10-12-2011, 03:14 AM
Rod Beckstrom Tells Dubai Conference That Potential Applicants Also Need to Know of Risks and Challenges
[news release] ICANNâs New Generic Top-Level Domain Program offers significant opportunities for Middle Eastern organizations to expand their online presence, according to Rod Beckstrom, CEO and President of ICANN.
He stressed the benefits and challenges of the new domains for the Middle East, and cited the regionâs technological know-how as a factor that would encourage the innovation and consumer choice the program is expected to generate.
Beckstrom delivered the keynote address to the Global Leaders Summit, an exclusive meeting of regional leaders, at Gitex, the regionâs premier technology conference, in Dubai.
âYou can apply for new gTLDs in Arabic, Chinese or other scripts,â he said. âThis is the first time in history that it is possible to apply for new generic top-level domains in internationalized domain scripts. So it means you could apply for terms in Arabic - not only a company name or brand or a city name, but any other word or generic term,â he continued.
Comparing the creation of the new gTLD program to the development of Dubai as a commercial centre, Beckstrom said, âWhen you open up standards in technology, when you create rules of law, it fosters and allows innovation that none of us can imagineâ.
âPeople ask me: whatâs going to happen to the domain name system now that you are opening up new gTLDs? And the answer is: we donât know. The innovation will come from very unlikely directions.â
âOpening up the right of the dotâ in Latin script addresses to âdot almost anythingâ is being undertaken with great care to ensure the security and stability of the Internetâs domain name system, which is âjob number one for usâ, he stated.
Beckstrom highlighted the complexity of the application process and the need for applicants to be prepared to face substantial obstacles. âRunning a top-level domain is not like buying a second-level domain,â he noted. âYouâre actually running a piece of critical [Internet] infrastructure for the world. Itâs got to be running 24/7, reliably, and for years and years and years.â
He stressed that a successful application would require âsignificant technology expertise or a relationship with a party that will give you that expertiseâ, as well as the significant financial wherewithal necessary to operate an Internet registry.
Beckstrom also corrected a common misconception about the new generic top-level domain program, explaining that organizations running one of the new domains will not be required to sell Internet domain names publicly.
He noted that dot emerat, the internationalized domain name (IDN) of the United Arab Emirates, was one of the worldâs first IDNs.
The application window for new gTLDs opens on 12 January 2012 and closes on 12 April. In May, ICANN will publish the list of all domain names that have been applied for.
About Eranet
Todaynic.com International Limited(Eranet.com) was incorporated in Hong Kong in 2005, directly under Todaynic.com, Inc. which was established in 2000. As one of the first ICANN (The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), Verisign, HKDNR, and CNNIC (The China Internet Network Information Center) accredited registrars, Eranet is also a leading provider of services in domain name registration and web hosting.
Register domain names here
[news release] ICANNâs New Generic Top-Level Domain Program offers significant opportunities for Middle Eastern organizations to expand their online presence, according to Rod Beckstrom, CEO and President of ICANN.
He stressed the benefits and challenges of the new domains for the Middle East, and cited the regionâs technological know-how as a factor that would encourage the innovation and consumer choice the program is expected to generate.
Beckstrom delivered the keynote address to the Global Leaders Summit, an exclusive meeting of regional leaders, at Gitex, the regionâs premier technology conference, in Dubai.
âYou can apply for new gTLDs in Arabic, Chinese or other scripts,â he said. âThis is the first time in history that it is possible to apply for new generic top-level domains in internationalized domain scripts. So it means you could apply for terms in Arabic - not only a company name or brand or a city name, but any other word or generic term,â he continued.
Comparing the creation of the new gTLD program to the development of Dubai as a commercial centre, Beckstrom said, âWhen you open up standards in technology, when you create rules of law, it fosters and allows innovation that none of us can imagineâ.
âPeople ask me: whatâs going to happen to the domain name system now that you are opening up new gTLDs? And the answer is: we donât know. The innovation will come from very unlikely directions.â
âOpening up the right of the dotâ in Latin script addresses to âdot almost anythingâ is being undertaken with great care to ensure the security and stability of the Internetâs domain name system, which is âjob number one for usâ, he stated.
Beckstrom highlighted the complexity of the application process and the need for applicants to be prepared to face substantial obstacles. âRunning a top-level domain is not like buying a second-level domain,â he noted. âYouâre actually running a piece of critical [Internet] infrastructure for the world. Itâs got to be running 24/7, reliably, and for years and years and years.â
He stressed that a successful application would require âsignificant technology expertise or a relationship with a party that will give you that expertiseâ, as well as the significant financial wherewithal necessary to operate an Internet registry.
Beckstrom also corrected a common misconception about the new generic top-level domain program, explaining that organizations running one of the new domains will not be required to sell Internet domain names publicly.
He noted that dot emerat, the internationalized domain name (IDN) of the United Arab Emirates, was one of the worldâs first IDNs.
The application window for new gTLDs opens on 12 January 2012 and closes on 12 April. In May, ICANN will publish the list of all domain names that have been applied for.
About Eranet
Todaynic.com International Limited(Eranet.com) was incorporated in Hong Kong in 2005, directly under Todaynic.com, Inc. which was established in 2000. As one of the first ICANN (The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), Verisign, HKDNR, and CNNIC (The China Internet Network Information Center) accredited registrars, Eranet is also a leading provider of services in domain name registration and web hosting.
Register domain names here