Version 3 of Draft Applicant Guidebook ("DAG") and Trademark Protection
Measures: Where to Next?

Comment Period Closes: 22nd November 2009

The latest draft of the Applicant Guidebook ("DAG") that describes the
process of applying for new generic top-level domains (gTLDs) is open
for public comment.

A part of the guidebook relates to the protection of trademarks in the
new gTLD process; like other elements of the new gTLD programme, the
process is open for public comment and specific trademark protection
mechanisms are still to be decided upon by the Board.

After receiving trademark protection recommendations from the
Implementation Recommendation Team and others, taking extensive comment
and conducting consultation with the broad community, ICANN has drafted
a set of implementation recommendations related to intellectual property
protections for the new gTLD program. Additional rights protections
included in the Guidebook are:

* The requirement to maintain a "thick" Whois database, and
* The specification of a post-delegation dispute procedure so that
trademark holders can lodge complaints of abusive behavior against
registries when merited.

For other proposed rights protection mechanisms, the Board is providing
the Generic Names Supporting Organization (the policy organization in
ICANN that developed the new gTLDs policy) with the opportunity to offer
focused input on this specific area of the proposed implementation plan
that is being published now. Those proposed rights protection mechanisms
are:

* The creation of an IP Clearinghouse, which is a database of validated
trademarks to be utilized by new gTLD registry operators in implementing
either an IP Claims service or Sunrise process during TLD launch; and
* The creation of a Uniform Rapid Suspension process for use in
clear-cut, blatant cases of trademark infringement.

The community at-large may also comment on these specific issues, and of
course, any other new gTLD issues through comment fora found on the new
gTLD pages at http://www.icann.org/en/topics/new-gtlds/comments-3-en.htm.

The public comment period on these trademark protection solutions will
be open until 22 November 2009, alongside the public comment period for
the entire v3 of the DAG.

Please see
http://www.icann.org/en/topics/new-gtlds/gnso-consultations-reports-en.htm
for more information.
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Regards,

*ICANN At-Large Staff*

Nick Ashton-Hart, Heidi Ullrich, Matthias Langenegger, Gisella Gruber-White

staff@atlarge.icann.org

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