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20 Sep 2011
Icann president and chief executive Rod Beckstrom has called on organisations to "get educated now" about new generic Top Level Domains (gTLDs) to avoid being left behind, as one of the biggest ever changes in the internet's Domain Name System takes effect from early 2012.
In January of next year, companies, organisations, causes, start-ups and cities will be able to apply for their own TLD, effectively turning them into a registry.
Virtually any TLD will be admissible, with a limit of 64 characters, including regional suffixes, generic words and brand names.
Beckstrom spoke to V3 ahead of an awareness-raising roadshow he's taking on tour across Europe.
"My call to action would be to get educated now on this before the window closes," he said.
"We've created rules to protect the industry, things on security and stability, the quality of the operators and intellectual property, more rules than for any previous [project]."
Organisations that want to own a new gTLD must fork out a cool $185,000, and even then are not guaranteed to be successful. But Beckstrom was keen to point out the reasons for such a hefty sum.
"People think that Icann is making a profit on the evaluation fee, but we're a not-for-profit," he explained.
"It's expensive to do checks on things like financial background and cyber squatting and dispute resolution. It was not by design but has the benefit of erecting a barrier [against criminality]."
To help web owners familiarise themselves with the gTLD process, Icann has built a dedicated microsite populated with most of the resources needed to determine whether they want to run a registry.
Icann will begin taking applications for new gTLDs on 12 January 2012 until the closing date of 12 April 2012.
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Going forward with gTLD education
So what does the future really hold for ICANN's new TLDs? ....Bearing in mind that ICANN won't allow applications from individuals or sole proprietorships, effectively ignoring the interests of the vast majority of Internet users worldwide. Add in non-refundable deposits of $185,000 per extension, $500,000 for "integration" plus potentially unlimited annual costs and expenses etc, and how many new TLDs will actually see the light of day? Is this a commercial venture or simply a loss making exercise in vanity? ICANN’s main aim has always been to convince Internet users they're the only game in town and to try and herd everyone into a tiny part of an otherwise infinite universe....but that's like telling people that the only place they can shop anywhere on Earth is a “convenient” Safeway store in Toronto, Canada. Yes, the current ICANN Internet set-up may be “convenient” right now, but then some years ago sending a telegram was convenient and sending an email meant inventing the computer (and World Wide Web). So....before making any "investment", it’s worth considering whether instead of bringing organisations to the forefront, ICANN's new TLDs will actually isolate you. It’s also worth considering that the Internet is evolving with more fitting and less expensive options coming on-stream. Increasingly ICANN finds itself under pressure to modify. The rules have changed and Alternatives are already available; for example as well as "Dotcoms", there are now free "Dashcoms" (at sites like Dashworlds.com, you can already create domains like "music-com" or “social-network" at zero cost). As ICANN realises that competition is finally at hand, the true value (or the true cost) of their TLD "opportunities" will become all too apparent. Still, look on the bright side, at least ICANN and their associates will have made money from your efforts. Disclaimer: Author provides dashcom (not dotcom) domain names.
Posted by: Dashworlds 21 Sep 2011