| gTLD | Full Legal Name | E-mail suffix | Detail | | .微博 | Sina Corporation | staff.weibo.com | View |
How do you expect that your proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others?
SINA believes that the proposed .微博 gTLD has the potential to offer two clear benefits to Internet users and consumers:
-- .微博 can provide the unique and clear identifier in the gTLD space for the convenience of existing and future SINA and Weibo.com users whose main language used online is Chinese
-- .微博 will serve in consistency with the corresponding .WEIBO gTLD to offer a equivalent or higher level of user trust and confidence to SINA and Weibo.com as well as to the Internet in general
What is the goal of your proposed gTLD in terms of areas of specialty, service levels, or reputation?
As Internet and mobile technologies evolve, SINA continues to evaluate opportunities to distribute its products and services to its users in China and in the rest of the world. While SINA’s intention of filing this application is to proactively protect this ownership of the “WEIBO” and “微博” trademarks at the gTLD name space, and to provide a trusted and intuitive namespace for businesses and consumers that use Weibo.com services, it is also important to recognize that SINA continues to aim to become the media platform of choice for Internet users to research and retrieve information, share opinions and build social networks and for businesses to market and promote their products and services. The .微博 gTLD is planned to serve as a cornerstone of these goals.
What do you anticipate your proposed gTLD will add to the current space, in terms of competition, differentiation, or innovation?
SINA believes that the success of the .微博 TLD will not be measured and determined by the total number of domain name registered. The eligibility requirement of .微博 is designed to promote trust and reliability of this gTLD. Using this benchmark, SINA strives to build consumer recognition and confidence to the level of that can be found in the existing numerous ccTLDs where user validation & authentication and local presence requirement are needed. The potential innovation of this TLD, based on a standard domain registry ⁄ registration service as described in our replies to Question 23 to Question 44, will be delivered through the proven success of SINA ⁄ Weibo.com wide range of innovative and reliable services which has served more than 300 million users to this date.
As noted above, SINA is a leading online service provider that is completely relying upon emerging Internet technologies and domain name system to deliver services to its consumers both domestically and abroad. A .微博 gTLD shall elevate its existing market leadership to another level. However, any broader adoption of this competitive advantage will only be undertaken after SINA has confidence that the concerns of various government and law enforcement regarding ICANN’s new gTLD process are properly addressed to its satisfaction.
What goals does your proposed gTLD have in terms of user experience?
SINA believes that the .微博 gTLD will provide an enhanced experience for the hundreds of millions of consumers both domestically and internationally that use its online services. This will also provide increased confidence and predictability for new customers and partners as SINA continues to expand into other markets around the world as a leading online media and Internet services platform.
In addition to providing consumers with shorter, memorable, and intuitive domain names to help customer navigate the website, SINA envisions best in class safeguards to minimize any potential phishing, pharming, or spam that have plagued the customers of other internet portals or content providers.
SINA has proven track of record on collaboration with major record label companies (EMI, Warner Music, Sony Music, etc.) as well as worldwide movie studios for online streaming services. Hundreds of Chinese celebrities have actively use Weibo.com services with verified credentials. SINA strives for the protection of copyrights and the operation of .微博 TLD will continue to ensure that the users can enjoy high quality entertainment without worrying about potential copyright infringement on the Internet.
SINA will make sure that accurate and current domain name information is collected from the registrant readily available in connection with each .微博 domain name. If other individuals and or companies are eventually permitted to register domain names in the .微博 gTLD, SINA will re-evaluate its policies at that time to ensure that its policies are in compliance with adequate policies ⁄ best practices at that time.
As mentioned in 18(a), SINA understands that the usability and acceptance of IDN gTLD are still being enhanced, particularly in the software application areas where worldwide user may not be 100% satisfy with the overall IDN experience. Therefore the .微博 TLD will be introduced in a careful and commercially reasonable manner that user will be notified with limited functionality of the IDN.
Provide a complete description of the applicant’s intended registration policies in support of the goals listed above.
As documented in Section 18(a), during the Initial Period of operation, SINA is intending to restrict registration and use of domain names with the gTLD to limited number of eligible registrant. Because of this condition precedent, any registration and use requirements are more appropriately vested in these corporate⁄subsidiary agreements and not in a domain name registration agreement. SINA mark is a valuable brand whose protection is of paramount important, any registration and use (e.g. trademark quality control provisions) must vest in these other agreements.
Aside from these concerns, SINA will incorporate all required ICANN consensus policies and other legal⁄policy requirements imposed on new gTLD applicants into the terms and conditions of the domain name registration agreement. Based on ICANN Registry Agreement, SINA sets and enforces .微博 registration policies. General Registry Policies will be developed and made available prior to launch of TLD. Such policy decisions, based on ICANN Registry Agreement and relevant industry best practices, include but are not limited to:
• Registration eligibility requirements
• Which registrars may become accredited and sell domains
• Wholesale prices offered to registrars
• Reserved names
• Phased allocation (Sunrise, Landrush, etc.) of the domain space at the second and third levels
• Dispute policies
• Technical policies, including SRS security and access.
This .微博 (.xn--9krt00a) General Registry Policies pertain techno-operational policies in the following areas:
1. Domain Registrations (Domain Objects) and the .微博 Zone File
2. Domain Contacts (Contact Objects) and WHOIS Service
3. Dispute Resolution Policies
4. Obligations of Registered Name Holders
The General Registry Policies provides the framework for the general operations of the .微博 Registry. Other policies, such as the .微博 Eligibility, Reserved Name Policies, Sunrise Policies and other relevant policies are described separately in other documents published at the .微博 TLD registry Websites. Pricing and technical specifications are published for Accredited Registrars only and provided separately.
The .微博 TLD registry is committed to maintaining the integrity of the data within the .微博 Registry and to implement policies that deter infringements. The .微博 TLD Registry adopts the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) for facilitating the resolution of disputes over the registration and use of a second-level domain name registered under the .微博 Registry. All domain name registrations must submit to the mandatory proceedings commenced under UDRP, which is available for review at http:⁄⁄www.icann.org⁄dndr⁄udrp⁄policy.htm. Complaints under the UDRP should be submitted to an approved dispute-resolution service provider listed at http:⁄⁄www.icann.org⁄dndr⁄udrp⁄approved-providers.htm.
Beyond the UDRP, all domain registrations must also submit to proceedings commenced under formally adopted dispute policies as set forth by SINA from time to time and published on the .微博 TLD registry Website(s). Such dispute policies will take effect at the time they are announced on the .微博 TLD registry Website(s), with or without prior notice to registrars or registrants.
Such dispute policies may include for example, but not limited to, expedited processes for suspension of a domain name by claims sought by intellectual property right holders (URS), Internet engineering and security experts or other competent claimants in the purpose of upholding the stability, security and integrity of the .微博 Registry. Dispute policies may also include for example challenge processes adopted by the .微博 Registry for special programs when occurred.
Moreover, based upon SINA’s commitment and established track record in providing a safe eco-system for businesses and individuals, SINA intends to provide best in class safeguards that will evolve over time.
Will your proposed gTLD impose any measures for protecting the privacy or confidential information of registrants or users? If so, please describe any such measures
SINA will conform with section 1.8.6 of ICANN Registry Agreement:
Registry Operator will: 1) implement appropriate measures to avoid abuse of this feature (e.g., permitting access only to legitimate authorized users); and 2) ensure the feature is in compliance with any applicable privacy laws or policies.
Meanwhile, SINA recognizes that this is an evolving area of law in which there is no international standard, the measures for protecting the privacy and confidential information of registrants or users will be developed based on industry best practice such as Registrar Accreditation: Model Privacy Policy provided by ICANN (see http:⁄⁄www.icann.org⁄en⁄registrars⁄model-privacy-policy.htm)
SINA as a registry operator shall take reasonable steps to protect personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorized disclosure, alteration or destruction. SINA as a registry operator shall not use or authorize the use of personal data in a way that is incompatible with the notice provided to registrar(s) ⁄ registrant(s). Personal data shall refer to all data about any identified or identifiable natural person. SINA as a registry operator will not make commercial use of, or collect, traffic data regarding domain names or non-existent domain names for purposes such as the determination of the availability and health of the Internet, pinpointing specific points of failure, characterizing attacks and misconfigurations, identifying compromised networks and hosts, and promoting the sale of domain names.
Publicly available registrant information such as WHOIS service is intended only for query-based access. Specific WHOIS service access policy will be listed within the general registration policy .
Describe whether and in what ways outreach and communications will help to achieve your projected benefits.
As noted above, while SINA sees the potential for the .微博 gTLD to serve as a cornerstone for its future online strategic initiative, there are a number of unanswered questions concerning consumer recognition, security and stability, and broader industry adoption of new gTLDs within the marketplace that must be satisfactorily answered first. Once these concerns have been answered to SINA’s satisfaction, SINA is committed to making prominent use of the .微博 gTLDs in printed and online material as well as across its network of websites, affiliates, and partners. As of end of 2011, SINA currently spends over USD 135 million annually in sales and marketing. SINA is expecting to allocate resources on marketing and branding of .微博 TLD when appropriate.
| gTLD | Full Legal Name | E-mail suffix | Detail | | .xin | Elegant Leader Limited | hichina.com | View |
The Internet has become an important and integrated part of our daily life. The .XIN gTLD wishes to help establish a trusted and reliable gTLD, where the registry, registrar, and the registrant will collaborate and share responsibilities. Registrant will be notified and reminded frequently to maintain an adequate status of verification and validation towards to his or her .XIN gTLD. This approach will increase the likelihood of a trusted 2nd-level string, and provide accurate registrant information to meet operational and law enforcement needs. Registrant will be the main driving force to build trust and reputation for .XIN gTLD.
Every gTLD should have social responsibility by offering a secure and reliable namespace to the general. Elegant is willing to proactively promote and execute this fundamental principle so that user or visitor of .XIN will eventually enjoy the higher level of confidence on the Internet.
What is the goal of your proposed gTLD in terms of areas of specialty, service levels, or reputation?
We aim to build the .XIN gTLD registry as a trusted, reliable, and creditable third-party neutral entity for large companies, SMEs and individuals in China as well as in the world. With a phased roll-out approach we hope to establish the reputation of the .XIN gTLD in careful and conservative manner. With the committed and future resources we are confident to deliver the services for this trust-centric gTLD.
What do you anticipate your proposed gTLD will add to the current space, in terms of competition, differentiation, or innovation?
In early days of world wide web there was a popular saying that “On the Internet, nobody knows that you are a dog”. Although exaggerated, it somehow reflects the reality of lack of “trust” in the connected world. The .XIN wishes to fill up the gap and add value to the current space by utilizing the resources uniquely available to Elegant. For validation part, .XIN is in unique position that it can collaborate with Trustpass (confirmed) and other subsidiary companies of Alibaba Group (such as Taobao.com, and B-to-C online trading service; Alibaba.com, and B-to-B online trading service, etc; details to be finalized) to analyze past operational data such as merchant transaction records, merchant credit status, merchant reputation (or feedback), etc. These records will be shared without breaking the user privacy agreements and are available exclusively to Elegant internally.
.XIN gTLD will work with北京正智信息技術有限公司 (Beijing Zhengzhi Information Technology Co., Ltd.) and utilize merchant ID and personal ID systems made publicly available (or through service agreements if required) by the Chinese government authorities to allow verification of registrant’s identity. The access to these databases are limited to licensed vendor and proven track of business records and good reputation.
Every .XIN domain name will be validated and verified. The combination of private-public collaboration enables this mission. .XIN gTLD offers tremendous opportunity for not only for Elegant as a registry operator, but to the domain industry for greater commercial value by offering trusted and reliable gTLD product. Potentially, there are other desktop and mobile Internet applications which can be built on top of this gTLD, and .XIN plans to take an open yet secure approach and invite software and application developers to create value-added services on top of the .XIN registry.
Elegant also plans to organize external advisory and supervising committee to make sure the process, and use of data, and the performance of the .XIN gTLD can constantly fulfill the mission.
What goals does your proposed gTLD have in terms of user experience?
.XIN gTLD plans to build a gTLD space with trust and reliability. Registrant should cherish its trust and reputation on the Internet, just like one should value and honor the trust and reputation in the real ⁄ offline world. Elegant does not aim to build “trust” overall night or short-term. This shall be a long-term commitment for the registry, registrar, registrant, and other vendors and stakeholders who are involved in building this eco-system. Eventually, and hopefully soon, the user should be able to visit any .XIN website anytime with a great level of confidence.
Provide a complete description of the applicant’s intended registration policies in support of the goals listed above.
As documented in Section 18a, during the initial period of operation, Elegant is intending to restrict registration and use of domain names with limited number of eligible registrants. Because of this condition precedent, any registration and use requirements are more appropriately vested in these corporate⁄subsidiary agreements and not in a domain name registration agreement. Any registration and use (e.g. trademark quality control provisions) must vest in these other agreements.
Aside from these concerns, Elegant will incorporate all required ICANN consensus policies and other legal⁄policy requirements imposed on new gTLD applicants into the terms and conditions of the domain name registration agreement. Based on ICANN Registry Agreement, Elegant sets and enforces .XIN registration policies. General Registry Policies will be developed and made available prior to launch of TLD. Such policy decisions, based on ICANN Registry Agreement and relevant industry best practices, include but are not limited to:
• Registration eligibility requirements
• Which registrars may become accredited and sell domains
• Wholesale prices offered to registrars
• Reserved names
• Phased allocation (Sunrise, Landush, etc.) of the domain space at the second and third levels
• Dispute policies
• Technical policies, including SRS security and access.
This .XIN General Registry Policies pertain techno-operational policies in the following areas:
1. Domain Registrations (Domain Objects) and the .XIN Zone File
2. Domain Contacts (Contact Objects) and WHOIS Service
3. Dispute Resolution Policies
4. Obligations of Registered Name Holders
The General Registry Policies provides the framework for the general operations of the .XIN Registry. Other policies, such as the .XIN Eligibility, Reserved Name Policies, Sunrise Policies and other relevant policies are described separately in other documents published at the .XIN TLD registry Websites. Pricing and technical specifications are published for Accredited Registrars only and provided separately.
Elegant is committed to maintaining the integrity of the data within the .XIN Registry and to implement policies that deter infringements. The .XIN Registry adopts the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) for facilitating the resolution of disputes over the registration and use of a second-level domain name registered under the .XIN Registry. All domain name registrations must submit to the mandatory proceedings commenced under UDRP, which is available for review at http:⁄⁄www.icann.org⁄dndr⁄udrp⁄policy.htm. Complaints under the UDRP should be submitted to an approved dispute-resolution service provider listed at http:⁄⁄www.icann.org⁄dndr⁄udrp⁄approved-providers.htm.
Beyond the UDRP, all domain registrations must also submit to proceedings commenced under formally adopted dispute policies as set forth by Elegant from time to time and published on the .XIN TLD registry Website(s). Such dispute policies will take effect at the time they are announced on the .XIN TLD registry Website(s), with or without prior notice to registrars or registrants.
Such dispute policies may include for example, but not limited to, expedited processes for suspension of a domain name by claims sought by intellectual property right holders (URS), Internet engineering and security experts or other competent claimants in the purpose of upholding the stability, security and integrity of the .XIN Registry. Dispute policies may also include for example challenge processes adopted by the .XIN Registry for special programs when occurred.
Moreover, based upon Elegant’s commitment and established track record in providing a safe eco-system for businesses and individuals, Elegant intends to provide best in class safeguards that will evolve over time.
Will your proposed gTLD impose any measures for protecting the privacy or confidential information of registrants or users? If so, please describe any such measures
Elegant will conform with section 1.8.6 of ICANN Registry Agreement:
Registry Operator will: 1) implement appropriate measures to avoid abuse of this feature (e.g., permitting access only to legitimate authorized users); and 2) ensure the feature is in compliance with any applicable privacy laws or policies.
Meanwhile, Elegant recognizes that this is an evolving area of law in which there is no international standard, the measures for protecting the privacy and confidential information of registrants or users will be developed based on industry best practice such as Registrar Accreditation: Model Privacy Policy provided by ICANN (see http:⁄⁄www.icann.org⁄en⁄registrars⁄model-privacy-policy.htm)
Elegant as a registry operator shall take reasonable steps to protect personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorized disclosure, alteration or destruction. Elegant as a registry operator shall not use or authorize the use of personal data in a way that is incompatible with the notice provided to registrar(s) ⁄ registrant(s). Personal data shall refer to all data about any identified or identifiable natural person. Elegant as a registry operator will not make commercial use of, or collect, traffic data regarding domain names or non-existent domain names for purposes such as the determination of the availability and health of the Internet, pinpointing specific points of failure, characterizing attacks and misconfigurations, identifying compromised networks and hosts, and promoting the sale of domain names.
Publicly available registrant information such as WHOIS service is intended only for query-based access. Specific WHOIS access policy is listed within the general registration policy.
Describe whether and in what ways outreach and communications will help to achieve your projected benefits.
As noted above Elegant’s driving factor in securing a .XIN gTLD in ICANN’s first round is to a trusted and reliable gTLD namespace with a rather conservative launch approach. While Elegant sees the potential for the .XIN gTLD to serve as a platform for trusted Internet for China and the world, there are a number of unanswered questions concerning consumer recognition, security and stability, and broader industry adoption of any new gTLDs within the marketplace that must be satisfactorily answered first. Once these concerns have been answered to Elegant’s satisfaction, Elegant is committed to make prominent use of the .XIN gTLD in printed and online material as well as across its extensive wholly-owned and affiliated entities, including Alibaba, HiChina, etc.