW is expected to attract a large volume of first-time domain name registrants.

"Many SMBs with whom we work look for a short and memorable name, which just is not available in .COM" said Jennifer Standiford, Director of Policy at Web.com. ".PW's abundant availability of first-choice names will make it a prime alternative."

"We're excited to partner with Industry veterans like Network Solutions, Register.com and the Web.com Group. With many of the world's top wholesale and retail registrars on board, we now have a perfectly balanced distribution channel to take .PW mainstream," said Sandeep Ramchandani, Business Head of .PW.

Web.com will start offering .PW from the General Availability phase which starts on 25th March. PW is currently in the Landrush phase where multiple premium domain names like café.pw, pubs.pw, homeloans.pw and many more (http://registry.pw/premium-landrush-domains/) are available at non-premium rates.

About Directi:
With over a decade in the internet industry, Directi is a $350m+ group of businesses, providing various web products and services to millions of global users. Directi businesses include ResellerClub, LogicBoxes, BigRock, Skenzo, Media.net and Radix Registry. Directi businesses rank amongst the fastest growing businesses worldwide in their corresponding industry segments. For more information, visit http://www.directi.com.

About Web.com:
Web.com is dedicated to providing everything a small business needs to succeed online through their network of brands like Network Solutions, Register.com,1ShoppingCart.com, Renovation Experts, LogoYes and Solid Cactus. For more information, visit http://www.web.com/.