String Confusion Objections under ICANN’s New gTLD Program
The WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center was appointed by ICANN as the exclusive provider of dispute resolution services for "pre-delegation" String Confusion Objections (SCOs) under ICANN’s New gTLD Program. SCOs concern confusion with existing TLDs and/or another applied-for gTLD strings and/or any of its allocatable or blocked variant strings.
As part of the continued evolution of the Internet’s domain name system, ICANN has launched the next round of New generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs). The 2026 Round is open for applications from April 30 to August 12, 2026, with Objections following in Q4 2026.
In this regard, ICANN published the New gTLD Program: 2026 Round Applicant Guidebook providing a detailed roadmap from application to evaluation, objection, and approval.
Next Steps for Applicants and Rightsholders:
More information about objection procedures, including timelines and resources, will be made available as the application round progreses. WIPO will also publish detailed guidelines and case resources. Further, ICANN will host a series of webinars in May 2026.
Interested parties can monitor updates here and on ICANN’s New gTLD Program site.
String Confusion Objection Resources
String Confusion Appeal Resources
String Confusion Objection Cases
| Proposed string to which the objection is directed | Objector | Applicant | Grounds for objection | Date of the WIPO Center’s receipt of the objection | Quick Look Review | Determination |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
String Confusion Appeal Cases
| Proposed string to which the appeal is directed | Appellant | Respondent | Objection Determination | Grounds for the appeal | Date of the WIPO’s receipt of the appeal | Quick Look Review | Determination |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Contact
WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center Geneva
34, chemin des Colombettes
1211 Geneva 20
Switzerland
T +41 22 338 8247
E sco@wipo.int