Policy & Law

The domain monetization discussion at the Marrakech, Morocco ICANN meeting on June 27 included lots of fireworks. First, a disclaimer. I wasn't at the meeting. I just finished reading the transcript of the meeting. Much like reading an e-mail, ... Continue ReadingLeave a Comment

New system challenges scammers and typos, but does it go too far? A new service called OpenDNS officially opened its doors today. The service is an alternative DNS to those offered by ISPs and promises a faster, safer internet experience. Open DNS ... Continue Reading5 Comments

An Australian domain scammer has declared bankruptcy after facing $1M+ in legal judgements. The scammer Bradley Norrish, along with business partner Chesley Rafferty, ran a group of companies that sent fake invoices to UK domain holders in 2003. The ... Continue Reading1 Comment

A politician in Hawaii has bullied a political activist into giving up his domain name. In May I wrote about a law New York was trying to pass that would protect politicians' names as domain names. In retrospect, the New York law was not so harsh: it ... Continue ReadingLeave a Comment

FTC defends availability of Whois, and you should too. The debate over availability of Whois information continued this week during the Morocco ICANN meeting. FTC Commissioner John Leibowitz presented several examples of how Whois helped the FTC shut ... Continue ReadingLeave a Comment

This week's ICANN meeting in Marrakech, Morocco will feature a workshop about current trends in the domain name marketplace. Jothan Frakes of Domain Roundtable/DomainTools.com will introduce the 3 hour workshop. The workshop was organized in response ... Continue Reading2 Comments

A recent edition of The Economist magazine profiles Vinton Cerf, ICANN Chairman of the Board. A couple months ago I had the good fortune of having breakfast with Cerf at Domain Roundtable, where he gave a keynote address. He's a fascinating guy who ... Continue Reading1 Comment

If a UDRP panelist believes domainers are the same thing as cybersquatters, is he fit to arbitrate? I came across an editorial on CNET today by Doug Isenberg, an attorney in Atlanta and founder of GigaLaw.com, and a domain name panelist for the World ... Continue Reading8 Comments

Which politicians support VeriSign's lawsuit settlement with ICANN? It depends on whom bankrolls the politician... CNET writers Declan McCullagh and Anne Broache published an excellent story about the VeriSign-ICANN settlement and how it is hitting ... Continue ReadingLeave a Comment