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This initial batch of new TLD's is about proving new ideas and concepts, in the case
of Restricted Commercial Groups, about proving whether this concept works within
the structure of the Domain Naming System. Mr. Kaneko believes that "...in view of
travel and tourism becoming so commonplace in our life today, there is a clear need
for the industry to maintain its quality and integrity through adequate governance
of the TLD..." I agree. There have been many documented cases of travel scams on
the Internet. Granting an industry operated .travel domain would provide an excellent
proof of concept study which, if successful, will be of great benefit to the general
public. Folks who trust IATA will make bookings in confidence on the .travel websites.
If the concept proves successful, there is nothing to prevent another trusted travel
industry group from applying for .tvl, .tour or the like during the next broader
round of TLD grants. The results of the IATA study will doubtless be found useful
by other trade industry groups who may similarly wish to increase consumer confidence. It
is my feeling that ICANN should require from all new registry operators periodical
public reports on various aspects of their first year's operations (technical, financial,
legal...) so that others may learn from their successes and failures. Disclosure:
I have no financial interest in anything related to the travel industry. I do take
the wife and kids on a couple travel trips each year so do have an interest in dealing
with online travel industry representatives I can trust. --Rich Langsford
rlangsford@uswest.net
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