A new Top level domain has just
been made available. WorldSite.ws bills itself as the new global alternative to .com
.nu and .md appear to be doing brisk business .cc and .co.uk are gowing larger
but everyone wants to live in the .com neighborhood. This is not going to change
regardless of the number of new TLDs or GTLDs that get introduced. As a captain of
industry, how well will you sleep at night owning Loans.biz or Loans.net or Loans.web
knowing that 99% of your prospective customers will visit Loans.com just to see what
is there? With every passing day .com becomes more powerful. I don't see this
changing for our current generation... perhaps the next generation will find .com
too old fashioned for them.Today ICANN has encountered a fork in the road. We
either need to:
1. adopt a system whereby any GTLD could be made available, a system
where purchasing your own GTLD is as easy as purchasing your own domain name. Logistically,
this could be done as easily as snapping your fingers. Insert the "dot" anywhere
you like. or
2. Very cautiously add 1-6 new TLDs that are globally recognizable.
When I make a toll free call, I use an 800, 877 or 888 prefix (or a few others that
are even lesser known) There is no talk now of adding hundreds of toll free prefixes...and
not everyone will be fortunate enough to own 800 FLOWERS. But the system works. The
system works because it was collectively adopted.
Let us adopt a system and pursue
developing it. I think the internet is going to become a very confusing place if
ICANN doesn't have the courage today to adopt a strategy and execute it with conviction.