ID: New TLD Catagories draft 00

INTERNET-DRAFT                                              Simon Higgs
draft-higgs-tld-cat-00.txt                                Higgs America
Category:                                                    April 1996
                                                   Expire in six months 
                            New TLD Catagories
Status of this Memo
     This document is an Internet-Draft.  Internet-Drafts are working
     documents of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), its
     areas, and its working groups.  Note that other groups may also
     distribute working documents as Internet-Drafts.
     Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six
     months and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other
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     To learn the current status of any Internet-Draft, please check
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Table of Contents
   1.   Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
   2.   Top Level Domain Creation Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
   2a.   Delegation  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
   2b.   TLD Charter   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
   2c.   Failure To Enforce Charter  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
   3.   New TLD Categories   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
   3a.   Corporate TLD   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
   3b.   Specialized TLD   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
   3c.   Openly Competitive TLD  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
   4.   Registry Selection   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
   4a.   Corporate TLD   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
   4b.   Specialized TLD   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
   4c.   Openly Competitive TLD  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
   5.   Fees   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
   5a.   Corporate TLD   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
   5b.   Specialized TLD   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
   5c.   Openly Competitive TLD  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
   6.   Appeals  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
   7.   Security Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
   8.   Author's Address   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1. Introduction
   This document is being distributed to members of the Internet
   community in order to solicit their reactions to the proposals
   contained in it. This document suggests some ideas for the
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   management of the establishment of new top level domains, some
   procedures for domain name registries, and some constraints on top
   level domain names.
   Since the Internet's future is going to be driven by commercial
   market forces (i.e. the use of domain names to identify corporate
   business units which are known to the public as "brand names"), we
   should think about how to use those commercial aspects to the net's
   advantage. This document covers only the framework necessary to
   define the function, delegation, and use of new top level domains.
   This is achieved by the introduction of commercial, specialized,
   and openly competitive TLD categories.
   This document does not attempt to provide a direct solution for
   preventing or resolving the domain name or trademark conflicts we
   have recently witnessed, but it does create a foundation where
   domain name conflict solutions can have maximum effect.
2. Top Level Domain Creation
   2a. Delegation
      As with existing top level domain policy, TLD's shall be
      delegated to organizations or registries by the IANA.
   2b. TLD Charter
      Each TLD must be created with an identifiable purpose. A written
      charter will identify and explain the function and purpose of
      each TLD. One of the items that will be identified in the charter
      is a procedure for dealing with domain name and trademark
      conflicts. Provided these guidelines are followed, the legal
      liability of each registry will be limited. This prevents any
      registry from producing a self-serving policy which denies due
      process to either the infinged or infringing parties.
      In the case of the Corporate and Specialized TLD's, the
      corporation or organization will be responsible for creating the
      TLD's charter as part of the TLD application process. Guidelines
      for charter creation will be made publically available by IANA.
   2c. Failure To Enforce Charter
      In processing registrations, each registry must observe the
      procedures laid out in the charter for each TLD. Should a
      delegated registry be unable or unwilling to enforce a TLD
      charter, then the registry will no longer be able to accept or
      process registrations for that TLD.
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3. New TLD Categories
   3a. Corporate TLD
      Qualifying internationally known corporations may be identified
      on the Internet by their own exclusive TLD. This is reminiscent
      of earlier days before the .COM TLD was created.
      This TLD category is subject to meeting specific criteria:
         i)   the company is readily identifiable by a suitable three
              or four letter name
         ii)  the company is readily identifiable as an internationally
              trading company with international trademarks
         iii) the company operates at least one root nameserver in each
              continent ensuring they have an international Internet
              presence
         iv)  the company makes peering arrangements with NAP's if they
              run their own backbones between NAP's
         v)   the company contributes substantially to the
              infrastructure of the Internet by way of practical
              assistance and goodwill in the form of education and
              subsidy
         vi)  payment of a set up fee and annual license fee to operate
              the TLD (proceeds would go directly to administration,
              construction and operation of public areas of the
              Internet infrastructure)
      Existing domains that the company holds under the other TLD's
      would be revoked, and, if necessary, placed under permanent
      reservation in order to prevent trademark disputes arising. It
      may be plausible to allow the corporation to retain certain
      domain names under other TLD's if specific circumstances warrant
      this. This decision should be made by IANA.
      Using IBM as the example - the domains IBM.* would go into a
      state of permanent reservation making them unusable under other
      TLD's. IBM would be granted exclusive use of the TLD "*.IBM" for
      all their worldwide corporate needs. They would be able to use
      the secondary domains under "*.IBM" as they wished provided they
      follow sensible guidelines.
      Example:
         i)     *.us.ibm     Used by IBM USA
         ii)    *.ja.ibm     Used by IBM Japan
         iii)   *.net.ibm    Used by IBM Network/Routers/Backbone
         iv)    *.corp.ibm   Used by IBM corporate HQ
      Note that a user transferring from IBM US to IBM Japan would
      ideally be able to change his/her email account from
      "@sales.us.ibm" to "@sales.ja.ibm" to simplify the
      moving logistics. Obviously, this responsibility would be
      company's management.
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      This would obviously give this type of company a unique presense
      on the net. It is important to realize that the TLD holder would
      have to guarantee a level of service in its obligation to
      running root nameservers plus a substantial investment in the
      creation and operation of the Internet infrastructure in exchange
      for the TLD.
   3b. Specialized TLD
      Specialized TLD's may created for the purpose of identifying
      certain areas of business. It is proposed that these TLD's are
      operated by a single registry in a monopoly situation and are
      only open to organizations within the specific areas of business.
      These TLD's could represent international trademark catagories,
      or other market niches.
      Creation of a TLD in this category is subject to meeting specific
      criteria:
         i)   the area of business is readily definable and
              identifiable in the form of a short name (ideally three
              or four letters)
         ii)  the registry display direct expertise in the chosen area
              of business and is able to constructively address
              industry issues in the context of running a TLD registry
         iii) the TLD namespace is international
      Existing domains under the other TLD's that are held by
      organizations qualifying for a specialized TLD may or may not
      be affected, depending on the TLD's Charter.
      Using the TLD "*.NEWS" as the example - news organizations would
      be able to register secondary domains under "*.NEWS" provided
      they follow the guidelines set by that TLD's registry.
      Example:
         i)     *.ap.news         Used by Associated Press
         ii)    *.bbc.news        Used by BBC
         iii)   *.cnn.news        Used by CNN
         iv)    *.reuters.news    Used by Reuters
      Note that each organization under this TLD may be international,
      national, or regional. The defining criteria is based upon area
      of business and not geography even though registration is
      international.
      This would obviously give an organization a unique presence on
      the net by immediately identifying their area of business. The
      cost of using this type of TLD would be reflected within the
      industry itself by market forces.
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      Other examples for this catagory would be for TLD's such as .MIL
      which are closely controlled.
   3c. Openly Competitive TLD
      Openly Competitive TLD's are TLD's which are represented to the
      public by multiple registries. Most of the existing TLD's will
      be included in this category. New TLD's may also be created in
      this category. These may or may not address international
      trademark space. These TLD's must be maintained by multiple
      registries whose services are openly competitive.
      This TLD catagory is subject to meeting specific criteria:
         i)   the TLD is readily definable and identifiable in the
              form of a short name (ideally three or four letters)
         ii)  the TLD is EITHER open to international registrations
              from organizations in any geographical location *OR* it
              specifically limits registrations to organizations within
              the geographic boundaries that the TLD identifies
      There are two types of TLD in this category and they are defined
      by:
         i)   geographical location    (.US, .UK, .CA, etc.)
              These TLD's will be served by multiple registries within
              a reasonable geographical boundary (i.e. it would be
              impractical, even though theoretically possible, for
              the .UK TLD to be serviced by an Australian registry)
         ii)  type of service          (.COM, .NET, .ORG, .EDU, etc.)
              These TLD's will be served by multiple registries located
              in any geographical area (i.e. these TLD's are
              international and should be served by international
              registries)
4. Registry Selection
   The new registries (INPs) will be selected by the IANA, and given a
   specific TLD "franchise". Note the use of the word "franchise" does
   not in any way convey the legal implications of a franchised
   operation, either to IANA, or the registry. It is merely a
   convenient word to describe the scope of the registry.
   Also, it is important to understand that the registries serve the
   TLD's, and not the other way around. Without TLD's there are no
   registries, so the function of the registry is to support and
   maintain the TLD(s) that it is responsible for, by meeting the
   TLD's charter. Therefore registries must be selected to meet the
   needs of each TLD.
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   4a. Corporate TLD
      Each Corporate TLD is operated by a single company who has
      exclusive use of the TLD. It is that company's responsibilty
      for all registrations under this TLD, including a charter.
   4b. Specialized TLD
      Each Specialized TLD is operated by a single registry who is
      granted a monopoly status within a specific area of business,
      and is responsible for registering all secondary domains.
      The registry must meet specific criteria:
         i)   the registry displays direct expertise in the chosen area
              of business and is able to constructively address
              industry issues in the context of running a TLD registry
              for that industry
         ii)  the registry must have the ability to operate at least
              two root nameservers
         iii) the registry makes peering arrangements with NAP's if
              they run their own backbones between NAP's
         iv)  the registry contributes substantially to the
              infrastructure of the Internet by way of practical
              assistance and goodwill in the form of education and
              subsidy
         v)   payment of a set up fee and annual license fee to operate
              the TLD (Proceeds would go directly to administration,
              construction and operation of public areas of the
              Internet infrastructure)
         vi)  the registry must observe and enforce the charter of
              each TLD
   4c. Openly Competitive TLD
      Each openly competitive TLD must be operated by multiple
      registries. Each registry is responsible for registering
      secondary domains in a competitive marketplace alongside other
      registries. A single registry may not provide registration
      services for all TLD's due to limitations imposed on the
      geographical TLD's.
      Each registry must meet specific criteria:
         i)   the registry must qualify in an openly competitive
              bidding process as defined by IANA
         ii)  the registry has the ability to operate at least two
              root nameservers
         iii) the registry makes peering arrangements with NAP's if
              they run their own backbones between NAP's
         iv)  the registry contributes substantially to the
              infrastructure of the Internet by way of practical
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              assistance and goodwill in the form of education and
              subsidy
         v)   payment of a set up fee and annual license fee to operate
              the TLD (Proceeds would directly to administration,
              construction and operation of public areas of the
              Internet infrastructure)
5. Fees
   The INPs may be charged a fee by the IANA.
   5a. Corporate TLD
      The fee paid by the international company should be based upon
      the market value of having an internationally recognized TLD,
      and the contribution of the company to the growth and well being
      of the public Internet infrastructure.
      A set-up fee and an annual renewal fee will be required in order
      to obtain exclusive use of a top level domain. These fees should
      be high enough to deter companies from licensing their own TLD,
      and to ensure that there is a direct contribution back to the
      Internet community. It would be ideal to make this in direct
      proportion to the benefits the company enjoys from the exclusive
      use of a TLD. These fees would be used to fund the growth of the
      public Internet infrastructure.
   5b. Specialized TLD
      The fee paid by the Specialized TLD registry for its exclusive
      franchise should be based upon the market value of redistributing
      domains within the applicable industry, and the contribution of
      the registry to the growth and well being, of the public Internet
      infrastructure. The registry may set its prices accordingly
      within its area of business provided it does not abuse its
      monopoly power.
      It is assumed that most Specialized TLD registries will be in
      start-up mode so a start-up fee will be minimal. An annual
      registry fee will be proportional to the number of domains
      issued. The registry fee should be 100% tax deductable as a cost
      of doing business, and will allow a decent-sized profit margin.
      The fees are to ensure that the registry contributes back to the
      Internet in direct proportion to the benefits they enjoy from the
      exclusive distribution rights of a TLD. These fees would be used
      entirely to fund the growth of the public Internet
      infrastructure.
   5c. Openly Competitive TLD
      The fee paid by the each registry in this category should be
      based upon the market value of redistributing multiple TLD's in
      an open market, and the contribution of the registry to the
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      growth and well being of the public Internet infrastructure. The
      registry will set its prices competitively but will be required
      to guarantee a minimum level of service.
      A set-up fee and an annual renewal fee will be required. An
      annual registry fee will be proportional to the number of domains
      issued. The registry fee should be 100% tax deductable as a cost
      of doing business, and will allow a decent-sized profit margin.
      The fees are to ensure that the registry contributes back to the
      Internet in direct proportion to the benefits they enjoy from
      the distribution rights of multiple TLD's. These fees would be
      used entirely to fund the growth of the public Internet
      infrastructure.
6. Appeals
   The IANA's decisions may be appealed to the IAB.
7. Security Considerations
   This document does not address any security issues.
8. Author's Address
      Simon Higgs
      Higgs America
      P.O. Box XXXX
      XXXXXXXX, XX  XXXXX-XXXX
      Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX
      Email: XXXXX@XXXXX.XXX
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