Update from DotAsia (.ASIA)

AP* Meeting, Bali

February 25th, 2007

Ching CHIAO chiao@dotasia.org

OverviewOverview

• The DotAsia Organisation• Sunrise and Landrush process• Utilizing the .ASIA domain• Target Launch Schedule

The DotAsia OrganisationThe DotAsia Organisation

• The Sponsoring Organisation / Registry Operator of .ASIA sTLD– Not-for-profit bottom-up community-based

organisation incorporated in Hong Kong

– “Owned” by Pan-Asia and Asia Pacific Internet community:

• Sponsor Members: ccTLDs in AP Region (20 members currently)

• Co-sponsor Members: Regional based Internet/IT/Telecom groups and other relevant community organizations (3 members currently: APNIC, APNG and PAN)

Current Sponsor Members (20 ccTLDs)Current Sponsor Members (20 ccTLDs)• .AF - Afghanistan Network

Information Center (AFGNIC)• .BT - Bhutan Communications

Authority• .CN - China Internet Network

Information Center (CNNIC)• .ID - Country Code Top Level

Domain Indonesia (ccTLD-ID)• .IN - .IN ccTLD Registry, India• .IR - .IR ccTLD Registry, Iran• .JP - Japan Registry Service Co.,

Ltd. (JPRS)• .KH - .KH, Cambodia• .KR - National Internet

Development Agency (NIDA)• .KZ - Kazakhstan Network

Information Center• .MN - .MN ccTLD Registry,

DataCom Co., Ltd., Mongolia

• .MO - Macau Network Information Center (MONIC)

• .NU - Internet Users Society - Niue (IUSN)

• .NZ - The Internet Society of New Zealand (InternetNZ)

• .PH - PH Domain Foundation, Philippines

• .SG - Singapore Network Information Centre (SGNIC)

• .TJ - Information Technology Center, .TJ ccTLD Manager, Tajikistan

• .TW - Taiwan Network Information Center (TWNIC)

• .UZ - Computerization and Information Technology Developing Center, .UzInfoCom., .UZ ccTLD

• .VN - Vietnam Internet Network Information Center (VNNIC)

GovernanceGovernance

• Board of Directors– 11 members

• 8 sponsors (ccTLDs)• 2 co-sponsors (regional organisations)• 1 CEO

• Advisory Council– 1 representative from each co-sponsor– Other experts appointed by the Board

• Proceeds Steering Committee– appointed by Board– selects community projects to fund for surplus

proceeds and special allocations

Vision & MissionVision & Mission

• Vision:– Leverage the successful and cooperative platform of the Pan-

Asia and Asia Pacific Internet community to further this collaborative approach to other areas of the growing economies.

• Mission:– Sponsor, establish and operate an Internet namespace with

global recognition and regional significance dedicated to the needs of the Pan-Asia and Asia Pacific Internet community

– Reinvest surpluses in socio-technological advancement initiatives relevant to the Pan-Asia and Asia Pacific Internet community

– Operate a viable not-for-profit initiative that is a technically advanced, world-class TLD registry for the Pan-Asia and Asia Pacific community

Some History (2000-2006)Some History (2000-2006)• 2000: first discussion about an Asia focused TLD at ccTLD

meetings• 2002: 2 Initiatives were started (merged into one in early 2004)• Dec 2003: ICANN sTLD RFP• Feb 2004: Formal and Informal Discussions at APRICOT, AP*,

APTLD, APNG, etc.• Mar 2004: ICANN Rome informal gathering• Mar 2004: Submission of proposal to ICANN• July 2004: Inaugural Board meeting at ICANN Kuala Lumpur• Mar 2005: 1st Informal meeting with GAC members from AP (Mar

del Plata)• Jun 2005: GAC Chair and Secretariat assists in formally contacting

GAC members to introduce the .ASIA intiative

Some History (continued)Some History (continued)• Jul 2005: Outreach from DotAsia Organisation to AP GAC members

to explain .ASIA initiative• Jul 2005: 2nd Informal meeting with GAC members from AP

(Luxembourg)• Nov 2005: 3rd Informal meeting with GAC members from AP

(Vancouver)• Dec 4, 2005: ICANN Board resolution on .ASIA approving the

DotAsia TLD Application to enter into discussion of commercial and technical terms with effectively a unanimous vote

• March 2006: 4th Informal meeting with GAC members from AP (Wellington)

• Jun 2006: 5th Informal meeting with GAC members from AP (Marrakech)

• Oct 18, 2006: Approval of .ASIA Registry Operator Contract• Dec 6, 2006: Signing of Contract with ICANN

Draft Sunrise PoliciesDraft Sunrise Policies

• Sunrise 1: Government Reserved Names• Sunrise 2: Registered Marks• Sunrise 3: Registered Entity Names (i.e.

company names, etc.)

Pre-Sunrise and Sunrise 1Pre-Sunrise and Sunrise 1

• Pre-Sunrise:– Solicitation of reserved names from governments

(through ccTLDs and GAC representatives in the community)

• Sunrise 1:– Government bodies to activate the reserved names– Domains must be “activated” (i.e. registered) via an

ICANN registrar

Refinement of Sunrise 2Refinement of Sunrise 2

• SR2a: Well-established Registered Marks– Mark applied for before March 16, 2004 (issued and

valid at point of domain registration application)– Affidavit and supporting documents showing that

Mark has been used in Class Registered

• SR2b: Registered Marks– Declaration of Mark Information via EPP– Mark applied for before December 6, 2006

• SR2c: Extended Protection– Registered Mark + Words in Class description– E.g.: “ABC” => NICE Class 1 “Chemicals” =>

“ABCchemicals.Asia”

Acceptable MatchAcceptable Match

• Exceptions for spaces and special characters– May be omitted or replaced by hyphen

• Exceptions for accented characters– May be replaced by “base character” (i.e. without the

accent)

• Exceptions for type identifiers– E.g. ®, TM, SM, Ltd., PTE, Inc., … May be omitted

• Exceptions for the term “Asia”– May be omitted: e.g. “ABC Asia” => “abc.asia”

• Transliterations not accepted– “ö” may not be replaced by “oe”, “中文” may not be

replaced by “zhongwen”

Sunrise 3Sunrise 3

• Registered Entity Names (i.e. Company names)– Registered within the DotAsia Community– Domain Name Applied For must match registered

entity name (with acceptable match exceptions)

• Unverified– Declaration of business registration via EPP– Electronic copy of Certification of Incorporation (or

equivalent) uploaded and Posted publicly– Challenge process to be developed

Multiple Applications for a DomainMultiple Applications for a Domain

• Sunrise 1– First-Come-First-Served

• Sunrise 2, Sunrise 3 and Landrush– All applications during each particular sunrise period

are considered to be received at the same time– If domain has only one successful application, it is

allocated accordingly– If domain has more than one successful application,

auction is held between the successful applicants

AuctionsAuctions

• General Process– Prior to auction being held, successful applicants will

be provided information of other bidders– English auction (each bid being higher than the

previous bid, and each bidder able to observe each bid price)

• Concept– Fair allocation (instead of lottery-like situation at initial rushes)– Encourage usage (highest bidder more likely to use domain)– No need to wait for FCFS live registrations (if domain has only

one application it will not go to auction)– Sizeable portion of proceeds will be specifically set aside for

community initiatives (mandate for DotAsia Organisation)

Charter Eligibility RequirementCharter Eligibility Requirement

• Any one of the associated domain contacts (Registrant, Admin, Tech, Billing) must be a legal entity in one of the jurisdictions in the DotAsia Community– Legal Entity: Natural Persons, Corporations or Companies,

Cooperatives, Partnerships or Collectives, Government Bodies, etc.

• Registered Domain Holder for a .ASIA domain is considered to be the collective of the Registrant Contact and the CED (Charter Eligibility Declaration) Contact associated with the domain.

• Both entities are jointly responsible for the domain registration (i.e. disputes)

• Operating Contact remains Registrant Contact (i.e. for transfers, etc.)

Utilizing the .ASIA domainUtilizing the .ASIA domain

• Headquarters in Asia– Versatile and neutral– Global recognition; regional significance

• Promotion at regional events– Asian Games, ITU Asia, etc.– XYZ Expo Asia, ABC Conference Asia

• Region wide initiatives or projects• Local companies expanding to region

OutreachOutreach

• Regional road show– Industrial event, IPR related meeting, registrar panel– Beijing, Tokyo (dinner reception) – Seoul. Melbourne, New Delhi, and more

• Sponsorship and event– APRICOT 2007– ICANN Lisbon– APNG Xi’an

• Press conference on late March / early April in Hong Kong

• Currently selecting PR partner

Target Launch ScheduleTarget Launch Schedule

• Feb 2007 – Pre-Sunrise• June/July 2007 – Sunrise 1: Governments• Sep 2007 – Sunrise 2: Registered Marks• Nov 2007 – Sunrise 3: Entity Names• Feb 2008 – Landrush• Mar 2008 – Live FCFS registrations

Thank YouThank You

• Leona CHEN leona@dotasia.org• Ching CHIAO chiao@dotasia.org• Edmon CHUNG edmon@dotasia.org

Please join DotAsia Open session(free flow soft drinks / beer / wine served)

4PM, Feb. 26th, LOTUS room