May 25 – Chicago Daily Law Bulletin
Professor Doris Long authored column
It is ironic that the fabled roll-out of the new “dot anything” domain names by the Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has been delayed by technical problems. On April 12 the application process for new generic top level domains (gTLDs) was suspended as a result of a “possible glitch in the software.” When the suspension ends this month (barring another glitch), “.brand” registrations, such as “.pepsi,” or even more lucrative “.generic” domains, such as “.beverage,” will be closer to becoming the newest target marketing fad for the Internet. The glitch gives brand owners breathing space to tweak prior strategies by delaying “Reveal Day”—when ICANN will post the 1,400-plus (latest estimate) applied-for gTLDs at newgtlds.icann.org/en/program-status/application-results. Given the unanticipated large numbers of new gTLDs the process has generated, an initial strategy by brand owners to register a brand with all news domains is going to be unworkable. However, ignoring registration opportunities with so many new domains is similarly unwise. Instead, brand strategies must be revised to include a more nuanced approach to “.generic” domains and second level registrations—the space before the “dot”—balancing defensive and offensive strategies against a brand’s market valuation.
Read more: ‘Reveal Day’ Glitch Gives Brand Owners Chance to Revise Strategies
