In an attempt to move the At-Large discussion of Geo Names away from abstract rhetoric and identify priorities and potential for consensus, we will explore a series of scenarios that involve possible conflicts surrounding the application for a particular string and potential outcomes. Once this list is developed, we’ll make it available as a survey to get as many At-large individuals and organizations to weigh in.
DEMOGRAPHICS
- What region are you from?
North America
Latin America/Caribbean Islands
Europe
Australia/Asia/Pacific Island
Africa - Do you own domain names?
Yes
No - Do you have a technical background?
Yes
No - Do you have plans to register a domain name in the next year?
Yes
No
SURVEY
1. All 11 million names in the geonames.org database are put on a reserved list that requires all interested applicants to gain permission from all applicable authorities (ie 53 jurisdictions would need to approve .PARIS) before applying for any of those strings. Do you feel this type of scenario is likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you categorize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
2. A reserve list of national capitals is created and all other geo names are unreserved allowing them to be applied for on a first-come, first-served basis. Do you feel this type of scenario is likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you categorize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
3. The Catholic Church applies for . SANTAMARIA as a closed TLD, open only to an order of nuns to promote their charitable activities worldwide. The Church is required to get approval from 1,200 jurisdictions worldwide. All but 50 agree with those 50 holding out for “rent” for their permission. Is this situation likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
4. A list of reserved SECOND level strings is created as reserved names for geographic entities to use for their own purposes within a geographic name. Consequently, anyone can apply for a geo name but must reserve these second level domains for disposition by governments. These second level strings would include things like tourism.[geo], safety.[geo], security.[geo] and several others. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
5. A conservation NGO in Ethiopia applies for .BLUENILE to both encourage eco tourism and highlight efforts to prevent destructive erosion in the surrounding area. The Blue Nile jewelry company is able to block that application because it has previously been granted a trademark by the Ethiopian government. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
6. A registry applies “.nile” as a generic string with no stated intention to use it for geographic purposes. The majority of second level registrations are, in fact, geographic uses. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
7. The Organization of Iranian American Communities (OIAC) applies for “.Persia “ with the express intention of creating an international community of Iranian diaspora interested in moving Iran to a more democratic system of government. The government of Iran is able to block the application on the ground that it is a geo name over which they have sovereignty. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
8. A conglomerate of hotel chains apply for .SPA to promote their respective spa facilities internationally. The government of Belgium is able to block the application by arguing that .SPA should be used exclusively by businesses in the town of Spa. The situation is resolved by the conglomerate paying an annual fee to Belgium for the use of .SPA. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
9. Applicants from Oregon and Michigan are in contention for .DETROIT and the applicant from Michigan is awarded the string because Detroit Michigan has a higher population. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
10. Applicants from Italy and the Philippines are in contention for .SANTAMARIA and it is awarded to the applicant from the Philippines on the grounds that they are in an “underserved” region. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
11. Turkey objects to an application for .CONSTANTINOPLE but is overruled because the current regime is on the Amnesty International list of worst human rights violators. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
12. The Coachella Native American tribe applies for “.coachella” but the city of Coachella, located in Southern California, successfully blocks the application. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
13. A domain investor gets approval for .NILE and populates info.nile with ads from tourism companies and gets sizable traffic to the page. They license Blue.Nile to the jewelry company. Egypt doesn’t approve of the direction in which .NILE is headed and wants to get it back. The other 10 countries on the Nile have actually seen an increase in tourism with the development of the domain and want to leaves things as they are. The domain investor sells .NILE to the government of Egypt for $5million. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
14. An unidentified third-party applicant financed from outside Montenegro has successfully blocked the government of Montenegro’s application of .MONTENEGRO because they own the Cyrillic IDN version of the Montenegro name .ME and the three letter code MEN. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
15. The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) blocked a well-funded private consortium promoting crypto currencies for the top 20 currency code TLDs—accounting for [75%] of all foreign exchange transactions, with a view to diverting that business to their own platforms—because BIS believes that all the currency codes should be reserved and not used as TLDs. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
16. Countries in the Pacific Rim have successfully blocked several applications for several ISO 3166 three character country codes in Chinese script from Alibaba.cn, because they feel that these IDN codes cannot be strict transliterations of the corresponding ASCII codes, since they contain much more information, and in some cases represent descriptive sentences. Is this event likely?
Yes
Maybe
No
If likely, how would you characterize this outcome?
Very Bad
Bad
Neutral
Good
Very Good
