Monthly Archives: June 2009

Tue 2nd June 2009
Written by DomainNameWire in EN
Business.com Owner Files for Bankruptcy - R. H. Donnelley files for bankruptcy to get out of debt load. Yellow pages directory publisher and Business.com owner R.H. Donnelly has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy. R.H. Donnelley is a yellow pages publisher that saw the writing on the wall a couple years ago. It decided to grab a bigger piece of the online directory pie by plunking down $345 million for Business.com. In a press release, the company cited the weakening economy for necessitating bankruptcy: Our ... read more ...
 
Written by DomainNameWire in EN and tagged
Advertising Geo Web Sites on Cable TV - Cable TV might be a strategic advertising option for GeoDomains (and other web sites). I’ve just signed a deal to buy cable TV advertising to promote Lakeway.com, my geo web site for Lakeway, Texas. The ads will run on CNN, FoxNews, AE, and a local news channel a little over 200 times each month. Here are my observations about cable TV advertising: -Cable TV ads can usually be targeted to ‘zones’ within a city; you don’t have to advertise to the entire ... read more ...
 
Written by DomainNameWire in EN and tagged
ICANN Goes Back to Professor to Clarify New gTLD Demand - Original report author to address feedback. In March 2009 ICANN released two reports from professor Dennis Carlton of The University of Chicago about demand for new global top level domain names and competition. At the time, Domain Name Wire described them as “whitewash” reports. They were essentially propaganda pieces supporting ICANN’s view that there is demand for new TLDs, and showed that Carlton lacked general understanding of the top level domain ... read more ...
Mon 1st June 2009
Written by The Domains in EN and tagged
ICANN GuideBook 2.0 Comment Report: Still No Price Caps - In the almost 300 page report of the comments received on the new gTLD  guidebook version 2, the issue of most concern to domain holders, is still on the table. Despite many comments, including ours, calling for ICANN to place price caps on registries for the new gTLD’s for registrations and renewals, ICANN choice to keep them out. At issue, what’s good for the goose is good for the gander. If the registries of the new gTLD’s are allowed to price registrations and renewals differently for ... read more ...
 
Written by The Domains in EN and tagged
Hate UDRP’s: Say Hello To Something Much Worse, The Uniform Rapid Suspension System (URS): Get Ready To Lose Your Domains - Trademark holders, unhappy with UDRP’s, a system under which they already have over a 85% win rate, formed a group, The Implementation Recommendation Team (IRT), which was given committee status by ICANN’s Intellectual Property Constituency “to give additional protection to trademark holders  in the implementation of new gTLDs”. If you want to see a list of members of the IRT click here. The 68 page,  IRT final report was released late Friday night.  The committee which was suppose to ... read more ...
 
Written by DomainNameWire in EN and tagged
Jimmy Choo and Jimmy Morrison Win Domain Names - Two guys named Jimmy win domain names. Two Jimmy’s have won domain names through arbitration decisions, but one of the Jimmy’s is a brand and the other one is dead. In a decision at World Intellectual Property Forum, upscale shoe seller Jimmy Choo won the domain name JimmyChoo.mobi. Perhaps Jimmy Choo wants to sell you $500 shoes while you’re on your phone, or it is just trying to protect its brand. In another WIPO decision, the estate of late rocker Jim ... read more ...
 
Written by DomainNameWire in EN
Microsoft Goes Clubbing with Bing - Microsoft uses Clubbing.com to promote Bing search engine. To help launch its newly re-branded search engine Bing, Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) has launched a casual games site at Clubbing.com. No, it’s not a game where you club seals. Nor is it a site where you travel with your friends from bar to bar to go dancing and throw down shots. It’s actually “Club Bing” with a space. It kind of reminds me of some other domain names that have double meanings, such ... read more ...
 
Written by DomainNameWire in EN and tagged
ICANN Releases 214-Page Comment Analysis Paper - ICANN summarizes comments from second draft new gTLD applicant guidebook. ICANN has released a 214 page document summarizing feedback to its second draft applicant guidebook for new top level domain names. I spent my Sunday evening reading (OK, sometimes skimming) through it. Today I will write a few posts covering some of my concerns, including: 1. How ICANN seems to be capitulating to Governmental Advisory Committee’s (GACs) demands to protect top level and ... read more ...
 
Written by DomainNameWire in EN and tagged
One and Two Character .Biz Domain Names Approved - ICANN approves release of one and two character .biz domain names. After a delay a month ago, ICANN has finally granted .biz registry NeuStar (NYSE: NSR) the right to release one and two character .biz domain names. The domain names will be released in two phases. The first phase will call for ‘requests for proposal’, where an entity can explain how it will use and promote the domain name. NeuStar will begin accepting RFPs for 36 one-character letters and numbers ... read more ...
 
Written by DomainNameWire in EN and tagged
Governments Want Control of New Geo Domain Names - Governmental Advisory Committee continues push for control of domains at top and second levels. One of the more disturbing debates about the launch of new top level domain names is a land grab by Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC). Think of GAC as a United Nations scheme for domain names. They were given a voice at the table to prove that ICANN isn’t just a puppet of the U.S. government. GAC wants to protect both top level domains and second level domain names ... read more ...
 
Written by DomainNameWire in EN and tagged
Will Software Makers Really Support New TLDs? - Unclear if software makers will support all new top level domain names. One issue for top level domain name applicants is getting software makers, such as e-mail software companies, to approve their top level domains and make them work with their software. The second draft guidebook for new TLD applicants provides a lengthy warning about this, stating that applicants “may find themselves expending considerable efforts working with providers to achieve acceptance ... read more ...