New Domain Names Reach the Home Stretch

On July 3, 2013, the last contractual hurdle was cleared for the new generic top-level domain names (gTLD) as the Board of Directors of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers approved the 2013 Registry Agreement. For those applicants which applied for gTLDs and were approved, the new names should go live soon. Under the Registry Agreement, procedures have been established for taking down infringing domain names and for asserting claims directly by trademark holders against a registry operator if the operator has been actively involved in domain name abuse. To view the Registry Agreement, go to http://www.icann.org/en/news/announcements/announcement-03jul13-en.htm. —Kristan B. Burch