[Comment-Ip] IP Community Response

[mheltzer <mheltzer@inta.org>]

TO:	Members of the Interim Board of the Internet Corporations for
Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN)

FR:	American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) 
	American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP)
	Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI)
	Federation Internationale des Conseils en Propriete Industrielle
(FICPI)
	International Trademark Association (INTA)
	The Association of European Trademark Owners (MARQUES)
	Motion Picture Association of America (MPA)

RE:	Response to WIPO Report

________________________________________________________________

	In accordance with the posting on the ICANN Web site, we are pleased
to provide preliminary comments to the ICANN Interim Board concerning the
"Final Report of the WIPO Internet Domain Name Process."  On the whole, we
found the recommendations put forth by WIPO to be an affirmative step in the
right direction with regard to consumer protection and the protection of
intellectual property rights in the Domain Name System ("DNS").  We believe
that ICANN should adopt in Berlin as many of the WIPO recommendations as
possible, including those already incorporated in the registrar
accreditation agreement.  Endorsing the WIPO report is a crucial step in
developing online protection for intellectual property.  Those portions of
the report that need additional drafting should be sent to the DNSO.  

	
I.	Practices for Minimizing Conflicts

	We agree strongly with the WIPO recommendations that registrars be
required to collect key contact information from domain name applicants and
that the information be made available on a public Web site that is updated
daily and online 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week. Intellectual property
owners need complete and accessible information if they are to contact
potential infringers at an early stage, before consumer confusion and
trademark and copyright infringement 	occur and before domain holders make
significant investments in domains that infringe established 	rights. 

	We also support the proposal for prepayment of the registration fees
and the requirement of renewal fees.  This practice will discourage
cybersquatting.  Where the fee has not been paid, the domain name
application /renewal should be rejected.

II.	Uniform Dispute Resolution

We agree with WIPO that ADR should be limited to instances of bad faith,
abusive domain name registrations or "cybersquatting" and should not be
applicable to disputes between parties with competing rights acting in good
faith.  

	We also agree that legitimate free-speech usage should not be
considered abusive.

	We further agree that the ADR system should be applicable across all
open gTLDs and that there should be a consolidation of all claims of abuse
by the same party into one case.  Uniformity is absolutely essential for an
effective dispute resolution system. 

	Finally, we agree with WIPO that there should always be access to
national court systems.

III.	Famous and Well-Known Marks

	We agree with WIPO that an exclusion mechanism for famous and
well-known marks be established.  The fairness and effectiveness of any
exclusion mechanism will depend on its transparency, the quality and
independence of the decision makers, the openness of the process
(allowing the participation of interested third parties), and the
consistency in the decision making. We fully agree that determinations on
applications for exclusions for famous or well-known marks should have no
binding effect on national or regional industrial property offices or
national courts in their implementation of international norms for the
protection of famous and well-known marks.

IV.	Addition of New gTLDs

	We agree with WIPO that a "go-slow" approach be taken with respect
to the addition of new 	gTLDs. The organizations listed above believe
strongly that any new gTLDs should only be added, if at all, one at a time
along with the appropriate safeguards in the form of i) improved domain name
registration procedures; ii) implementation of speedy and effective dispute
resolution procedures; and iii) adoption of a system for protecting famous
and well-known trademark across all gTLDs as well as suppressing the abusive
registration of domain names in all gTLDs.  

	We are also open to the WIPO recommendation for continued study of
the creation of non-commercial gTLDs and are willing to assist ICANN and
WIPO in this area.	 

 	Thank you for this opportunity.  Again, we urge the ICANN Board to
take swift action and adopt as many of the WIPO recommendations as possible.
The representatives of the IP community who will be in attendance at the
Berlin meeting will be happy to further elaborate on these comments.