Additional comments by the UPU

[DONOHOE paul <paul.DONOHOE@xxxxxxx>]

The Universal Postal Union (UPU) would like to thank all those who have 
submitted comments on the proposed RSEP request relating to the “release and 
allocation of previously-reserved IANA strings to second- and higher-level 
.POST sTLD registrations”, and provide additional clarification to a number of 
remarks presented during the Public Comments period.

The UPU wishes to note that, at the time of publication of the original RSEP 
request announcement, a reference was made by ICANN to the UPU requesting 
permission to use country codes. This minor error in the announcement was 
subsequently rectified by ICANN; nevertheless, it may have given the impression 
that the use and/or registration of ISO-3166 country codes were not allowed 
under .POST, which is incorrect. In accordance with the relevant provisions 
contained in Appendix 6 of the .POST sTLD Agreement, the UPU is already 
permitted to work in conjunction with its member countries to assign and use 
ISO-3166 country codes in .POST domain name registrations.

The need for submitting this RSEP request was identified as the outcome of 
preparations of comprehensive domain management policy and naming conventions 
resulting from extensive multi-stakeholder debates conducted within the UPU, 
which have involved the governments of its member countries, designated postal 
operators, private sector entities (through the UPU Consultative Committee), 
other postal community-based associations and organizations and finally decided 
by the bodies of the UPU over the past two years.

It is worth noting, once more, that the proposed service requested is merely 
seeking to implement recent ICANN decisions and recommendations concerning the 
use of previously-reserved gTLD strings, particularly the Final Report of the 
Reserved Names Working Group (GNSO New TLDs Committee) of 23 May 2007, as well 
as the current version of the gTLD Applicant Guidebook (11 January 2012), in 
which such gTLD string second- or higher-level registration restrictions no 
longer exist (see section 2.6 of the Draft New gTLD Registry Agreement and its 
Specification 5 - "Schedule of Reserved Names at the Second Level in gTLD 
Registries").

In conclusion, the UPU reinforces its request that the current restriction 
pertaining to registration of previously-reserved IANA domain strings at the 
second level within the TLD be removed from the .POST Sponsored TLD Agreement, 
in order to allow the UPU to fulfill the .POST objectives and the 
implementation of the .POST Domain Management Policy as approved by its member 
countries.

We hope this clarifies the discussion on the .POST RSEP request.

Regards

Paul DONOHOE
Universal Postal Union
International Bureau
Weltpoststrasse 4
Case postale
3000 BERNE 15
SWITZERLAND
 
T +41 31 350 34 50
E dotpost@xxxxxxx