Own a .NYC Web Address for $25-$50 1

The open registration phase for purchasing .NYC web addresses has begun.

COST: .NYC web addresses can be purchased for an annual fee of $25-$50 from a variety of retailers. You may want to comparison shop between the retailers to find the best deal. (A  list of available retailers is available at www.ownit.nyc/register after running a name search)

WHO IS ELIGIBLE: Any person, business, or organization with a physical address within the five boroughs can register a .NYC web address

THE FIRST STEP: Search for .NYC web address availability at http://www.ownit.nyc or https://www.godaddy.com/tlds/nyc?isc=ownitnyc

.NYC web addresses are a new breed of web addresses linked to a city domain. While we are all familiar with country domains like .au, .it, .fr, .ca, .de and .uk (Internet top-level domains, TLDs, for countries) regional domains are now available for cities to apply for.  As far as I know, .NYC is one of the first city domains to be launched.

BY: Vanessa Kaster, Esq., LL.M.

vk@kasterlegal.com

See also: An earlier blog post on .NYC at http://wp.me/p10nNq-CK;  Frequently Asked Questions about .NCY at http://www.ownit.nyc/faq and http://www.ownit.nyc/what-it-is; ICANN website for more information on new generic top level domains (gTLDs) at http://newgtlds.icann.org/en/; @iplegalfreebies and www.kasterlegal.com.

Meet .NYC – the new domain for New Yorkers Reply

A new class of generic top-level domains (gTLDs) is rolling out, including “.nyc”!  This is a new domain for New Yorkers.  Here is a bit of information about the new .nyc domain from the official website: http://www.nic.nyc/about/ 

Who Will Own .nyc?

• Any New Yorker whose work, ideas and creativity are based in the City.
• Locals who provide services, products or content to fellow New Yorkers.
• Companies, organizations and individuals wishing to showcase the value of their location online.

When can I register a .nyc domain name?

It is currently expected that .nyc will launch as early as May 2014, with phasing as follows.

PHASE 1 (May 2014): Trademarks Sunrise (45 days – ending June 20, 2014)

Sunrise is an initial period designed to protect intellectual property rights holders: those with registered trademarks. Trademark owners can take advantage of the Sunrise phase to safeguard the domain name that matches their trademark. As required by ICANN, all trademark owners must have their marks validated and registered in the Trademark Clearinghouse as a minimum requirement if they wish to register during Sunrise. Submit a trademark to the Clearinghouse at: http://trademark-clearinghouse.com.  After marks are registered with the Trademark Clearinghouse, registered trademark owners may apply for their own .nyc web address at: http://www.nic.nyc/trademarks.  The steps for priority registration for registered trademark owners are outlined here: http://www.trademark-clearinghouse.com/content/nyc-priority-registration-trademark-holders?utm_source=.NYC&utm_medium=clickthrough&utm_campaign=NYCSunrise

Learn more about the Trademark Clearinghouse on ICANN’s website: http://newgtlds.icann.org/en/about/trademark-clearinghouse

If there is more than one qualified trademark holder applying for the same domain name, an auction will be held to determine the registrant.

PHASE 2 (June/July 2014): City Government-Affiliated Reserve List (30 days) / Sunrise Auctions

During this phase, City government and government-affiliated .nyc entities will have the right to register .NYC domains through a City-designated single point of contact that will authenticate eligibility.

PHASE 3 (August/September 2014): Landrush (60 days)

All businesses, organizations and residents with a physical address in the City will have an equal opportunity to register .nyc domains during the Landrush phase. There will be a slightly higher fee for registrations occurring during the Landrush phase. If there is only one application for a .nyc domain name during this period, the applicant for that name will be granted the registration. If there are multiple applications for a domain name during this period, however, an auction will be held to determine the registrant after completion of the Landrush period.

PHASE 4 (October 2014): General Availability

After the Landrush phase, all businesses, organizations and residents with a physical address in the City of New York shall be entitled to register .nyc domain names in real-time on a first-come, first-served basis. For the first ninety (90) days of General Availability, in the event that a domain name registrant applied for a domain name that is an exact match of a trademark appearing in the Trademark Clearinghouse, the registrant will receive a notice about that trademark during the registration process and asked whether or not it wishes to proceed with the registration. If it does, the name will proceed to registration, but may subsequently be challenged by the Trademark owner through an ICANN dispute resolution procedure if the name is likely to cause confusion with the trademark.

For more information see the Official Website at http://www.nic.nyc/  and http://www.nic.nyc/trademarks/.  For folks outside of NYC, a new generic top-level domain may be launching in your area too.

BY: Vanessa Kaster, Esq., LL.M.

vk@kasterlegal.com

Are you ready for the launch of new internet domains (gTLDs)? Reply

The internet as we know it is poised to change drastically with the launch of new generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs). Currently, there are roughly two dozen gTLDs in use (.com, .net, .gov… etc); however, over 1,800 applications have been submitted for new gTLDs. The first 27 are scheduled to launch and go live this month. These first 27 new gTLDs appear to all be in non-Latin scripts such as Arabic, Japanese and Chinese. Later this year, many other new gTLDs are scheduled to go live. Among the applied for gTLDs are well known brands and also generic terms. For example, .apple (applied for by Apple Inc.); .coach (applied for by Coach Inc.); .fedex (applied for by Federal Express Corp.); .tires (applied for by Goodyear); .fashion (applied for by 4 entities) and .books (applied for by 9 entities including Amazon).

The launch of these new gTLDs could impact brand owners because of the possibility of abuse and misuse of trademarks in the new domains.

It is uncertain how these new gTLDs will impact the Internet. However, if you are a brand owner your defense mechanism against possible abuse and misuse of your marks in the new domains will be your USPTO trademark registrations (or trademark registrations in other countries). A legitimate concern for brand owners could be the use of their brand within a new gTLDs without permission. Web-traffic could be diverted and adversely impact brands. This is a valid concern for all brand owners, as well as creators, businesses, blogs, municipalities and many others.

Here are a few details about the new gTLDs:

• PRICE: $185,000 to apply for a new gTLD (plus ongoing maintenance and other fees).
• ICANN is the not-for-profit entity reviewing and approving applications.
• ICANN is an acronym for “Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers”
• PURPOSE: to increase competition and choice in the internet domain space (as stated by ICANN).
• OPEN & CLOSED DOMAINS: The new gTLDs will be a mix of open and closed domains. As the name implies, the closed domains will be controlled by the owner of the gTLD (including control of all content). Open gTLDs, on the other hand will be open domains, with broader access.
• Link to search the new gTLDs which have been applied for: https://gtldresult.icann.org/application-result/applicationstatus

Stay tuned for future posts as the gTLDs launch and this new technology exposes new legal issues.

See also, ICANN website for more information at: http://newgtlds.icann.org/en/about/program; @iplegalfreebies and www.kasterlegal.com.

BY: Vanessa Kaster, Esq., LL.M.

For personalized legal services you are welcome to contact me at vk@kasterlegal.com