The truth is that IODesign's registry (webtld.com)
is the fair and right choice
for .web:
everyone knows this in his/her own conscience.
Even Afilias and Neustar
know this:
actually on their applications they included
alternative strings
also (.dot , .info , .site, .surf) .Disclaimer: I registered a few .web domains
at webtld.com
a few weeks ago, AFTER I understood that IODesign deserves
to
be the .web registry.
I am confident in ICANN's fairness and I believe that
IODesign's
application will be accepted.
Someone says that IODesign's supporters care about
their
own convenience only: they support IODesign because this is
their convenience!
I
think that this sentence must be reversed:
FIRST, IODesign's supporters saw that
IODesign is the natural
and proper registry for .web .
THEN they registered
one or more domains.
To skeptical people: otherwise please explain why
IODesign
has so many supporters around the world
(for example I am from Italy) and took
almost
20,000 registrations so far.
IODesign is running a .web registry since
1996,
after IANA's "Postel Draft" and a purported permission
(given to IOD
by IANA) to take .web registrations and
to collect fees for this.
Someone says
that such permission was never given by IANA
and quoted old posts on IANA boards
to show this,
but such posts do NOT demonstrate anything special about this matter.
On
the contrary, they show that IODesign was involved in running
the .web registry
since 1996 and is the unique .web PIONEER.
Everyone knows that IODesign acted in
good faith since 1996:
registered .web domains are working on alternative root
servers
at this time (see youcann.org).
Name Space is another company that
has many domains
on alternative servers (.biz, .shop and other 100+ TLDs).
It
is remarkable that Name Space filed an application for
100+ TLDs but did NOT request
.web .
If you make a WHOIS search for a .web domain on name-space.com
you will
be redirected to IODesign's .web registry!
This means that Name Space (who is
another pioneer in new TLDs)
recognizes IODesign's priority on .web .
About
.web registrations taken by IODesign's since 1996
(after the purported permission
by IANA).
They were necessary to test the functionality of the .web registry
and
allowed IODesign to collect money to run and maintain it
and eventually to file
the application to ICANN for .web .
I think that IODesign and .web registrants
are a single entity:
IODesign would not have survived without support by so
many
registrants.
The registrations taken so far are real contracts and can't
be
wiped out.
Remember that Network Solutions took .com pre-registrations
in 1993
and then they become real domains. Would it make sense
to ask for their cancellation
at this time?! (Note 1)
About purported speculation by early .web registrants:
starting
new registrations cannot avoid speculation either!
(*New* registrants may register
thousands of domains on day one
when a new .web registry is created).
I think
that it is obvious and fair to assign the .web domains
to the ones who registered
them at IODesign since 1996.
Afilias was created on 9/25/2000 (!) and can't pretend
to
get .web, that is a product launched 4 years ago by IODesign.
Further on, on ICANN's
document about Yokohama
meeting, I read that "competition must be promoted":
of
course this can't be obtained by giving .web to
Afilias (that means NSI and other
18 powerful registrars).
I read on Afilias' application, Part 1:
"After awarding
Afilias approval to operate the registry for
the new gTLD, ICANN may quickly authorize
other gTLDs
that may compete with Afilias' chosen gTLD".
So the problem can
be solved: Afilias can get .info and .site
and can easily accept that .web is
assigned to IODesign.
On the contrary, IODesign can't easily accept that .web is
assigned
to Afilias (or to Neustar). If this happens,
IODesign's long work will be destroyed
and the company
itself will be ruined. This is completely unfair, since
it
is not fair to ruin a company that believed in .web TLD
since 1996 and acted in
good faith for this purpose only.
To be a pioneer can't be considered a fault!
IODesign
should be rewarded by ICANN,
as well as it was rewarded by so many Internet users
in
the world! Actually IOD's .web registry is the NATURAL
EXPRESSION of the Internet
users' WILL.
So, if IODesign is not chosed by ICANN as the .web registry,
it's
sure that IODesign will sue ICANN: so the Internet will wait for
many months (or
years?) for the new .web TLD!
In any case, Afilias requires long times to build
their registry
and to make it public, as we can read on its application.
On
the contrary, IODesign's .web registry is *ready* and it can be put
into the A-root
server soon, after a short blackout period
for protecting trademarks
(you can
read this on IODesign's application, E5.3)
Other registrars may share IODesign's
database soon
(as it happens for NSI's .com at this time).
This has been proposed
by IODesign itself,
as it is found on IODesign's application.
Conclusion: .web
means IODesign and IODesign means .web .
Thanks, ICANN, for listening and making
the fair choice.
Regards
Fabrizio Coppola
Italy