WIPO Hosts Conference on Intellectual Property Aspects of ccTLDS

Geneva, February 21, 2001
Press Updates UPD/2001/125

Administrators of ccTLDs and intellectual property experts recognized the need to step up measures to curb cybersquatting in country-code top level domains (ccTLDs) at a one-day WIPO Conference on intellectual property questions relating to ccTLDs on February 20, 2001. The problems of cybersquatting - abusive registration of domain names - which until now has been prevalent in generic top-level domains (gTLDs), is magnified within ccTLDs, of which there more than 240. A ccTLD bears the name a two letter code corresponding to the country or territory which it represents (UK - United Kingdom, BR - Brazil, etc.- see http://www.iana.org).

The Conference brought together some 500 representatives from government, ccTLD administrations and other professional and business circles. Sixty-six ccTLDs attended the event which also marked the publication of a set of draft guidelines to assist administrators in the management of intellectual property aspects in their domains. These WIPO Best Practices for Prevention and Resolution of Intellectual Property Disputes in ccTLDs will remain open for public comment until April 30, 2001.

The one-day conference explored the many different business models that characterize ccTLDs across the globe, many of which are run as private companies. The types of models range from closed domains, such as .SE in Sweden in which only Swedish citizens or companies may register a domain name to .TV, a fully commercialized domain marketed for television or streaming media on the internet, leased to .TV Corporation by the government of Tuvalu.

"I think people were surprised to see the diversity of business models that exist for ccTLDs" said Mr. Francis Gurry, WIPO Assistant Director General. "From our point of view, we have no position about the business model used to run a ccTLD. What we are interested in is that there is an efficient means of dealing with cybersquatting in them" he added.

The importance of establishing effective measures to curb abusive domain name registrations in ccTLDs is underlined by the fact that many ccTLDs are considering liberalization of their registration conditions by allowing foreigners to register in their domains. Under such circumstances an internationally harmonized dispute resolution procedure becomes immediately attractive. This is particularly important because the number of domain names registered in the ccTLDs is growing at a rapid pace.

Cases of cybersquatting in the gTLD space are currently handled under ICANN's Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) of which WIPO is an accredited service provider. The WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center has handled over 2000 domain name cases since the UDRP was launched in December 1999. At present, 18 ccTLD administrators have signed up to the UDRP. One of the main advantages of adopting the UDRP in both ccTLDs and the gTLDs is that if a cybersquatter has registered a domain name in a gTLD, e.g. .COM, as well as in a ccTLD, e.g. .WS (Western Samoa), then it is possible to consolidate a complaint against both registrations in one single case. To date, WIPO has handled four such cases.

The Conference further considered the intellectual property implications of so-called multilingual domain name registrations. A number of new technologies now exist which make it possible to register domain names in non-Roman script, e.g. Cyrillic, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, etc.. "If you like, this amounts truly to the internationalization of the domain name system" Mr. Gurry said. "This is going to create a whole new demand for domain names and a whole new possibility for cybersquatting as the risk of such abuses is magnified by the number of scripts you are going to add. We are informed that the demand for registrations is to be measured in millions rather than hundreds of thousands" he added.

The WIPO Best Practices for the Prevention and Resolution of Intellectual Property Disputes (http://ecommerce.wipo.int/domains/cctlds/bestpractices/) deals with the good administration of a domain from the point of view of intellectual property. The best practices have been formulated on the basis of the Report of the WIPO Internet Domain Name Process issued in April 1999, experience gained in the administration of the UDRP by the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center, and the needs identified through discussions with some 44 ccTLD administrators. The draft guidelines set out minimum standards of intellectual property protection in ccTLDs by outlining a working framework that is sufficiently flexible to accommodate the different business models and circumstances surrounding ccTLDs. They cover three main areas: first, the need to ensure reliable registration contact details; second, the establishment of alternative dispute resolution procedures. In this regard, the UDRP, a proven model, resulting from broad-based consultation, offers a simple and cost-effective solution to the resolution of intellectual property disputes. Thirdly, the guidelines outline best practices in relation to contractual matters involving registration agreements.

Recognizing the growing importance of ccTLDs, member states called upon WIPO last year to look into ways to curb abusive domain name registration and other intellectual property related questions within ccTLDs. Until now, WIPO has addressed issues relating to gTLDs, but in response to a request from its member states, in recent months it has been actively engaging with ccTLD administrators to develop appropriate intellectual property-related dispute resolution mechanisms and to provide its dispute resolution services to ccTLD administrators. This week's conference was organized within the framework of this program of activities, known as the WIPO ccTLD Program.

For further information, please contact the Media Relations & Public Affairs Section at WIPO: Tel: + 41 22 338 81 61 or 95 47; Fax: + 41 22 338 88 10; E-mail: publicinf@wipo.int