ITU Workshop on Member States' Experiences with ccTLDs
The purpose of this open workshop is to begin to work with
Member States and Sector Members, recognizing the
activities of other appropriate entities, to review Member
States' ccTLD and other related experiences, in accordance
with Resolution 102 as revised at the Plenipotentiary
Conference in Marrakesh (2002).
 http://www.itu.int/ITU-T/worksem/cctld/index.html
 http://www.demys.net/news/02_nov_29_itu.htm
  
Keep ICANN Open
In late October, the international body that regulates
critical components of the Internet met for the first time
in China. The Shanghai meeting offered a historic
opportunity to resolve questions surrounding international
governance of the Internet and to focus attention on the
tight controls China still exercises over the Internet
within its borders. 
 http://www.nlj.com/oped/112502sapiro.shtml

ICANN Director Responds to Critics
Responding to an article in Wired News, ICANN director
Jonathan Cohen defends ICANN's role in managing the
Internet and fights back against its critics. The Internet
authority has come under fire after accusations that
changes to its structure discussed at their last major
meeting in Shanghai are undemocratic and end "at large"
representation on the ICANN board. The original intention
when ICANN was formed was that half of its board would be
elected "at large" representatives of the Internet
community after a transitional stage. However, only five,
including outspoken ICANN critic Karl Auerbach - were ever
appointed. The proposed changes at Shanghai - to be
approved next month at Amsterdam - will remove directly
elected "at large" representation from the ICANN board.
 http://www.demys.net/news/02_nov_25_wired.htm

ICANN Special Meeting of the Board
The ICANN Board of Directors held a meeting by
teleconference on 2 December 2002. The Board adopted the
following resolutions: Amendment to .name Registry
Agreement and Amendment to .pro Registry Agreement, ccTLD
Agreement for .uz (Uzbekistan)
 http://www.icann.org/minutes/prelim-report-02dec02.htm

.org Agreement Signed; Transition Plans Announced
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
(ICANN) President and CEO, Stuart Lynn has signed the
finalized agreement for the Public Interest Registry (PIR)
to operate the .org top-level domain. PIR takes over from
VeriSign, the current .org registry operator, as of 1
January 2003.

http://www.icann.org/announcements/announcement-03dec02.htm

ccTLD Governance Project
This project reviews the relationship between country code
Top Level Domains (ccTLDs) and governments in 45 countries.
Included are 1) tables which highlight the main
relationships, and 2) country-specific information. The
preliminary findings include:
 http://www.cctldinfo.com/

BIND flaws not fixed after five years
The most recent vulnerabilities identified in BIND and
several other Domain Name Server implementations, including
Microsoft and Apple variants, may not be fixable, and were
identified in security vulnerabilities as long ago as 1997.

http://www.zdnet.com.au/newstech/security/story/0,2000024985,20270349,00.htm

An ADR Remedy for Cybersquatting
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
(ICANN) has devised a quick and relatively low-cost method
for resolving one of the most common Internet legal
difficulties: disputes between trademark owners and domain
name registrants.

http://www.law.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/View&c=LawArticle&cid=1036630513981&t=LawArticleIP
 http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1036630513981

Nominet wins injunction against DRS
Nominet UK has won an interim injunction order in the High
Court against Domain Registrar Services Limited (DRS),
banning the company from using the Nominet name and logo.
 http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/28411.html
 http://www.vnunet.com/News/1137313

FTC settles domain name suit
The Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday it reached a
settlement with five parties accused of selling bogus Web
site domains.
 http://news.com.com/2100-1023-975904.html

http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/657614p-4937289c.html
 http://www.internetnews.com/xSP/article.php/1551341
 http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2002/12/tld3.htm
  
Michael Douglas Files .name Case
Actor Michael Douglas has filed a case with the National
Arbitration Forum under the Eligibility Requirements
Dispute Resolution Policy for .name. Four decisions have
been issued under the ERDRP, all resulting in transfer or
cancellation.
 http://www.udrplaw.net

NAF Panel Discusses Rights to Trademarks of Multiple
Parties in Celebrex Case - from www.udrplaw.net
NAF Panelist Hon. Carolyn Marks Johnson issued an
interesting decision on the ability to proceed against a
domain name containing the marks of multiple trademark
owners in G. D. Searle & Co. v. Vioxx & Celebrex Arthritis
Help, NAF Case FA126831 (Dec. 2, 2002).
 http://www.arbforum.com/domains/decisions/126831.htm

'Dot-Usa' Internet Name Seller Plans Appeal
A British entrepreneur who sold Internet domain names with
a ".usa" suffix that did not work on most computers has
agreed to give back the roughly $350,000 he collected, the
Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=1845220

ICANN General Counsel's Opinion vs. Reality
In a "quick-look" evaluation of RegistryPro's discovery of
the principle that a turkey of a new TLD may still be able
to extract "protection" money from nervous trademark
owners, ICANN's General Counsel demonstrates the need for
the "new TLD evaluation process" to provide him with some
reality therapy.
 http://www.icannwatch.org/article.php?sid=1040
 
VeriSign to revamp secondary domain biz
VeriSign Inc next month will re-launch its GreatDomains
domain name resale service, dropping its retail auction
model in favor of a wholesale system that will be made
available to all of its registrar channel partners,
ComputerWire has learned.
 http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/28396.html

Dormant domains can prove bad faith
Proving registration in bad faith is not enough to retrieve
a domain name. Trade mark owners must also show that the
name was used in bad faith, which includes non-use.

http://www.legalmediagroup.com/MIP/default.asp?Page=1&SID=1717

Crichton wins 'cybersquatting' case
Best-selling author Michael Crichton, the writer of
Jurassic, wins a case against a so-called cybersquatter.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/2542055.stm

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=1843409

http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/internet/12/03/cyber.squatting.reut/index.html

Domain Name Theft Part II: Did ICANN Leave Foxes Guarding
the Chicken COOP?
Harris selected the generic word "email" for his domain
name and registered 'email.coop' for a two year period. He
registered his domain name as part of a business model,
which provides email services for cooperatives desiring a
presence in electronic commerce without carrying the burden
of developing and managing a website. Shortly after
successfully registering email.coop and spending a
substantial sum of money to establish a business, Harris'
domain disappeared...
 http://www.circleid.com/articles/2555.asp

Examining Stuart Lynn's Domain Name Plans - Part I
In the past, ICANN has made some fundamental errors
implementing new generic top-level domains (gTLDs), most of
which stemmed from a failure to enforce rules to ensure
fairness and public accountability. Although it seems
highly unlikely that ICANN will improve the fairness of
future gTLD rollouts, given ICANN's increasing isolation
from external input, it is nonetheless important to
question the three parts of Stuart Lynn's plan for action.
 http://www.circleid.com/articles/2556.asp

Michael Furdyk Is Taking His Domain Global
Michael Furdyk is a young man and domain name owner with a
vision and a compassionate heart. He has a unique
understanding that the Internet has the power to create
positive change if used responsibly and with a purpose. In
the Internet world, Michael Furdyk is a domain name owner
who I root for. I'm excited to share his story and new
domain venture with you.
 http://www.circleid.com/articles/2557.asp

Dialog Adds Domain Names Database
Dialog has joined with SnapNames to offer a master
directory of domain name information. At 65 million records
and counting, the database becomes the largest single file
on Dialog. The Domain Names Database (File 225) carries
both current URL records and historical ownership records
for Internet domain names. The source matches records held
in WhoIs and WhoWas files. Records can contain as many as
78 fields; more than 50 are fully searchable. Fields
include registrant name, domain name, e-mail address, phone
number, ZIP code, etc.
 http://www.infotoday.com/newsbreaks/nb021202-1.htm

Council Of European National Top-Level Domain Registries -
Vacancy: General Manager
CENTR is a not for profit organisation, incorporated in the
UK, and with staff currently based in Oxford and Salzburg.
CENTR was created and funded by country code top level
domain registries (ccTLDs) in Europe and beyond. CENTR's
members manage the national Internet domain name registries
for names registered under their two-letter code (.fr, .uk,
.de etc).
 http://www.centr.org/news/vacancy-6.html


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