Beyond .Com: Some See Confusion in Internet Domain Expansion
Starting this fall, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, will begin rolling out 20 new suffixes, or top-level domains, every week. This will create new entrepreneurial opportunities, says ICANN CEO Fadi Chehade.
“Diversity to the domain name system is coming,” he says.
On the Internet today, there are just 22 Web suffixes, including .org, .biz, and, of course, .com. But for years, regulators, including the Federal Trade Commission in the United States warned ICANN against forging ahead, citing concerns about the increased possibility of scams, fraud and trademark infringement with a vast and rapid expansion.
For example, imagine anyone besides Hilton owning Hilton.hotels. Or consider transferring money using a site ending in a misspelled version of .wellsfargo. You begin to get a sense of the potential pitfalls.
ICANN says it has addressed such concerns. It is establishing a global trademark clearinghouse Chehade says will help prevent violations. Users will also be able to report abuse, and everyone registered to use the new domains will be bound by ethical rules laid out in contracts.
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