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The domain name news is supported by auDA

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EU Pushes to Globalize Internet Governance - European Commission to Propose Steps to Curb U.S. Influence Over Key Web Functions
<http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303874504579377052129964162>

Policy Consultation ? .nz registrations at the second level
<http://dnc.org.nz/second_level_proposal_c3>

The Three Letters That Run Global Commerce
<http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/neil-seeman/china-dns_b_4748068.html>

.photography beating .camera
<http://domainincite.com/15785-photography-beating-camera>

Delegation wait time varies wildly for new gTLDs
<http://domainincite.com/15789-delegation-wait-time-varies-wildly-for-new-gtlds>

Huge hack 'ugly sign of future' for internet threats
<http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-26136774>


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GOVERNANCE
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EU Pushes to Globalize Internet Governance - European Commission to Propose Steps to Curb U.S. Influence Over Key Web Functions
The European Union's executive body is raising pressure to reduce U.S. influence over the Internet's architecture amid what it called weakened confidence in the network's governance after revelations of U.S. surveillance.
<http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303874504579377052129964162>

Report: EU to push to reduce US role in Internet governance [IDG]
The European Union will push for diminished U.S. influence on Internet governance because of "loss of confidence" in the current U.S.-centric model, according to a news report.
<http://www.networkworld.com/news/2014/021114-report-eu-to-push-to-278674.html>

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DOMAIN NAMES
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 - ICANN
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ICANN CEO to Meet with Chinese Internet Industry Leaders in Beijing
ICANN President and Chief Executive Officer Fadi Chehad? has arrived in Beijing for several days of meetings with leaders of China's Internet and telecommunications community.
<http://www.icann.org/en/news/press/releases/release-11feb14-en>

Proposed Review Mechanism to Address Perceived Inconsistent Expert Determinations on String Confusion Objections
Purpose (Brief): To solicit community input regarding a proposed review mechanism to address perceived inconsistent Expert Determinations in the String Confusion Objection process in the New gTLD Program. The review mechanism will be limited to the Expert Determinations made on String Confusion objections for .CAR/.CARS and .CAM/.COM.
<http://www.icann.org/en/news/public-comment/sco-framework-principles-11feb14-en.htm>

First Middle East DNS Forum Overwhelmingly Successful by Baher Esmat and Fahd Batayneh
There are a plethora of untapped opportunities in the Middle East?s domain name sector, both in existing domain names and new ones. Last week?s Middle East DNS Forum, held in Dubai, confirmed just that. These opportunities lie in not only new gTLDs, but also in the regional ccTLDs that have yet to be utilized to their full potential.
<http://blog.icann.org/2014/02/first-middle-east-dns-forum-overwhelmingly-successful/>

Cyrus Namazi, Vice President, Domain Name Services Generic Domains Division | ICANN, to Marc Van Wesemael
IDN ccTLD Implementation Plan and EPSRP Inconsistencies and Concerns
<http://www.icann.org/en/news/correspondence/namazi-to-wesemael-11feb14-en>

Request for Information on Registration Directory Service User Accreditation (Available Until 10 March 2014)
ICANN is publishing Request for Information (RFI) to identify any organizations capable of accrediting users of the new Registration Directory Service (RDS) now under consideration to replace the current WHOIS system. RDS users may include (but are not limited to) Registrants, Proxy Service Providers and Customers, Internet Technical Staff, On-Line Service Providers, Individual and Business Internet Users, Internet Researchers, Intellectual Property Owners, Law Enforcement Agencies, Operations/Security Incident Investigators, and others requesting gTLD domain name registration data for legitimate purposes.
<http://www.icann.org/en/news/announcements/announcement-2-10feb14-en.htm>

Proposed Modifications to GNSO Operating Procedures to Address Resubmission of Motions and Working Group Self Assessment
Purpose (Brief): The Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO) Standing Committee on Improvements Implementation (SCI) is recommending a modification of: (1) the GNSO Operating Procedures to Resubmission of Motions; and (2) the GNSO Working Group (WG) Guidelines to Add a WG Self Assessment Mechanism.
<http://www.icann.org/en/news/public-comment/gnso-op-procedures-10feb14-en.htm>

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 - ccTLD & gTLD NEWS
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German courts make domain registrars liable for piracy clients
As we followed The Pirate Bay?s main domain as it moved from country to country last year it became clear that rights owners had identified that one way to hinder the operations of piracy outfits was to go after their web addresses. That is to say, persuade or pressure domain registries or registrars that they should disable the domain names used by sites that enable rampant copyright infringement.
<http://www.completemusicupdate.com/article/german-courts-make-domain-registrars-liable-for-piracy-clients/>

Policy Consultation ? .nz registrations at the second level
This is the third and final consultation relating to implementing registrations at the second level in the .nz domain name space.
<http://dnc.org.nz/second_level_proposal_c3>

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 - NEW TLDS
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The Three Letters That Run Global Commerce
The prelude to Chinese New Year was ominous. The very foundation of the Internet quaked across the country. What we call the Internet is founded on numerous technology standards. Without standards, there is no "information super highway" or Amazon or Facebook.
<http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/neil-seeman/china-dns_b_4748068.html>

.photography beating .camera
Who said shorter domains are more popular? Donuts? new .photography and .camera gTLDs, which both come out of their Early Access Period premium pricing phases this week, have seen .photography get more than twice as many registrations so far.
<http://domainincite.com/15785-photography-beating-camera>

Delegation wait time varies wildly for new gTLDs
New gTLDs get delegated on average 70 days after they sign their ICANN Registry Agreement, but the duration of the wait varies quite a lot by registry, according to DI research.
<http://domainincite.com/15789-delegation-wait-time-varies-wildly-for-new-gtlds>

Court Says gTLDs Aren't 'Domain Names' for Cybersquatting Purposes, Declines LRO Review of .delmonte by Venkat Balasubramani
A Swiss Del Monte entity that had a license to use the "DEL MONTE" mark applies to operate the .delmonte gTLD. Another Del Monte entity, based in Delaware, filed a "legal rights objection" (LRO) - under WIPO-established procedures - to the Swiss Del Monte's application. A three member panel sustained the Delaware company's LRO... The Swiss entity sued in federal court seeking a declaration that it had sufficient rights in the "DEL MONTE" mark to operate the TLD.
<http://www.circleid.com/posts/20140211_court_says_gtlds_arent_domain_names_for_cybersquatting_purposes/>

Video Game industry fails to beat Amazon.com?s .Game
The Entertainment Software Association, a U.S. industry group for the video game industry, has failed to quash Amazon.com?s application to run the .game TLD.
<http://domainnamewire.com/2014/02/11/video-game-industry-fails-to-beat-amazon-coms-game/>

.Club holds winter domain name auction on Sedo
New TLD .club is holding its first domain name auction on Sedo.
<http://domainnamewire.com/2014/02/11/club-holds-winter-domain-name-auction-on-sedo/>

New TLD lawsuit dismissed but leaves door open for ACPA for TLDs
A federal district judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by Del Monte International against Del Monte Corporation over the TLD .delmonte.
<http://domainnamewire.com/2014/02/11/new-tld-lawsuit-dismissal/>

Are the Sochi Olympics Whetting Your Appetite for Winter Sports Domains? If So, Sedo & .CLUB Want to Put You in the Owner's Suite
Being from Florida I usually don't pay a lot of attention to outdoor winter sports, but when the Winter Olympics roll around every four years I join millions of others around the world who tune in to watch the action. Of course, like a lot of domainers, whenever I'm watching something, ideas for related domains pop into my mind.
<http://www.dnjournal.com/archive/lowdown/2014/dailyposts/20140211.htm>

How common words like Pizza, Money, and Shopping ended up in the Trademark Clearinghouse for new TLDs
The Trademark Clearinghouse for new TLDs is giving some people first dibs on domains like realestate.guru and pizza.restaurant.
<http://domainnamewire.com/2014/02/10/how-common-words-like-pizza-money-and-shopping-ended-up-in-the-trademark-clearinghouse-for-new-tlds/>

Yes, one letter domain names might be worth less than $1,000
Over the weekend there was quite a hubbub over at DomainInvesting.com about the availability of single letter domain names in new TLDs.
<http://domainnamewire.com/2014/02/10/yes-one-letter-domain-names-may-be-worth-less-than-1000/>

Rightside Registry offers its own Domain Protected Marks List
Rightside Registry announced its own version of the Domain Protected Marks List (DPML) service last week.
<http://domainnamewire.com/2014/02/10/rightside-registry-offers-its-own-domains-protected-marks-list/>

Universal Postal Union loses objections to .mail TLD
The Universal Postal Union (UPU) has lost community objections against five applications for the .mail TLD.
<http://domainnamewire.com/2014/02/10/universal-postal-union-loses-objections-to-mail-top-level-domain-name/>

Companies Vie For .names In Internet Domain Expansion
It's likely the biggest virtual real estate expansion this year that you've never heard of ? a massive growth of the Internet that, like the land rushes of yesteryear, will have winners, losers and possibly unintended consequences.
<http://news.investors.com/technology/021014-689499-internet-domain-names-undergo-biggest-expansion.htm>

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 - DNS SECURITY
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Huge hack 'ugly sign of future' for internet threats
A massive attack that exploited a key vulnerability in the infrastructure of the internet is the "start of ugly things to come", it has been warned.
<http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-26136774>

New ?Mask? APT Campaign Called Most Sophisticated Yet
A group of high-level, nation-state attackers has been targeting government agencies, embassies, diplomatic offices and energy companies with a cyber-espionage campaign for more than five years that researchers say is the most sophisticated APT operation they?ve seen to date.
<http://threatpost.com/new-mask-apt-campaign-called-most-sophisticated-yet/104148>

Researchers Uncover 'The Mask' Global Cyberspying Operation
Move over, Flame and Duqu: A newly discovered cyberespionage operation waged by Spanish-speaking attackers against government, energy, oil, and gas organizations around the globe employs the most sophisticated array of tools seen yet, according to researchers here.
<http://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/researchers-uncover-the-mask-global-cybe/240166043>

Kaspersky Lab Uncovers ?The Mask?: One of the Most Advanced Global Cyber-espionage Operations to Date Due to the Complexity of the Toolset Used by the Attackers [news release]
Today Kaspersky Lab?s security research team announced the discovery of ?The Mask? (aka Careto), an advanced Spanish-language speaking threat actor that has been involved in global cyber-espionage operations since at least 2007. What makes The Mask special is the complexity of the toolset used by the attackers. This includes an extremely sophisticated malware, a rootkit, a bootkit, Mac OS X and Linux versions and possibly versions for Android and iOS (iPad/iPhone).
<http://www.kaspersky.com/about/news/virus/2014/Kaspersky-Lab-Uncovers-The-Mask-One-of-the-Most-Advanced-Global-Cyber-espionage-Operations-to-Date-Due-to-the-Complexity-of-the-Toolset-Used-by-the-Attackers>

New ?Mask? APT Campaign Called Most Sophisticated Yet
A group of high-level, nation-state attackers has been targeting government agencies, embassies, diplomatic offices and energy companies with a cyber-espionage campaign for more than five years that researchers say is the most sophisticated APT operation they?ve seen to date. The attack, dubbed the Mask, or ?Careto? (Spanish for ?Ugly Face? or ?Mask?) includes a number of unique components and functionality and the group behind it has been stealing sensitive data such as encryption and SSH keys and wiping and deleting other data on targeted machines.
<http://threatpost.com/new-mask-apt-campaign-called-most-sophisticated-yet/104148>

Australian cyber security challenge issued to university students
The annual Cyber Security Challenge Australia (CySCA), designed to test Australia?s best information security undergraduates, will take place from 7-8 May at universities around the country.
<http://www.computerworld.com.au/article/537954/_australian_cyber_security_challenge_issued_university_students/>

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 - DOMAIN DISPUTES
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Reminder: the TLD matters in a UDRP
With niche TLDs like .clothing and .plumbing now on the market, I?d like to clear up a common misconception about UDRP and whether the TLD should be ignored in such disputes.
<http://domainnamewire.com/2014/02/11/reminder-the-top-level-domain-name-matters-in-a-udrp/>

Domain name seizures by authorities on the rise
US and international law enforcement agencies have teamed up to seize 706 domain names this past holiday season, bringing the total number of domain names seized up to 2,550 since ?Operation In Our Sites? was first launched in 2010. The seized domain names were allegedly pointing to websites selling counterfeit and pirated goods.
<http://www.worldtrademarkreview.com/daily/Detail.aspx?g=e3a2a267-fa44-4bde-ae62-c8d733c030bf>

Krug wanted 'total submission', says Austrian producer
The Austrian winemaker in a trademark dispute with Champagne Krug has said that agreeing to the Moet Hennessy-owned firm's demands would mean 'total submission'. ... He said Champagne Krug sent a declaration letter asking him to agree to change his labels and company name, as well as sign over ownership of the Krug.at domain name.
<http://www.decanter.com/news/wine-news/584803/krug-wanted-total-submission-says-austrian-producer>

Company uses UDRP to go after dead man?s domain name
Soci?t? Du Figaro S.A. of Paris, France, a news publication, has lost a UDRP it filed against a dead man.
<http://domainnamewire.com/2014/02/10/company-uses-udrp-to-go-after-dead-mans-domain-name/>

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 - IPv4/IPv6
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IPv4 Addresses to be Depleted by December 2014: Infographic
Singapore has the highest number of IPv6 certified engineers as well as the highest percentage of IPv6 capable networks (38.57 percent) compared to other countries around the world, according to an infographic released on Monday.
<http://www.thewhir.com/blog/ipv4-addresses-depleted-december-2014-infographic>

Telcos ask for IPv6 standards in VN
Viet Nam's leading internet providers and suppliers of network devices are bemoaning the slow implementation of Internet protocol version 6 (IPv6) plans in the country.
<http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/science-it/95342/telcos-ask-for-ipv6-standards-in-vn.html>

IPv6 and the Browser Wars by Andrew Thong
IPv6 adoption continues to gain ground at a slow pace. This is to be expected. The complications associated with hardware and software upgrades, as well as the lack of reachable content, means that IPv4 is still king of the hill. To me, this situation seems to mirror one a few years back with web browsers. Sometime around the turn of the century, Internet Explorer became the dominant browser. Riding on a 90% market share for Windows, the incumbent - Netscape Navigator - did not stand a chance. However, with it came a dark age for web developers.
<http://www.circleid.com/posts/20140210_ipv6_and_the_browser_wars/>

Next-gen Net en route: Google's IPv6 traffic exceeds 3 percent
Just in time for explosive growth of mobile phones and The Internet of Things, the next-generation Net standard called IPv6 is catching on, now accounting for more than 3 percent of Google's traffic.
<http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-57618728-2/next-gen-net-en-route-googles-ipv6-traffic-exceeds-3-percent/>

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REPORTS & RESEARCH PAPERS
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Connected Televisions: Convergence and Emerging Business Models
Connected televisions are defined for the purposes of this report as devices that have the capability to interact with the Internet to display audio-visual content. Connected television is an important development because it permits the provision of certain new and valuable services to end-users. These services will also have implications for the activities of all of the players in the content distribution ecosystem.
<http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/science-and-technology/connected-televisions_5jzb36wjqkvg-en>

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INTERNET USE
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Children 'need lessons in how to concentrate' because of impact of social media
Children should be taught ?attentiveness? skills to help combat the influence of social media, the shadow Education Secretary has said.
<http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/exclusive-children-need-lessons-in-how-to-concentrate-because-of-impact-of-social-media-9117876.html>

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CHILD PROTECTION & ONLINE SAFETY
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Global Safer Internet Day 2014: ?Let's create a Better Internet together? [news release]
Safer Internet Day is being celebrated today in over 100 countries (including the USA for the first time.) In one of thousands of events taking place European Commission Vice-President Neelie Kroes will reward the creators of the best online content for kids and, together with INSAFE, will launch a Youth Manifesto on how to make a better Internet based on ideas from young people.
<http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-14-136_en.htm>

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PRIVACY & SURVEILLANCE
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Glenn Greenwald's new website launches with fresh NSA revelations
A new website <https://firstlook.org/theintercept/> featuring journalist Glenn Greenwald and funded by the billionaire founder of eBay was unveiled early Monday, with two stories about US government surveillance.
<http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/feb/10/the-intercept-glenn-greenwald-nsa-revelations>

Restricting the Internet is a Business Killer
Turkey is the latest country to mess with the Internet, passing a law that, according to GigaOM, enables authorities to block content at the URL level. When will countries learn that limiting the Internet is a horrible idea?
<http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9246176/Ron_Miller_Restricting_the_Internet_is_a_business_killer>
<http://www.cio.com/article/748038/Restricting_the_Internet_is_a_Business_Killer>

White House urged to open up review into big data and privacy threats
A coalition of 25 consumer, civil liberties and privacy groups have written to the White House calling for President Obama?s review of ?Big Data and the Future of Privacy? to be opened up for participation by the public.
<http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/feb/10/white-house-data-review-public>

Edward Snowden revelations: GCHQ 'using online viruses and honey traps to discredit targets'
Britain?s GCHQ has a covert unit which uses dirty tricks from ?honey trap? sexual liaisons to texting anonymous messages to friends and neighbours to discredit targets from hackers to governments, according to the latest leaks from whistleblower Edward Snowden.
<http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/edward-snowden-revelations-gchq-using-online-viruses-and-honey-traps-to-discredit-targets-9117683.html>

Internet Community Collaboration Forges Strong Links in Global ?Chain of Trust? by Markus Kummer
Tomorrow, 11 February, a day of activism has been organized by a coalition of influential organizations and companies taking a stand against mass surveillance. Collectively, The Day We Fight Back is doing two important things: making the somewhat abstract topic of Internet governance more accessible to the online user, and?even more importantly?giving everyday Internet users a role in the debate, encouraging them to engage with their legislators on the issues, and make their voices heard.
<http://www.internetsociety.org/blog/public-policy/2014/02/internet-community-collaboration-forges-strong-links-global-?chain-trust?>
------
David Goldstein

 email: david at goldsteinreport.com

 web:   http://goldsteinreport.com/ / http://davidgoldstein.tel/
 phone: +61 418 228 605 - mobile; +61 2 9663 3430 - office/home

"Every time you use fossil fuels, you're adding to the problem. Every time you forgo fossil fuels, you're being part of the solution" - Dr Tim Flannery