| gTLD | Full Legal Name | E-mail suffix | Detail | | .LLC | LLC Registry, LLC | fairwindspartners.com | View |
18.2 How do you expect that your proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others?
LLC Registry believes that the proposed .LLC gTLD has the potential to offer the following benefits to Internet users and consumers:
-Establish a trusted online marketplace for consumers seeking businesses and related services;
-Provide short and memorable domain names that will facilitate the ease with which consumers can locate information online; and
-Minimize potential incidents of phishing and malware often associated with infringing domain names in the .COM space by incorporating enhanced intellectual property Rights Protection Mechanisms (RPMs), as set forth in the Applicant Guidebook, and including a post-registration reporting mechanism to take down non-bona fide registrations.
All domain names registered within the .LLC gTLD will be required to comply with the following tapestry of policies which increase the safety within the .LLC namespace. The first is a Registrant Eligibility Policy that will ensure that only those companies organized as LLCs, or those with a bona fide intent to organize, are be able to register domains in the .LLC gTLD. Second is the Name Selection Criteria Policy which will require that entities only register domain names that correspond with their business names. The third is an Acceptable Usage Policy that will be implemented to ensure that registrants use domains registered in .LLC namespace are for bona fide business purposes. In addition to these policies, LLC Registry will hardcode into the registry architecture enhanced EPP Data Fields that will require registrants to provide additional information during the registration process (jurisdiction⁄business identification). These additional EPP data fields will empower third parties to report non-compliant registrations to the registry.
18.2.1 What is the goal of your proposed gTLD in terms of areas of specialty, service levels, or reputation?
The primary mission and purpose of the .LLC gTLD is to provide a trusted, hierarchical, and intuitive online marketplace for the aggregation of information, goods, and services across a range of industries. LLC Registry believes that the .LLC gTLD has the potential to provide a virtual platform that offers interactive features to enhance registrants’ relationships with future consumers and Internet users.
The .LLC namespace will be specifically targeted at business owners seeking to register their corresponding company names or related generic terms in the .LLC space. Given the preference for many new business owners to register their businesses as Limited Liability Companies, it is envisioned that this .LLC namespace will provide these new business owners with the opportunity to register their business name or category term in an Internet medium specifically designed for LLCs. This will be ensured by .LLC Registry’s requirement that registrants satisfy the multifaceted compliance policy outlined above: Registrant Eligibility, Name Selection Criteria, and Acceptable Usage Policy. An added level of security will be provided through the public availability of the additional EPP data fields (jurisdiction⁄business identification) collected from registrants and available via public WHOIS. The availability of these additional fields will empower third parties to investigate and report to the registry for investigation potential non-compliant domain name registration.
18.2.2 What do you anticipate your proposed gTLD will add to the current space, in terms of competition, differentiation, or innovation?
It is anticipated that the .LLC gTLD will be a namespace targeted at a specific group of individuals and entities, primarily owners and operators of LLC businesses. Thus, LLC Registry believes that the .LLC gTLD will offer these parties the ability to register domain names that corresponds to their businesses in an intuitive namespace more specific to their business goals, instead of in the current commercial namespace that must be relied upon by all. In addition, business owners and entities that are not able to register their preferred names in the .COM space, for any number of reasons, will have another, more intuitive option. This will both differentiate these entities’ domain names from their competitors, and allow multiple businesses with the same or similar corresponding company names to register their names in a differentiated namespace.
LLC Registry intends to follow good business practices in dealing with law enforcement to create a marketplace with safeguards designed to minimize fraud and other illegal activity, e.g., its multifaceted compliance policy, including Registrant Eligibility, Name Selection, and Acceptable Usage, as well as the collection of additional EPP data fields from registrants to help with increased validation and compliance efforts. More specific information regarding the scope and implementation of these policies are set forth in the responses to Questions 28, 29, and 30 of this application.
18.2.3 What goals does your proposed gTLD have in terms of user experience?
LLC Registry believes that the .LLC gTLD can provide a single trusted ecosystem experience for the millions of LLC business owners and consumers. The .LLC gTLD will allow Internet users to access trusted content via its online, mobile, and social platforms. By providing the foundation of this trusted ecosystem, all domain name registrants in the .LLC gTLD will be able to share in the benefits of this collective resource. LLC Registry believes that it can be a pioneer in bringing innovation in consumer choice to this new Internet medium, the .LLC gTLD.
18.2.4 Provide a complete description of the applicant’s intended registration policies in support of the goals listed above.
LLC Registry is fully committed to implementing all of ICANN’s consensus policies and other RPMs identified in the Applicant Guidebook. Moreover, LLC Registry intends to provide best-in-class safeguards that will evolve over time.
Registrant Eligibility will ensure that only those entities organized as LLCs, or those with a bona fide intent to organize, will be able to register domains in the .LLC gTLD.
Name Selection Criteria will ensure that entities only register domain names that correspond with their business names. This will minimize instances of phishing, malware, and cybersquatting in the .LLC gTLD registry.
Acceptable Usage Policies will be implemented to ensure that registrants use domains registered in .LLC for bona fide business purposes.
Enhanced EPP Data Fields will serve as a means for registering entities to provide additional information during the registration process (jurisdiction⁄business identification) to empower third parties to report non-compliant registrations to the registry.
LLC Registry intends to model the definitions of bona fide use and intent, as well as registration restrictions and enforcement on the Registration Restrictions set forth for the .BIZ registry. See: http:⁄⁄www.icann.org⁄en⁄about⁄agreements⁄registries⁄biz⁄appendix-11-08dec06-en.htm.
18.2.5 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.
LLC Registry recognizes that this is an evolving area of law for which there is no international standard. Nonetheless, the protection of privacy and confidential information of registrants and users is of paramount importance to LLC Registry, and thus registrants and users will comply with all applicable laws; in particular, the European Data Protection framework. Within the bounds of applicable regulations, the registry will implement anti-data mining measures such as rate limitation, authenticated access, or white-listing⁄black-listing, as well as tools to prevent unauthorized recourse to repetitive automated access.
In addition, LLC Registry intends to include contractual provisions to protect confidential and personal data in its registrar agreement, including provisions modeled after language in the template Registry Agreement that has been successfully utilized by existing ICANN gTLD registry operators. The template Registry Agreement states, “Registry Operator shall (i) notify each ICANN-accredited registrar that is a party to the registry-registrar agreement for the TLD of the purposes for which data about any identified or identifiable natural person (‘Personal Data’) submitted to Registry Operator by such registrar is collected and used under this Agreement or otherwise and the intended recipients (or categories of recipients) of such Personal Data, and (ii) require such registrar to obtain the consent of each registrant in the TLD for such collection and use of Personal Data. Registry Operator shall take reasonable steps to protect Personal Data collected from such registrar from loss, misuse, unauthorized disclosure, alteration or destruction. Registry Operator shall not use or authorize the use of Personal Data in a way that is incompatible with the notice provided to registrars.ʺ
18.2.6 Describe whether and in what ways outreach and communications will help to achieve your projected benefits.
The .LLC gTLD will likely operate in a similar manner as most of the generic TLDs that have primarily been operated by Internet start-ups created solely for the provision of domain name registration services, e.g., .INFO (Afilias Limited), .BIZ (Neustar, Inc.), and .TRAVEL (Tralliance) and that ICANN has approved.
LLC Registry will seek to leverage VeriSign, Inc.’s existing network of registrars to expand the distribution network of its gTLD, and will engage the services of a marketing or otherwise strategically situated consulting firm in order to facilitate outreach and communication in an evolving namespace. LLC Registry may seek to partner with businesses that focus on establishing business entities to potentially bundle a domain name registration with a recently organized LLC.
| gTLD | Full Legal Name | E-mail suffix | Detail | | .GIFTS | Lucy Ventures, LLC | fairwindspartners.com | View |
18.2 How do you expect that your proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others?
Lucy Ventures believes that the proposed .GIFTS gTLD has the potential to offer the following benefits to Internet users and consumers:
(1) To establish a trusted online marketplace for consumers seeking gift-related goods, services, and information;
(2) To provide business owners, non-profits, entrepreneurs, and other interested third parties with a specialized namespace in which to register their business name or category terms; and
(3) Provide short and memorable domain names that will facilitate the ease with which consumers can locate information online.
All domain names registered within the .GIFTS gTLD will be required to comply with the following three policies: Registrant Eligibility (who can register within the .GIFTS gTLD); Name Selection Criteria (what domain names can be registered); and Authorized Usage Policy (how the domain names can be used).
18.2.1 What is the goal of your proposed gTLD in terms of areas of specialty, service levels, or reputation?
The primary future mission and purpose of the .GIFTS gTLD is to serve as a trusted, hierarchical, and intuitive online marketplace for gift-related products, services, and information for consumers looking for gift products, services, tips, and ideas. As technologies for delivering content, goods, and services evolve, Lucy Ventures will continue to pursue and explore opportunities to enable partners, businesses, and other third parties to distribute gift-related goods, services, and information. Lucy Ventures believes that the .GIFTS gTLD has the potential to provide a virtual platform for registrants to deepen and broaden their relationships with new and existing consumers.
The .GIFTS namespace will be specifically targeted at businesses, entrepreneurs, non-profits and other organizations seeking to register their trade names and category terms in the .GIFTS space with the purpose of using the .GIFTS domain names to provide gift-related goods, services, and information to consumers. It is envisioned that the .GIFTS namespace will provide these registrants with the opportunity to register their business name or category term in an Internet medium specifically designed for this purpose. This will be ensured by Lucy Ventures’ requirement that registrants satisfy the three-fold compliance policy outlined above: Registrant Eligibility, Name Selection Criteria, and Authorized Usage Policy.
18.2.2 What do you anticipate your proposed gTLD will add to the current space, in terms of competition, differentiation, or innovation?
It is anticipated that the .GIFTS gTLD will be a namespace targeted to specific group of individuals and entities, primarily those businesses seeking to provide gift-related products, services, and information. Thus, Lucy Ventures believes that the .GIFTS gTLD will offer these parties the ability to register a domain name that corresponds to their business or trade name in an intuitive namespace more specific to their business goals, instead of in the current commercial namespace that must be relied upon by all. In addition, businesses and other eligible entities that are not able to register their preferred names in the .COM space, for any number of reasons, will have another, more intuitive option. This will both differentiate these entities’ domain names from their competitors’ and allow multiple businesses with the same or similar trade names to register their names in differentiated namespaces.
Lucy Ventures intends to follow good business practices in dealing with law enforcement to create a marketplace with safeguards designed to minimize fraud and other illegal activity, e.g. its three-fold compliance policy, including Registrant Eligibility, Name Selection, and Authorized Usage. More specifics regarding the scope and implementation of these policies are set forth in the response to Questions 28, 29 and 30 of this application.
18.2.3 What goals does your proposed gTLD have in terms of user experience?
As noted above, the registrant market for .GIFTS consists of large retailers, corporations, small businesses, non-profits, industry associations, entrepreneurs, and other third parties that provide or plan to provide an online platform for consumers to purchase and access gift related products, services, and information.
Therefore, Lucy Ventures believes that the .GIFTS gTLD will provide a single trusted ecosystem experience for the millions of businesses and other entities offering gift-related goods, services, and information and their consumers in which Internet users may access content through its online, mobile, and social platforms. By providing the foundation of this trusted ecosystem, all domain name registrants in the .GIFTS gTLD will be able to share in the benefits of this collective resource. Lucy Ventures also believes that the .GIFTS gTLD will provide Internet users and consumers with short and memorable domain names that will facilitate the ease with which they can locate information online. Lucy Ventures believes that it can be a pioneer in bringing innovation in consumer choice to this new Internet medium, the .GIFTS gTLD.
18.2.4 Provide a complete description of the applicant’s intended registration policies in support of the goals listed above.
Lucy Ventures is fully committed to implementing all of ICANN’s consensus policies and other Rights Protection Mechanisms (RPMs) identified in the Applicant Guidebook. Moreover, Lucy Ventures intends to provide best-in-class safeguards that will evolve over time.
Registrant Eligibility will ensure that only those entities providing or those with a bona-fide intent to provide gift-related goods, services, and information will be able to register domains in the .GIFTS gTLD.
Name selection criteria will ensure that entities only register domain names that correspond with their business and⁄or trade name. This will minimize instances of phishing, malware, and cybersquatting in the .GIFTS gTLD registry.
Acceptable use: registrants must use domains registered in .GIFTS for bona-fide gift-related purposes.
Lucy Ventures intends to model the definitions of bona-fide use and intent, as well as registration restrictions and enforcement on the Registration Restrictions set forth for the .BIZ registry. See: http:⁄⁄www.icann.org⁄en⁄about⁄agreements⁄registries⁄biz⁄appendix-11-08dec06-en.htm.
18.2.5 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.
Lucy Ventures recognizes that this is an evolving area of law in which there is no international standard. Because the proposed business model set forth in Section 18.1.2 initially envisions .GIFTS domain names being registered to Lucy Ventures, it has a vested interest to make sure that accurate and current domain name information is readily available in connection with each domain name.
In addition, Lucy Ventures intends to incorporate contractual language in its Registry-Registrar Agreement (RRA) modeled after language which has been included in the template Registry Agreement, and which has been successfully utilized by existing ICANN gTLD Registry Operators. The template Registry Agreement states “Registry Operator shall (i) notify each ICANN-accredited registrar that is a party to the registry-registrar agreement for the TLD of the purposes for which data about any identified or identifiable natural person (“Personal Data”) submitted to Registry Operator by such registrar is collected and used under this Agreement or otherwise and the intended recipients (or categories of recipients) of such Personal Data, and (ii) require such registrar to obtain the consent of each registrant in the TLD for such collection and use of Personal Data. Registry Operator shall take reasonable steps to protect Personal Data collected from such registrar from loss, misuse, unauthorized disclosure, alteration or destruction. Registry Operator shall not use or authorize the use of Personal Data in a way that is incompatible with the notice provided to registrars.ʺ
18.2.6 Describe whether and in what ways outreach and communications will help to achieve your projected benefits.
As noted in 18.2.2, most of the generic-term gTLDs that ICANN has approved have primarily been operated by Internet start-ups created solely for the provision of domain name registration services, e.g., .INFO (Afilias), .BIZ (Neustar), and .TRAVEL (Tralliance). The .GIFTS gTLD will likely be operated in a similar manner.
Lucy Ventures will seek to leverage Afilias’ existing network of registrars to expand the distribution network of its gTLD and facilitate outreach and communication.