gTLD	Full Legal Name	E-mail suffix	Detail
.shia	Asia Green IT System Bilgisayar San. ve Tic. Ltd. Sti.	gmail.com	View

Islam and Muslims:
Islam is the monotheistic religion articulated by the Qurʹan (a text considered by its adherents to be the verbatim word of God) and by the teachings and normative example (called the Sunnah and composed of Hadith) of Muhammad - considered by them to be the last prophet of God. An adherent of Islam is called a Muslim.
Islam is a verbal noun originating from the triliteral root s-l-m which forms a large class of words mostly relating to concepts of wholeness, completion and bonding⁄joining. In a religious context it means ʺvoluntary submission to Godʺ. Muslim, the word for an adherent of Islam, is the active participle of the same verb of which Islām is the infinitive. Believers demonstrate submission to God by serving God and following his commands, and rejecting polytheism. The word sometimes has distinct connotations in its various occurrences in the Qurʹan. In some verses (ayat), there is stress on the quality of Islam as an internal conviction: ʺWhomsoever God desires to guide, He expands his breast to Islam.ʺ Other verses connect islām and dīn (usually translated as ʺreligionʺ): ʺToday, I have perfected your religion (dīn) for you; I have completed My blessing upon you; I have approved Islam for your religion.ʺ Still others describe Islam as an action of returning to God—more than just a verbal affirmation of faith. Another technical meaning in Islamic thought is as one part of a triad of Islam, imān (faith), and ihsān (excellence) where it represents acts of service (`ibādah) and Islamic law (sharia). Regardless of personal interpretation of the word, one thread remains continually true; Islam is a word that commands an unparalleled sense of devotion – and level of affinity - amongst Muslims. It denotes not only a religion, but an enormously proud community – and members within that community strongly associate who they are with the word Islam.
Muslims maintain that previous messages and revelations have been partially changed or corrupted over time, but consider the Qurʹan to be both the unaltered and the final revelation of God— his Final Testament.
Most Muslims will accept anyone who has publicly pronounced the Shahadah (declaration of faith) which states, ʺI testify that there is no god except for the God [Allah], and I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of the Godʺ, as a Muslim. Their basic religious practices are enumerated in the Five Pillars of Islam, which are basic concepts and obligatory acts of worship, and following Islamic law, which touches on virtually every aspect of life and society, providing guidance on multifarious topics from banking and welfare, to warfare and the environment. These consist of daily prayers (salat), fasting during Ramadan (sawm), almsgiving (zakat), and the pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj) at least once in a lifetime.
Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable and the purpose of their existence is to love and serve God. Muslims also believe that Islam is the complete and universal version of a primordial faith that was revealed at many times and places before, including through Abraham, Moses and Jesus, whom they consider prophets.
A comprehensive demographic study undertaken in 2009, which examined 232 countries and territories, reported that 23% of the global population, or 1.57 billion people at that time, considered themselves to be Muslims. This number is inevitably larger today. According to the study, there are approximately 50 countries worldwide where the majority of citizens are Muslim. It also found that Arabs account for around 20% of all Muslims worldwide. Between 1900 and 1970 the global Muslim community grew from 200 million to 551 million; between 1970 and 2009 Muslim population increased more than threefold, to 1.57 billion.
The study established that the majority of Muslims live in Asia and Africa. Approximately 62% of the worldʹs Muslims live in Asia, with over 683 million adherents in Indonesia, Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh. In the Middle East, non-Arab countries such as Turkey and Iran are the largest Muslim-majority countries; in Africa, Egypt and Nigeria have the most populous Muslim communities. About 13% of Muslims live in Indonesia, the largest Muslim country, 25% in South Asia, 20% in the Middle East, 2% in Central Asia, 4% in the remaining South East Asian countries, and 15% in Sub-Saharan Africa. Sizable communities are also found in Russia and parts of Europe.
Most estimates indicate that the Peopleʹs Republic of China has approximately 20 to 30 million Muslims (1.5% to 2% of the population). However, data provided by the San Diego State Universityʹs International Population Center to U.S. News & World Report suggests that China has 65.3 million Muslims. Islam is the second largest religion after Christianity in many European countries, and is slowly catching up to that status in the Americas, with reportedly somewhere between 2,454,000 (according to Pew Forum) and approximately 7 million Muslims, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), in the United States.

Shia Muslim Community:
Of this extensive Muslim population, it is estimated 10–20% belong to the Shia sect. As such, Shia Islam is the religions’ second largest denomination (or sect). In a 2009 study, it was found that Shia followers may number in excess of 200 million. Countries in which the Shia sect represents the majority of Muslim citizens include Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan and Bahrain. Shias also constitute 36.3% of entire local population and 38.6% of the local Muslim population of the Middle East. Shia Muslims also constitute over 35% of the population in Lebanon, over 45% of the population in Yemen, 20-40% of the population in Kuwait, over 20% in Turkey, 10–20% of the population in Pakistan, and 10-19% of Afghanistanʹs population.
Like other schools of thought in Islam, Shia Islam is based on the teachings of the Quran and the message of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In contrast to other schools of thought, Shias believe that only God has the right to choose a representative to safeguard Islam, the Quran and sharia (based upon verses in the Quran which stipulate this according to Shias). For this reason, Shias look to Ali, whom they consider divinely appointed, as the rightful successor to Muhammad, and the first imam. Shias believe that there are numerous narrations where Muhammad selected Ali as his successor.
Shias believe that Muhammadʹs family, the Ahl al-Bayt (ʺthe People of the Houseʺ), and certain individuals among his descendants, who are known as Imams, have special spiritual and political authority over the community. Therefore, Shias prefer hadiths attributed to the Ahl al-Bayt and close associates, and have their own separate collection of hadiths. All Shias agree on the succession of Hassan and Hussein after Ali, but they may differ after Hussein. Hassan and Hussein are described by Shias as ʺleaders of all youths in Paradiseʺ, and believe that these sons of Ali were the true leaders and caliphs of the Muslims. Shias regard Ali as the successor of Muhammad not only ruling over the community in justice, but also interpreting Islamic practices and their esoteric meaning. Hence he was regarded as being free from error and sin (infallible), and appointed by divine decree of God (nass) to be the first Imam. Ali is known as ʺperfect manʺ (al-insan al-kamil) similar to Muhammad, according to Shia viewpoint.
Shias believe strongly in their interpretation of the Islamic faith, and thus feel a prodigious sense of association between their belief and who they are as a people – and an affinity with fellow believers. The .SHIA gTLD will thus allow these disparate but related peoples--connected through their religion and beliefs--to unite online as a full and robust community, enjoying the connection and exchange of information empowered by faith, and community in beliefs.

gTLD	Full Legal Name	E-mail suffix	Detail
.LLC	Dot Registry LLC	hotmail.com	View

DOT Registry plans to serve the Community of Registered Limited Liability Companies. Members of the community are defined as businesses registered as limited liability companies with the United States or its territories. Limited Liability Companies or (LLC’s) as they are commonly abbreviated, represent one of the most popular business entity structures in the US. LLCʹs commonly participate in acts of commerce, public services, and product creation.

Limited Liability Companies (LLC) are a relatively new business structure for the United States, the first LLC was validated in the state of Wyoming in 1977 and in 1996 the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws adopted the Uniform Limited Liability Company Act; providing for both the definition of an LLC and the governmental standards under which an LLC may be formed. It was through the Uniform Limited Liability Company Act that a standard set of policies were created to define, validate, and monitor the operations of LLC’s, thus creating a unique and accountable business community in the United States.

An LLC is defined as a flexible form of enterprise that blends elements of partnership and corporate structures. It is a legal form of company that provides limited liability to its owners in the vast majority of United States jurisdictions. LLC’s are a unique entity type because they are considered a hybrid, having certain characteristics of both a corporation and a partnership or sole proprietorship. LLC’s are closely related to corporations in the sense that they participate in similar activities and provide limited liability to their partners. Additionally, LLC’s share a key characteristic with partnerships through the availability of pass-through income taxation. LLC’s are a more flexibile entity type than a corporation and are often well suited for businesses owned by a single owner.

Common advantages to forming an LLC include:

1) Flexibility in tax reporting, LLC’s may choose if they would like to be taxed as a sole proprietorship, partnership, S Corporation, or C Corporation. This is the only business entity form in the United States that allows for taxation flexibility.
2) LLC’s have much less administrative paperwork and reporting requirements then corporations.
3) Unless the LLC elects to be taxed as a C Corp, LLC’s enjoy pass through taxation.
4) Limited liability, meaning that owners of an LLC, called “members” are protected from some or all liability acts and debts of the LLC.

LLC’s have become increasingly popular in the United States because their formation provides owners with the protection of a corporation and the flexibility of a partnership.

With the number of registered LLC’s in the United States totaling over five million in 2010 (as reported by the International Association of Commercial Administrators) it is hard for the average consumer to not conduct business with an LLC (popular LLC’s in the United States include: AOL and BMW). Through the creation of DOT Registry’s .LLC string, consumers can quickly validate that they are working with a member of the Community of Registered Limited Liability Companies, providing consumers with brand reassurance and peace of mind. DOT Registry believes that it is essential to identify limited liability companies online in order to expand on their creditability and further highlight their privilege to conduct business in the US. Proper representation of this community would allow consumers to make educated choices in choosing businesses to patronize and support.
LLCʹs can be formed through any jurisdiction of the United States. Therefore members of this community exist in all 50 US states and its territories. LLC formation guidelines are dictated by state law and can vary based on each state’s regulations. Persons form an LLC by filing required documents with the appropriate state authority, usually the Secretary of State. Most states require the filing of Articles of Organization. These are considered public documents and are similar to articles of incorporation, which establish a corporation as a legal entity. At minimum, the articles of organization give a brief description of the intended business purposes, the registered agent, and registered business address.
LLC’s are expected to conduct business in conjunction with the policies of the state in which they are formed, and the Secretary of State periodically evaluates a LLC’s level of good standing based on their commercial interactions with both the state and consumers. DOT Registry or its designated agents would verify membership to the Community of Registered Limited Liability Companies by collecting data on each Registrant and cross-referencing the information with their applicable registration state. In order to maintain the reputation of the “.LLC” string and accurately delineate the member to consumers, Registrants would only be awarded a domain that accurately represents their registered legal business name. Additionally, DOT Registry will not allow blind registrations or registration by proxy, therefore DOT Registry’s WHOIS service will tie directly back to each member’s state registration information and will be publicly available in order to provide complete transparency for consumers.
Entities are required to comply with formation practices in order to receive the right to conduct business in the US. Once formed an LLC must be properly maintained. LLC’s are expected to comply with state regulations, submit annual filings, and pay specific taxes and fees. Should an LLC fail to comply with state statutes it could result in involuntary dissolution by the state in addition to imposed penalties, taxes and fees.
While state statutes vary, the majority of states have adopted the following guidelines in regards to the formation of LLC’s:

(1) The name of each limited liability company must contain the words ʺLimited Liability Companyʺ or the abbreviation ʺL.L.C.ʺ or the designation ʺLLCʺ.

(2) In order to form a limited liability company, one or more authorized persons must execute the Articles of Organization. Which shall contain: the name of the limited liability company; the address of the registered office and the name and address of the registered agent for service of process required to be maintained; and any other matters the members determine to include therein.
(3) A Limited Liability Company may be organized to conduct or promote any lawful business or purposes, except as may otherwise be provided by the Constitution or other law of this State.
All entities bearing the abbreviation LLC in their business name create the assumption that they have been awarded the privileges associated to that title such as: the ability to conduct commerce transactions within US borders or territories, the ability to market products, solicit consumers and provide reputable services in exchange for monetary values, and finally to provide jobs or employment incentives to other citizens.
Membership in the Community of Registered Limited Liability Companies is established through your business entity registration. In order to maintain your membership to this community you must remain an “Active” member of the community. Active” in this context can be defined as any LLC registered with a Secretary of State in the United States and its territories, that is determined to be authorized to conduct business within that State at the time of their registration. Registrant’s “Active” status will be verified on an annual basis as described above in question 18 in order to ensure the reputation and validity of the “.LLC” gTLD.
Since LLC’s are not currently delineated on the Internet, the creation of this string would mark a unique advancement in consumer security and confidence in the United States. Essentially, this will create the first ever, clear delineator for the Community of Registered Limited Liability Companies.