I just read in The Vancouver Sun this morning that one of the most radical shakeups of domain names in 40 years was approved for implementation yesterday at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers AGM in Paris (June 26th, 2008).
According to the Vancouver Sun, Internet regulators voted to allow the creation of thousands of new Web domain names, from .paris to .Pepsi. The overhaul is expected to radically change the way users navigate the Internet and has implications for business and consumers. (I’d say so!)
ICANN is working towards accepting the first applications for new domain suffix’s in the second quarter of 2009. The web’s 1.9 billion users would be able to buy an unlimited number of generic addresses based on common words, brands or company names, cities or proper names. ICANN is not “selling” new top level domain names. There will be a limited application period where any established entity from anywhere in the world can submit an application that will go through an evaluation process. Trademarks will not be automatically reserved. But there will be an objection-based mechanism for trademark owners where their arguments for protection will be considered.
Domain names could be in non-roman alphabets like Arabic, Mandarin or Cyrillic. They will probably also come about for broad product groupings like .car or .bank while the pornography industry is seeking the ever lucrative .xxx (they’ve been hoping for this for a while!)
Ebay is one of the many companies in support of this change. The popular online trading site wants its own domain. Also, countries like Germany are hoping for capital domains like .berlin or .nyc for New York City.
Imagine the possibilities! Say goodbye to the good ol’ .com and .ca days. We’re moving on to .canada, .vancouver .bc. Hmm… but what happens when States would like theirs? L.A. doesn’t want to be left behind and has already made a deal with the country of Loas concerning their .LA domain name.
About ICANN:
ICANN is responsible for the global coordination of the Internet’s system of unique identifiers like domain names (like .org, .museum and country codes like .uk) and the addresses used in a variety of Internet protocols that help computers reach each other over the Internet. Careful management of these resources is vital to the Internet’s operation, so ICANN’s global stakeholders meet regularly to develop policies that ensure the Internet’s ongoing security and stability. ICANN is an internationally organized, public benefit non-profit company. For more information please visit: www.icann.org.
Tags: .CANADA, Domain Names, Domains, ICANN, Internet Domain Names, Vancouver Sun
