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
.ADAC	Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club e.V. (ADAC)	zentrale.adac.de	View

1) The Applicant is a not for-profit organization whose main purpose – as laid down in its statutes – is to represent and promote the interests of motorists, motorsports and tourism. Beyond the core services that ADAC traditionally provides to its members and in some cases also to non-members (road side assistance, air rescue, travel and traffic information and services) ADAC has extended the scope of its activities to a broad variety of products and services which mainly focus on one particular need of its members: mobility, be it in or outside Germany, be it for private or for professional purposes. It is the ADAC members – whose number currently amounts to about 18 million – and their needs that the Applicant is committed to serve since more than 100 years.
More information with respect to the Applicant can be found at its website: http:⁄⁄www.adac.de.
2) The Applicant is incorporated as a registered association (eingetragener Verein) under German law and as such has to comply with certain statutory requirements under German law, inter alia:
a) it must be of lasting, non-transient nature;
b) membership must be voluntary;
c) it has to establish a management board;
d) it has to pursue a not-for-profit purpose.
Within the boundaries of these statutory requirements, ADAC has established certain membership categories and an organizational and governance structure which can be briefly described as follows;
a) Membership categories:
I) Ordinary membership: eligible for ordinary membership is someone who possesses a motor vehicle or is interested in motor traffic. Ordinary members are obliged to pay an annual membership fee and entitled to benefit from certain services and products offered by ADAC. The membership relation itself is established with the regional club of the Applicant competent for the main residence of the (prospective) member.
II) Corporate membership: eligible for corporate membership are legal entities and certain associations.
III) Extraordinary and honorary membership.
Considering this, the membership of ADAC is clearly delineated.
b) Organizational structure: the ADAC consists of the following three entities
I) Regional clubs: ADAC consists of 18 regional clubs, which are independent legal entities covering a certain geographic area in Germany. In order to be affiliated with ADAC, each regional club is under the duty to accept and incorporate in its statutes certain minimum provisions which have previously been laid down by ADAC. The regional clubs appoint in their general assembly meetings those of their members who participate with voting right in the general assembly of the Applicant.
II) Local clubs: Within a regional club, a minimum of 30 ordinary ADAC members can decide to establish a local club. The local clubs are independent legal entities and have to be approved by the competent regional club and by ADAC itself. In order to be affiliated with the competent regional club and with ADAC, each local club is under the duty to accept and incorporate in its statutes certain minimum provisions that have previously been laid down by ADAC.
III) The umbrella entity “ADAC e.V.”, comprising the not-for-profit ADAC e.V. and the subsidiaries which pursue some form of economic activities to the benefit of the ADAC community;
c) Governance structure:
I) General assembly: consists of the representatives delegated by the regional clubs and of the members of the administrative board and the management board. The general assembly appoints inter alia the management board and is the highest organ of ADAC.
II) Administrative board: consists of the members of the management board and of the chairmen of the regional clubs. The administrative board lays down the minimum provisions that regional and local clubs affiliated with ADAC have to incorporate into their statutes and performs additional tasks as provided for in the ADAC statutes.
III) Management board: appointed by the general assembly, represents and is in charge of the general management of ADAC.
Both the organizational and the governance structure of the Applicant demonstrate that it is a clearly organized organization.
3) The ADAC has been established on 24 May 1903 in Stuttgart in the form of a registered association (eingetragener Verein). In the beginning, its main focus lie on motorcyclists but quite quickly evolved to encompass all motorists. After 10 years of operation, ADAC already had some 20.000 members and became the largest automobile club in Germany. Dissolved for political reasons by order of the authorities before the Second World War, the ADAC had to be legally re-established in 1946, but it always carried on its tradition and has now a successful history of more than 100 years of operation. The success and acceptance of ADAC is particularly highlighted by the steadily growing number of its members. Nowadays, ADAC is broadly regarded in Germany as an organization one can trustfully rely on in case of a breakdown, accident or emergency while traveling. In addition, ADAC has earned a reputation as an advocate of consumer protection issues. More than 18 million members rely on and trust ADAC, making it by far the largest automobile club in Europe.
Considering the above, the Applicant clearly is, or at least represents, the interests of a pre-existing community that has originated in 1903.
The focus of the Applicant has always been on its members and their needs in connection with mobility. The Applicant’s most prominent services and products encompass the following:
a) roadside assistance
b) air rescue
c) traffic information
d) travel information and services
e) advocacy of the interests of motorists etc.
f) legal advice with regard to various topics related to motor vehicles, tourism and travel
g) general advice to members with regard to any kind of mobility related issues (testing, maintenance and purchase of motor vehicles, tourism⁄travel, consumer protection etc.)
h) advocacy of the interests of motorists
i) rebate programs for ADAC members (“Show your Card”)
j) various products and services offered by ADAC subsidiaries (books, insurances, financial products, car rental, road safety training etc.).
In addition, the Applicant organizes motorsports events (for automobiles, go-karts, motorbikes, vintage cars etc.), publishes a monthly magazine for its members and founded various trusts which support the victims of road traffic accidents, engage in road safety education and sponsor talented racing driver. Finally, various corporations associated with the Applicant and its local clubs offer a broad variety of activities for vintage car aficionados and owners of a certain make of car, e.g. rallies, region tours and visits of museums in- and outside Germany. It would be very difficult to provide an exhausting list of activities that the Applicant and its members and member organizations have offered in the decades since the establishment of the Applicant and that they still offer.
All these activities as well as the membership card issued by the Applicant, the members’ magazine published every month and the stickers with the ADAC logo which are usually affixed to the motor vehicles of the members create a sense of community between the ADAC members.
4) Currently, ADAC has some 18 million members, making it the largest automobile club in Europe, ranking worldwide second only to the American Automobile Association. ADAC has its roots in Germany, and its main focus of activities is still on Germany but it is open to members from all over the world and it also offers – by way of co-operation agreements with local automobile clubs – certain services outside Germany.
The size of this community is therefore considerable, and there are no current or future plans to wind down or terminate its activities. Quite to the contrary, the number of members is growing every year, and new products and services are being made available to ADAC members.