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.

gTLD	Full Legal Name	E-mail suffix	Detail
.LDS	IRI Domain Management, LLC (ʺApplicantʺ)	kmclaw.com	View

SUMMARY

The .LDS gTLD will be established to serve the needs and interests of the global community (“Community”) comprising members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (“Church”).

Delineation. Formal membership in the Church is the means by which the Community is delineated from Internet users generally.

Organization. The Community is centrally organized, starting with local congregations and running to general Church officers that conduct the affairs of the entire Church. The Church’s highest governing body is the First Presidency, the organization that has endorsed this application.

Date of establishment. The Community was formally organized with the incorporation of the Church on April 6, 1830.

Community activities. This application highlights a few of the Community’s many activities in the areas of education, family history, and humanitarian services. For instance, between 1985 and 2009 Church humanitarian efforts provided more than $1.2 billion in total assistance to needy persons in 178 countries and territories.

Size and geographic extent. As of 2010, there were approximately 14.1 members of the Church living in nearly 170 countries and on every continent.

DETAILED RESPONSES

Community delineation. Membership in the Church is the means by which this community is delineated from Internet users generally. Church membership is established by formal baptism and supported by a personal commitment to live Church principles throughout one’s life. Observance of principles such as abstinence from alcohol, coffee, and tea; donating one-tenth of one’s income to the Church as tithing; and adhering to a strict code of sexual morality—all these are distinguishing commitments of Church members.

Membership is available only through baptism, which must be authorized by a local priesthood leader and properly recorded by a local clerk. Church records are maintained, updated, and transferred only by Church clerks authorized to do so. Records can be removed only following the disciplinary decision of local Church leaders or by request of an individual Church member.

Community structure and organization. The Church traces its organizational structure to the New Testament and modern revelation. It is led by the President of the Church and his counselors, who together function as the First Presidency, the highest governing body of the Church. Twelve Apostles form the Quorum of the Twelve, the second-highest governing body of the Church. Together the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve lead the entire Church.

A local congregation of Church members is called a “ward” or (if smaller) a “branch” and is led by a “bishop” or “branch president.” A group of wards forms a “stake” and a group of branches a “district.” The leader of a stake with multiple wards is a “stake president” and the leader of a district with multiple branches is a “district president.” Stake presidents, district presidents, bishops, and branch presidents are the leaders most often encountered by Church members. They serve without monetary compensation.

Auxiliary organizations serve the needs of particular groups of Church members. The Primary Organization serves children from 18 months to 12 years old. The Young Women’s Program serves girls from 12 to 18 years old. The Young Men’s Program serves boys from 12 to 18 years old, and in North America the Church also sponsors participation in the Boy Scouts of America for boys from 11 to 18 years old. Women are served by the Relief Society. Founded in 1842, it is one of the oldest and largest women’s organizations in the world with more than 6 million members in nearly 170 countries. Men serve as members of a lay priesthood that is organized by age and office into quorums of deacons, teachers, priests, elders, and high priests.

Date of Establishment. The Church whose members the Community comprises was established on April 6, 1830.

Community activities. During its nearly two centuries of existence the Church has organized and participated in too many activities to be described here. Current Church-wide activities that illustrate its global interests and commitments include humanitarian services, education, and family history.

Humanitarian services are provided by the Church to people in need around the world, without regard to their nationality or religion. Such services may include emergency response to natural disasters.

Its response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake exemplifies the type and scope of aid that the Church delivers to the victims of natural disasters. Latter-day Saint Charities sent over 1,000,000 pounds (25 semi–trucks) of food, hygiene kits, water filtration bottles, water systems, and medical supplies such as medicine and wheelchairs. Twenty-seven hundred tents were distributed to families forced to leave their homes. Additional shelters were made available by opening up 9 LDS chapels located in and around Port-au-Prince. Food and other relief supplies brought into Haiti were used at these shelters to assist with basic needs. Approximately half of the people that were helped at or in Church facilities were members of other faiths. The Church also sent medical teams to Haiti, tending to the wounded by performing surgeries, setting broken bones, and providing other medical attention. Mental health professionals also were sent to address pressing mental health issues resulting from the disaster.

Similar assistance was delivered by the Church to the victims of last year’s earthquakes in Japan, the 2004 tsunami in Indonesia, and dozens of other natural disasters around the world.

The Church recognizes that charitable services also need to be directed at more entrenched and long-term needs. To that end, it sponsors ongoing global projects in neonatal resuscitation training, clean water projects, wheelchair distribution, vision treatment, and measles vaccinations.

Overall, from 1985 to 2009, the Church’s Humanitarian Services programs provided more than $1.2 billion in total assistance to needy individuals in 178 countries and territories. Every dollar donated to the Church’s humanitarian services is used for relief efforts directly. The Church absorbs its own overhead costs.

Education. The Church operates the third-largest private university in the United States—Brigham Young University—as well as Brigham Young University-Hawaii, Brigham Young University-Idaho, and LDS Business College. The Church Educational System provides religious instruction in seminaries for high school students and institutes for university students.

Since March 2001 the Church has operated a Perpetual Education Fund that offers Church members outside the United States education and training to become better employed in their own countries. The Fund offers loans at minimum interest for selected students to pay for tuition and books. After the schooling is completed the loan is repaid over an eight-year period and the repayments are reinvested into the Fund. Church members donate additional money to assist the Fund. In the decade since its inception the Fund has assisted 46,000 students in 45 countries.

Family history work has been important to the Church from earliest days. The Church’s Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah is the largest genealogy library in the world. It offers public access to collections consisting of more than two billion records of deceased people. Over 700 staff and volunteers assist the public with their family history work, and over 1,900 people visit the library each day.

Community size. As of 2010, there were approximately 14.1 million members of the Church living in nearly 170 countries and on every continent.