Category: Domain Name News

ICANN Interrupts gTLD Application Process – On April 12, shortly before the application period for new gTLDs was scheduled to end, ICANN unexpectedly took the application system offline. It was later announced that a technical issue “allowed a limited number of users to view some other users’ file names and user names in certain scenarios”.…

Proposed .COM Registry Renewal Agreement Published – ICANN has posted the proposed agreement to renew the .com Registry Agreement between ICANN and Verisign. The existing contract was entered into in 2006 and expires on November 30, 2012. In addition to a number of changes to modernize the agreement and to align it with other large…

ICANN Meets This Week in Costa Rica – ICANN is meeting this week in San José, Costa Rica. Applications for new gTLDs are currently being accepted, and various aspects of the new gTLD program will be discussed during the week. A sampling of other topics includes WHOIS, the Registrar Accreditation Agreement, Domain Name System Security…

Here is a selection of recent items: ICANN’s Security and Stability Advisory Committee (SSAC) has issued “SSAC Report on Dotless Domains” [pdf]. A “dotless domain” is a domain name consisting of a single label. The possible introduction of new gTLDs has raised the possibility of such labels appearing alone, e.g. in URLs or email addresses.…

Here is a selection of recent items: As part of its planned implementation of Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC) in the .CA domain, CIRA has released a DNSSEC Practice Statement (DPS). The DPS “provides an operational outline of all the details on how CIRA plans to develop, maintain and manage DNSSEC deployment”. CIRA is…

Robert Herjavec To Headline Canadian Internet Forum – The Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) has announced that the keynote presentation at the 2012 Canadian Internet Forum (CIF) will be delivered by Robert Herjavec, business leader and one of the stars of CBC’s the Dragon’s Den and ABC’s Shark Tank. Also, a panel on the future…

CIRA To Host 2012 Canadian Internet Forum – The Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) has announced that the 2012 Canadian Internet Forum in-person event will take place on Monday, February 27 in Ottawa. There is no cost for participation, and registrations are now being accepted. New gTLD Application Process Passes One-Week Mark – ICANN reports…

Here is a look at some domain name items from 2011: VeriSign reported that at the end of the third quarter of 2011, there were nearly 220 million domain names worldwide, an annual increase of 8.9%. In August, it was announced that ICANN President and CEO Rod Beckstrom will complete his term on July 1,…

FTC Urges ICANN To Change New gTLD Program – In a December 16 letter to ICANN, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has recommended changes to the new gTLD program including: implementing it as a pilot program to substantially reduce the number of gTLDs introduced in the first application round, and improving the accuracy of Whois…

CIRA IDN Consultation To Close Tuesday, December 13 – CIRA’s consultation on Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) is scheduled to close on Tuesday, December 13. The consultation concerns the implementation of French character IDNs so that .ca domain names can be written correctly in French. U.S. Government Officials Offer Divergent Views on New gTLD Program –…

U.S. Senate Committee To Hold Hearing on Expansion of TLDs – The U.S. Senate’s Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation will be holding a hearing on the new gTLD program. The hearing will take place on Thursday, December 8 starting at 10:00 am Eastern, and will be webcast on the Committee’s website. Picks To Click…

CIRA Launches 2012 Canadian Internet Forum – CIRA has initiated the 2012 Canadian Internet Forum (CIF). Activities this year include: publication of a report entitled “Challenges and Opportunities for the Internet in Canada” based on a survey of 1,210 Canadians, an online discussion forum, and a national event planned for February, 2012. U.S. Government Solicits…

Former ICANN Chairman Expresses Nervousness Over gTLD Program – According to an article in Tech Daily Dose, former ICANN chairman Vint Cerf has said he is “nervous” about ICANN’s new gTLD plan. The program has also been criticized by Esther Dyson, ICANN’s founding chairman from 1998-2000. Dyson was succeeded by Cerf who served until 2007.…