Re: [IFWP] Re: Trademark Enforcement at the TLD Level. WAS Re: alternate rootzone

[Roeland M.J. Meyer]

At 04:10 PM 3/1/99 -0800, Einar Stefferud wrote:
>I think the best move for us to take is to just start using the
>Trademarking of Private and Prospective TLDs and be done with it.  It
>is a silly thing to try to use qas a hammer to get ICAN to back off.
>They do not listen to or respond to threats!  They react to real live
>action.  And since this nice TM avenue is just sitting there waiting
>to be used, lets just go for it!

It isn't either cheap or simple. It substantially raises the bar for TLD entry, from what ORSC espoused. This may, in fact, be a good thing, since it reduces the cyber-squatter scenario substantially. Remember that you were worried about that last year. Of those, of the ORSC, ready to use this avenue, only WEB and PER are so positioned (to my uncertain knowledge). MHSC is still building and proving infrastructure.

>Can we use the ORSC staging root so show that TLD names have in fact
>been put in commerce?

It would/could help, but it is not required. However, ORSC could set up a TLD registry whose product would be the ORSC root.zone. The process I outlined could be the exact process to be followed.

• Setup a private TLD
• Deploy a TLD root-server cluster to serve it.
• File a TLD charter with enforcement provisions and mechanisms.
• Apply for registered trademark with "intended use".
• Deploy a for-profit SLD registry.
• Deploy via ORSC staging-root
• File notification with the root.zone operators, of the new TM'd TLD. By court order if need be.
• Defend in court at every opportunity, under tm-law "due diligence" requirements.

There are a few holes in the plan. But they are business issues, not legal ones. If anyone else tries to deploy that TLD, they get marched into FEDERAL court (Note that ICANN is under California State jurisdiction, Federal jurisdiction supercedes) and lose (IANAL).

The problem with this is that, if the root-server operator (ICANN, DOC/NTIA, or whomever) is resistant to entering the new TLD into the roots, it risks fragmenting the Internet. We will have multiple roots until the courts sort it out. IMHO, eventually the root-server operator will be forced to insert the new TLD. This is the Internet version of all out war. Did I say this was not my personal preference?

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Roeland M.J. Meyer -

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