SIIA Reply Comments on GAC Advice
The Software and Information Industry Association ("SIIA") submits the
following reply comments to ICANN regarding the Advice of the Governmental
Accountability Committee ("GAC") relating to safeguards for new gTLDs ("GAC
Advice").
SIIA is the U.S.-based trade association representing the software and
information industries. It consists of over 700 member companies, ranging from
start-ups to some of the largest and most recognizable companies in the world.
Many SIIA member companies have facilities, operations, and/or employees in
multiple countries, and most do business internationally. All of them are
fundamentally reliant upon the stable, secure, reliable operation of the
Internet in order to run their businesses successfully, and some even provide
core software and services that support the Internet itself. In short, SIIA
and its members have a significant interest in the effect of new gTLDs being
introduced into the DNS.
SIIA's particular concern regards strings and applications that refer to,
describe, or are likely to disproportionally impact rights owners in the
software and information industries. These industries have experienced a long
history of vulnerability to fraud and abuse, including copyright and trademark
infringement, cybersquatting, and other abuses. Copyright and trademark
infringement, fraud, deception, and similar abuses by some domain name
registrants, registrars, resellers and other participants in the DNS ecosystem
are an enormous and ongoing problem faced by SIIA member companies and their
customers around the world in the software and information industries. It is
reasonable to foresee that introducing hundreds if not thousands of new gTLDs
on the Internet will multiply the problem exponentially - unless appropriate
safeguards are implemented.
In its initial round comments, ICANN received numerous comments from a wide
variety of diverse organizations located around the world voicing their strong
support of ICANN accepting the GAC Advice. This support comes from the
copyright community, as well as telecomm, financial services, online travel,
and the trademark communities. With our reply comments submitted today, SIIA
joins the growing chorus of organizations, including the Coalition for Online
Accountability ("COA"), in urging ICANN to accept the GAC Advice.
By incorporating the GAC Advice into the new gTLD program, ICANN will increase
the likelihood that the program will achieve the stated goals of expanding
competition and enhancing consumer choice. Some new gTLD applicants argue that
the GAC Advice is unclear and/or impossible to implement. To the extent the
GAC Advice is unclear, we urge that such ambiguity not be used an excuse to
reject the GAC Advice. Rather, we recommend that ICANN work with the GAC to
clarify any such ambiguities, and to work with applicants and the larger
community to properly incorporate important elements of the GAC Advice into the
new gTLD process. In response to those who allege that the GAC Advice is
impossible to implement, we feel it necessary to point out that the new gTLD
program is not being carried out for the benefit of new gTLD applicants or
their investors. The fact that the GAC Advice may impose added costs or alter
the expectations on these parties should not be a primary factor in ICANN's
decision whether to accept the GAC Advice. There are many more interests at
stake here that warrant greater consideration. Ultimately the calculus must
come down to implementing the new gTLD program in a way that factors in the
benefits and risks to the public as a whole - something the GAC is uniquely
well situated to assess and articulate.
SIIA specifically commends the GAC's List of "Safeguards Applicable to all New
gTLDs" contained on pages 7 and 8 of the GAC Beijing Communiqué, issued on
April 11, 2013. Safeguards that require knowing the identity of registrants
and prohibiting them from engaging in abusive uses of their registered domain
names make simple sense. As does the provision of a means for the public to
complaint about registrant abuses and the imposition of consequences when
abuses do occur. These safeguards are simple common sense procedures that
should significantly reduce the risk of abusive registrations in all gTLDs and
that any responsible registry operator should be able to support and implement.
These safeguards are not unprecedented or unanticipated. SIIA endorsed similar
safeguards a year ago, and urged ICANN, GAC, and all relevant new gTLD
applicants to apply them. Similar processes are already included in the
revised Registrar Accreditation Agreement. And, in anticipated that some of
these safeguards would be adopted by ICANN and because they are common sense
procedures, many new gTLD applicants have already incorporated them into their
applications.
Safeguards are especially important for TLDs at higher risk of abuse that harms
consumers or the rights of others. This includes applications targeted at
sectors dependent on copyright protection --such as the software and
information industries. As noted above, these sectors have consistently
experienced high levels of online infringement. Consequently, meaningful steps
to anticipate and manage these risks should be mandatory. Thus, even if not
required for all new gTLDs, the GAC's six basic safeguards should be mandated
for those listed as "sensitive strings" within the GAC Advice.
Thank you in advance for considering SIIA's comments.
Keith Kupferschmid
General Counsel and SVP, Intellectual Property
SOFTWARE & INFORMATION INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION
1090 Vermont Avenue, NW; 6th Floor
Washington, DC 20005
Attachment:
SIIA Commentson GAC Advice (6-13).pdf |