domain name news - 31 May

[David Goldstein <goldstein_david@yahoo.com.au>]

Don't forget to check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/ for a more recent edition of the complete domain news, including an RSS feed - already online! Headlines for the most recent news include:


ICANN wants your comments on the Registry Failure Report | Building
Towards a Comprehensive Registry Failover Plan | ICANN Moves Forward
Towards Introduction Of Internationalized Top Level Labels in the DNS |
Security Through Obscurity as an Institution by Kurtis Lindqvist (on
.bank proposal) | ENUM service launches in Ireland



The domain name news is supported by auDA.

And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for regular updates in between postings.


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Sponsored by the Singapore Internet Research Centre 
http://www.ntu.edu.sg/sci/sirc/

Sponsored by EuroDNS and AsiaDNS - for your domain name registration
http://www.eurodns.com/
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Cameroon strikes it rich on the internet with .cm TLD - an unexpected source of revenue
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article1855377.ece

GoDaddy picks up domains of struggling competitor (IDG)
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/05/29/GoDaddy-picks-up-domains-of-struggling-competitor_1.html

RegisterFly held in contempt of court as injunction is made permanent
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/28/registerfly_icann_injunction_contempt/

VeriSign replaces CEO Sclavos (IDG)
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/05/29/VeriSign-replaces-CEO-Sclavos_1.html

Legal Issues About Trademarks And Domain Names
http://www.upublish.info/Article/Legal-issues-about-Trademarks-and-Domain-Names/17240

Cyberattack in Estonia--what it really means
http://news.com.com/2008-7349_3-6186751.html

Phishing URLs skyrocket: Cybercrooks try to overwhelm browser blacklists by multiplying malicious addresses
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9021641

Book Reviews: Sex.com
http://techworld.com/applications/features/index.cfm?featureid=3416
http://www.newswireless.net/index.cfm/article/3402


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RESEARCH PAPERS
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Development of a Self Enforceable Online Arbitration System Is the Key To Effective Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) by Jaynefrances Nabawanuka (University of Cape Town Lawspace)
This research dissertation looks at online dispute resolution. In part it looks at ICANN’s UDRP programme and notes it "has been successful because of ICANN’s advantage of being able to enforce the arbitral award by canceling or transferring domain name registrations. Although the UDRP does not produce decisions that are binding and enforceable by operation of law, it produces decisions that are binding and enforceable through technology- the decision is enforceable by the registrar, who is contractually bound to do so under the ICANN rules." The paper also looks at obstacles: "first the agreement to arbitrate, second the arbitration procedure, and finally the recognition and enforcement of the arbitral award. The process also faces obstacles that are outside the process like: the lack of consumer confidence in the process and consumer protection laws, lack of an ODR culture and limited connectivity."
http://lawspace.law.uct.ac.za:8080/dspace/handle/2165/295

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GOVERNANCE
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Informal consultation between ITU and civil society on the participation of all relevant stakeholders
An informal consultation between ITU and civil society on the participation of all relevant stakeholders, took place at ITU Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland on Friday May 18 2007. The meeting was opened by Dr Hamadoun TOURE, Secretary-General of ITU and Ms. Renate BLOEM, CONGO President, and it was chaired by Mr Thomas Schneider, BAKOM, Switzerland. This meeting was undertaken as part of the cluster of WSIS-related meetings in Geneva from 14-25 May 2007. Background documents, official contributions and meeting documents are all available.
http://www.itu.int/wsis/implementation/2007/civilsocietyconsultation/index.html

Kontrolle des Internet bleibt weiter ungeklärt by Wolfgang Kleinwächter
Wie die Konferenzen zur Informationsgesellschaft in Genf im Rahmen der WSIS-Agenda zeigten, bilden sich neue Koalitionen aus Regierungen, Zivilgesellschaft und Privatwirtschaft, aber nicht wenige Regierungen lauern darauf, Rechtfertigungen für eine stärkere nationale Kontrolle des Internet zu bekommen
http://www.heise.de/tp/r4/artikel/25/25398/1.html

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DOMAIN NAMES
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Cameroon strikes it rich on the internet with .cm TLD - an unexpected source of revenue
The Republic of Cameroon is blessed with many natural riches – among them copious quantities of coffee, cocoa and crude oil. To these more traditional sources of wealth the West African country has recently added a new income stream: the royalties from one of the most lucrative internet country codes in the world. Cameroon’s .cm suffix is a common mistyping of the most popular top level domain, .com, meaning that each day thousands of internet users searching for .com sites are directed Cameroonian web addresses which do not exist.
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article1855377.ece

GoDaddy picks up domains of struggling competitor (IDG)
GoDaddy.com will take over more than 850,000 domain names from RegisterFly, a company involved in a dispute regarding its rights to register names. GoDaddy.com will notify RegisterFly customers of the move and automatically switch their domains. RegisterFly customers that don't hear from GoDaddy.com can contact GoDaddy.com for support. 
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/05/29/GoDaddy-picks-up-domains-of-struggling-competitor_1.html
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2007/052907-godaddy-picks-up-domains-of.html
http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;946408338;fp;2;fpid;1

GoDaddy now RegisterFly's daddy, says ICANN
The RegisterFly clusterf**ck took a major step towards resolution today with the official announcement by ICANN that GoDaddy will take control of the approximately 850,000 domain names still in the clutches of RegisterFly CEO Kevin Medina. The internet rumors of a GoDaddy takeover turned out to be true, and Medina now can devote himself completely to fending off the angry public with whatever resources he has left.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/29/icann_registerfly_godaddy/

Go Daddy Assumes 850,000 RegisterFly Domains
Embattled registrar RegisterFly will transfer 850,000 domain names to GoDaddy.com, the world's largest domain registrar under an agreement brokered by ICANN, the parties announced today. The move will be welcome news to domain owners who have been unable to manage their names since RegisterFly collapsed into financial and management turmoil in February.
http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2007/05/29/go_daddy_assumes_850000_registerfly_domains.html
http://www.azcentral.com/community/scottsdale/articles/0529sr-godaddy0530-ON.html
http://www.dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=24725l

GoDaddy Agrees to Run Domains in Limbo (AP)
GoDaddy.com has agreed to take over and manage more than 850,000 domain names belonging to customers of a troubled rival, officials announced
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/05/30/1180205262395.html
http://www.siliconvalley.com/news/ci_6012574
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/INTERNET_NAMES

GoDaddy to Adopt 850K Orphaned Domains
ICANN has agreed to transfer about 850,000 domain names to GoDaddy from RegisterFly, a struggling rival. Several weeks ago, a Federal judge granted ICANN the right to eliminate RegisterFly's accreditation and to transfer domains away from the company.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/business/57591.html

ICANN Welcomes GoDaddy.com Takeover of RegisterFly Data
ICANN has welcomed today's GoDaddy.com announcement that it will take over the entire portfolio of more than 850,000 gTLD names held by RegisterFly. "The RegisterFly situation has been extremely difficult -- first and foremost for registrants, as well as for the entire registry and registrar community," said Dr Paul Twomey, ICANN's President and CEO.
http://icann.org/announcements/announcement-29may07.htm
http://blog.icann.org/?p=132

GoDaddy.com reaches agreement to help RegisterFly customers (news release)
GoDaddy.com reached an agreement with RegisterFly and ICANN to transfer over RegisterFly’s portfolio of Web site names to GoDaddy.com. The move will help resolve problems involving hundreds of thousands of domain names around the world.
https://www.godaddy.com/gdshop/news/release_view.asp?news%5Fitem%5Fid=94&app%5Fhdr=

RegisterFly held in contempt of court as injunction is made permanent
Could the RegisterFly mess be wrapping up at last? That appears to be the case, according to ICANN's blog. ICANN announced Friday that RegisterFly and CEO Kevin Medina have been held in contempt of court, and that the preliminary injunction issued by United States District Court Judge Manuel L. Real issued on April 26 had been made permanent. RegisterFly and Mr. Medina now have until June 1 to hand over all registrant data to ICANN for transfer to a new registrar, which is rumored to be GoDaddy.com.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/28/registerfly_icann_injunction_contempt/

VeriSign replaces CEO Sclavos (IDG)
VeriSign has replaced CEO Stratton Sclavos with a member of its board of directors. William Roper Jr., a former executive vice president and chief financial officer at Science Applications International, will take over as VeriSign's president and CEO, the company said in a press release. Roper has served on the company's board of directors since November 2003. 
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/05/29/VeriSign-replaces-CEO-Sclavos_1.html
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,132341-pg,1/article.html

VeriSign CEO suddenly resigns, stumping analysts (AP)
VeriSign said Tuesday that Chief Executive Stratton Sclavos has resigned for undisclosed reasons. Analysts were startled by the abrupt departure. The company gave little information about the reason for Sclavos departure after 12 years as CEO.
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/05/30/1180205290918.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18923563/

VeriSign's CEO Sclavos resigns
Stratton D. Sclavos, CEO and board member of digital infrastructure vendor VeriSign Inc., resigned from the company today. No reason was given for the resignation.
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9021678
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/30/verisign_sclavos_quits/
http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2007/05/29/verisigns-ceo-steps-down
http://news.com.com/2110-7350_3-6187078.html

VeriSign Board of Directors Elects William A. Roper, Jr. as Chief Executive Officer and Edward A. Mueller as Chairman (news release)
VeriSign announced that its Board of Directors has elected William A. Roper, Jr. as President and Chief Executive Officer. He has served as the Board’s lead independent Director and replaces Stratton D. Sclavos, who resigned from the company. The Board also elected Edward A. Mueller as Chairman of the Board.
http://www.verisign.com/press_releases/pr/page_042136.html

Legal Issues About Trademarks And Domain Names
Trade marks are a name or symbol that are used to distinguish the goods of services of a particular company from others. Similar to copyrights and other signs of intellectual property, the effects of the trademark system is territorial. This means, that each country has its own trademark system. A brand name like Machine Head may be owned by one person in the United Kingdom and by another, totally unrelated, person in the United States. ... The One In A Million company’s basis of argument was that domain name registrations were first come, first served”, thus, the trademark owners do not have any rights to the domain names. Based on the two actual court cases we can build up a clear picture about the interrelation of trademarks and domain names. In general, domains that have no trademark significance can be acquired by the entity who registered them first. Continuous use of this non-trademarked name will allow the holder to build a reputation on the name. When the situation
 is between to legitimate companies who have a right to the name then, as with the stipulation of most laws in most countries, the first person who registers will get the domain. However, a registrant to a domain that is also a subject of a trademark and who does not have any entitlements is going to be forbidden based on the laws of most countries.
http://www.upublish.info/Article/Legal-issues-about-Trademarks-and-Domain-Names/17240

Cyberattack in Estonia--what it really means
When it comes to denial-of-service attacks, Jose Nazario has seen just about everything. As senior security researcher at Arbor Networks, Nazario closely monitors network attacks. A denial-of-service, or DoS, attack occurs when someone directs a large number of requests to a target URL so quickly that the Web server can't respond, and the site becomes inaccessible.
http://news.com.com/2008-7349_3-6186751.html
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-6187133.html

Phishing URLs skyrocket: Cybercrooks try to overwhelm browser blacklists by multiplying malicious addresses
The number of phishing Web URLs nearly tripled from March to April, a security group said, as cybercriminals returned to a late-2006 tactic designed to do an end run around browser-based antiphishing filters. In one month, the number of unique sites soared 166%, from 20,871 in March to 55,643 in April, said the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG), an association of more than 1,600 companies and government agencies.
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9021641
http://www.circleid.com/posts/phishing_urls_browser_blacklists/

au: Jobs.com.au - something is on the nose
Something stinks over at auDA with the recent purchase and transfer of the Jobs.com.au domain name. A whois on the domain shows it has been transferred to “Internet Marketing Australia”.  Some digging around showed this company is linked to (no doubt part of) the Boomerang.com.au “domain name monetisation” business.  i.e. those sites you go to in good faith and find google adwords or affiliate programs all over them.  Those bottom dwelling time wasting polluters of the internet.
http://blog.nowhiring.com.au/index.php/2007/05/26/jobscomau-something-is-on-the-nose/

IE Domain Registry Limited (IEDR) 2006 Financial Results
The IE Domain Registry (IEDR) reports that 2006 was a year of significant success delivering continued growth in customer numbers, reduced prices and an improved, faster service with further consolidation of financial performance. ... Strong new registration volume growth of 41%, net 30%, offset the impact of the price reduction, resulting in registration income only decreasing by 2%. ... Volume registration in early 2007 continues to grow strongly and is 27% ahead of the same period last year. In March 2007, registrations exceeded 2,700 in a month.
http://www.iedr.ie/NEWS/News-30May07.php

Update on the 2007 ICANN Nominating Committee
This is an update on the 2007 ICANN Nominating Committee (Nom Com). The Nom Com received 93 Statements of Interest from candidates worldwide during an open nomination period that ran from 1 February 2007 to 18 May 2007. 12 candidates are female, 81 are male.
http://icann.org/announcements/announcement-30may07.htm

SEX.COM - a story of an Internet villain. But is the villain Stephen Cohen? (book review)
OK, I'm going to let you in on some of the secrets of how the Internet was built. No? OK. So, let's see: It's about the American legal system and how it can crush innocent.... still not interested? How about the growth, and theft, of the pioneering porn site, SEX.COM ? Yes, web porn, the inside dope! - Ah, thought that might get your attention! OK, that's what Kieren McCarthy's book is about.
http://www.newswireless.net/index.cfm/article/3402

Book Review: Sex.com
There are two types of computer books: there are the instructional ones, and then there are the ones that are of such general interest that even non-techies will buy them. This is definitely the latter, but that's not to say that there's nothing of interest to techies. It might not give programming hacks or give detailed information as to how to set up security, but that doesn't render this valueless.
http://techworld.com/applications/features/index.cfm?featureid=3416

TRA to host APTLD meeting in Dubai
The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) is hosting and organising the Asia Pacific Top Level Domain Association (APTLD) Meeting', at Grand Hayatt Dubai, on June 3- 6, 2007.
http://khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=data/business/2007/May/business_May960.xml&section=business&col=

Defendant iREIT’s Answer in the Verizon Case by George Kirikos
Defendant iREIT filed its answer on May 25, 2007, to the recent complaint by Verizon alleging cybersquatting. As in the prior article, these are the public court documents and nothing has been proven by either side in a court of law. Hopefully the ICANN community can learn from these kinds of cases, as UDRP reform is discussed within the GNSO and at the Board level.
http://www.circleid.com/posts/ireit_answer_verizon_case/

3-Letter .Com Domain Draws $100,000 at Sedo in This Week's Top Sale 
Sedo.com sailed to the top of this week's Top 20 domain sales chart by handling a $100,000 deal for AMT.com.
http://dnjournal.com/archive/domainsales/2007/domainsales05-29-07.htm

Tire giant's trademark suit vs. Chelmsford man adds up to zero
Italian tire giant Pirelli & C. SpA was unsuccessful in its bid to take the domain name zero.us from Chelmsford domain name speculator Christian Zouzas.
http://boston.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/2007/05/28/story15.html

This ain't no cheap porn
Company pays $11.4 million for the domain name www.porn.com (Our reporters read the articles thoroughly to bring you this story.) They say that sex sells, and it would seem the dotcom industry wholeheartedly agrees with this sentiment. In a recent sale, the Web domain www.porn.com was bought in cash for a cool $US9.5 million (AUS$11.4 million). Or to put it another way, over 100,000 Playboy magazines.
http://www.pcworld.idg.com.au/index.php/id;1460784407;fp;2;fpid;2

Disputed Sunrise .INFO names to be released by the registry
Today is going to be a big day for all .info lovers. The drop includes names such as bank.info. If you remember back the .INFO sunrise period where trademark owners were allowed to process early domain registrations related to trademarks they own, you might remember the disaster it turned out to be.
http://www.domaineditorial.com/archives/2007/05/30/disputed-sunrise-info-names-to-be-released-by-the-registry/

.info premium drops not happening
It seems that the registry realized that they would lose out on a lot of money if they were to let today’s .info drop happen normally. Hence they decided to hold the drop. Now we just need to wait for the registry announcement about the premium .info auctions, .mobi style.
http://www.domaineditorial.com/archives/2007/05/30/info-premium-drops-not-happening/

Registration Opens for 2007 Domain Roundtable
Registration for Name Intelligence’s 2007 Domain Roundtable is now open. This year’s conference will again take place in Seattle but this year will be in Summer (August 13-15).
http://domainnamewire.com/2007/05/30/registration-opens-for-2007-domain-roundtable/

Single registry for .za domain names welcomed (sub req'd)
The .za Domain Name Authority (.zaDNA) and the Internet Society of SA (ISOC-ZA) have welcomed Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri's directive that SA should have a single registry model for .za domain names.
http://www.legalbrief.co.za/article.php?story=20070530075634974

Every good domain is taken. Here’s why.
Kevin Ham built a $300 million web company in Vancouver you’ve probably never heard of. You are likely familiar with his work as you drop vowels from the domain names of your favorite web startups such as Flickr or Tumblr, or try selecting a name for your new company or product.
http://agoravox.com/article.php3?id_article=6119

uk: Newsquest wins right to Banbury Cake web name
A company which registered a website named after the Banbury Cake has been ordered to transfer the domain name to the newspaper's owner, Newsquest.
http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/news/2007/online/070529ban.shtml

GoDaddy übernimmt RegisterFly-Domains
Wie die ICANN am Dienstag angekündigt hat, ist es der Internet-Adressverwaltung endlich gelungen, den mehrmonatigen Streit um den fragwürdigen Registrar RegisterFly zu lösen.
http://futurezone.orf.at/it/stories/196302/

VeriSign-CEO tritt zurück
Der langjährige CEO des Registry-Providers VeriSign, Stratton Sclavos, ist zurückgetreten. Wie das Unternehmen ohne Angabe von Hintergründen mitteilte, wird Sclavos durch den zum neuen CEO berufenen William A. Roper Jr. ersetzt. Roper war bisher Executive Vice President der regierungsnahen Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) und gehörte dem Aufsichtsrat VeriSigns seit 2003 an. SAIC war früher Muttergesellschaft von Network Solutions, der von VerSign aufgekauften .com-Registry. Neuer Aufsichtsratsvorsitzender wird Edward A. Mueller, der dem Gremium seit 2005 angehört.
http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/90342

"In Estland wurde der Cyber-Krieg getestet"
Der estnische Ministerpräsident Andrus Ansip hat gegenüber dem Berliner Tagesspiegel Vorwürfe erneuert, wonach Russland für die wochenlange Blockade von Webseiten der Regierungsbehörden in Estland verantwortlich sei. "In Estland wurde das Modell eines neuen Cyber-Krieges getestet", sagte Ansip dem Tagesspiegel (Mittwochs-Ausgabe). Zum ersten Mal überhaupt sei ein unabhängiger Staat solchen Internet-Angriffen ausgesetzt gewesen. Estland ist eines der am stärksten auf das Internet setzenden Länder der EU und Vorreiter beim E-Government.
http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/90340

Un registre pour le .ZA
Dans un communiqué publié le 18 mai 2007, le ministère de la communication d’Afrique du sud nomme la société DNA ZA, registre de l’extension nationale sud Africaine.
http://domainesinfo.fr/extension/1218/afrique-du-sud-un-registre-pour-le-za.php

200 nouveaux IDN pour le .SE
Le registre annonce l'ouverture du .SE à 200 nouveaux IDN liés aux langues minoritaires des pays nordiques.
http://domainesinfo.fr/extension/1219/suede-200-nouveaux-idn-pour-le-se.php

Bientôt un nouveau centre UDRP ?
La Cour d’Arbitrage Tchèque vient de soumettre sa candidature à l'ICANN pour devenir le 4e centre accrédité pour gérer les litiges UDRP. Une consultation publique a été lancée.
http://domainesinfo.fr/actualite/1216/bientot-un-nouveau-centre-udrp.php

Conclusiones del Foro Publico de LACNIC X (ii)
Resultados de las propuestas presentadas los días jueves 24 y viernes 25
http://www.latinoamericann.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=1492

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Check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/ for the most recent edition of the domain news, including an RSS feed - already online!

The domain name news is supported by auDA.

For information on subscriptions to the domain name and/or general internet news please contact me. For archives of postings to the list, see http://lists.technewsreview.com.au/pipermail/technewsreview/. Also see http://technewsreview.com.au/ for recent updates.

Sources include Quicklinks <http://qlinks.net/> and BNA Internet Law News <http://www.bna.com/ilaw/>.

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(c) David Goldstein 2007

 
--------- 
David Goldstein
 address: 4/3 Abbott Street
           COOGEE NSW 2034
           AUSTRALIA
 email: Goldstein_David @yahoo.com.au
 phone: +61 418 228 605 (mobile); +61 2 9665 5773 (home)
 
"Every time you use fossil fuels, you're adding to the problem. Every time you forgo fossil fuels, you're being part of the solution" - Dr Tim Flannery





      
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