October 31, 2007 GNSO Motions

["Sparschu, Mark \(M.S.\)" <msparsch@xxxxxxxx>]

Dear Sirs:

Ford Motor Company strongly support Motion 2 and oppose Motion 1 and
Motion 3.

An open Whois system is necessary for rights owners to be able to
protect their intellectual property on the Internet.  Ford Motor Company
is a regular victim of cyberpiracy, and open Whois information is a
critical tool in helping us address it.

Arguments about any alleged need to keep ownership information about
domain names secret are not persuasive.  Ownership information about
trademarks is not guarded, and there are no serious arguments that this
presents any problems.  Ownership information about domain names should
also be open.

A study about potential abuses in the current Whois system, which would
be conducted under Motion 2, is a reasonable step to determine if any
changes are needed to the current Whois practices.

Thank you for your consideration of Ford's viewpoint.


Very truly yours,

Mark S. Sparschu
Chief Trademark Counsel
Ford Motor Company

Ford Global Technologies, LLC   
Suite 800 South                 phone:  +1-313-323-2023
330 Town Center Drive           fax:    +1-313-323-2647
Dearborn, Michigan  48126       
USA