Lobbyists for big business say that internet users will become
confused if other websites are allowed to exist with the same names as “famous” businesses.
They say that allowing the free use of names on the internet will “water down” their
trademarks. On the surface it would seem that big businesses should be allowed “first
crack” at the new top level domains.
However, it is not fair to
smaller businesses with the same name, foreign businesses, and individuals to allow
big business to snatch up every name, phrase, abbreviation, and sound-alike variation
of a registered trademark. That will leave almost nothing left for the other 99.9
percent of internet users. What we need is a different approach.
If a separate top-level domain existed for registered trademarks then there would
be no confusion and no excuse. People would know exactly where to look for a “famous”
name or a registered trademark. And big business would know exactly where to
put it.
I propose a .REG top-level domain for “famous names” and
a .TM top level domain for registered trademarks. There could even be a structure
like “.US.TM” (US trademark) or “.EU.TM” (European trademark) or even individual
states “.MI.TM” (Michigan trademark).
ICANN may not have any political
power when it comes to passing laws. Its main task is the technical management of
the internet naming and numbering system. ICANN is not here to solve the world’s
problems or fight injustice. However, if a top-level domain existed for registered
trademarks, it would be a rather simple task to get popular support for laws that
would require its use. It is certainly more logical and technically correct to try
to place registered trademarks in one place rather than trying to come up with rules
about “sunrise periods”, “dispute policies”, “alternative character sets”, and the
threat of foreign governments making their own rules. I hope that the media and the
world is watching these comments.
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