Question: What is the procedure that is usually followed before domain names extensions are decided? For eg how were .com, .net, .tv, etc decided upon??

Nominee Replies

Sureswaran Ramadass - posted on 2000-09-30 05:22:45 I dont know the procedure for the old ones, ie .net,.com etc. But the procedure for the new will be set by the ICANN committee/directors. Lulin Gao - posted on 2000-09-20 01:19:47 As you may know, the domain name system along with Internet technology originate from the US. According to the nature of the entities in question, the top level domain names (TLDs) have been divided into 7 categories in terms of their extensions: .com for business,.edu for education,.gov for government authorities,.int for international agencies,.mil for military units,.net for Internet service providers,.org for non-profit organizations. Among them, TLDs ending with the extentions of .com, .org and .net are open for registration on a worldwide basis, i.e., they are not restricted to entities located inside the US. In this sense, they are also known as generic or general TLDs (gTLDs). The two-letter extention top level domain names are reserved for counties and regions according to an ISO standard for abbreviations of all countries and regions in the world and are generally knowns as country code TLDs or ccTLDs. Finally, at the recent Yokohama meeting this year, the ICANN Board of Directors adopted a policy for the introduction of new gTLDs in a measured and responsible manner in order to satisfy the needs of different business and services. For detailed information, you may wish to visit ICANN's web site to check materials relating to the Yokohama meeting. In short, gTLDs (or domain name extentions) are decided in accordance with the needs of practice, while ccTLDs are decided according to the abbreviations of countries or regions. The procedures for the introduction of new gTLDs have been posted by ICANN. A major policy concern behind these procedures is to avoid enhanced possibilities of cybersquatting while protecting the interests of intellectual property owners and other legitimate users. Masanobu Katoh - posted on 2000-09-15 13:30:27 Dear ICANN member: At its 16 July 2000 meeting in Yokohama, the ICANN Board of Directors adopted a policy for the introduction of new top-level domains (TLDs) in a measured and responsible manner. It is anticipated that this policy will lead to new TLDs coming into operation early in the year 2001. The policy involves a process in which those interested in operating or sponsoring new TLDs may apply to ICANN. After reviewing the applications, ICANN will select applications that will enter a negotiation process with ICANN. I support the ICANN Board of Directors’ recent policy for the introduction of new top-level domains (TLDs) in a measured and responsible manner. This process should be simple, easy-to-use, open and understandable to all, and quick. Issuing a new TLD should be based on a careful balance between the need for such a TLD and the potential abuse (i.e. cybersquatting) and confusion by the public. Sincerely, M. Katoh Johannes Chiang - posted on 2000-09-13 12:50:41 The process to decide .com, .net was a long story and even happened before ICANN exists. We should look forward to the future extensions. As I know, there are now 6-8-10 extensions suggested by different constituencies, e.g. from the Non-business constituency, under consideration or in process. Before that, the suggestions were carried out and dicussed in the constituencies. For instance, I have heard about a suggestion to extend a new gTLD of SME, and some people are afraid of that SME would not like it. So, I suggest that we might plan a period for alpha-test for these, on the one hand for the stability of the DNS and on the other hand for the acceptance.