Consumers Prefer the .ORGANIC Web Address for True-Organic Goods

[news release] .ORGANIC domain operator Afilias today announced the results of new research that provides important insights regarding U.K. and U.S. Internet users’ experience finding organic products and services online. 

 

Nearly 70% of respondents believe that some companies are misrepresenting themselves as “organic” to command a premium price, and 60% would like a reliable way to distinguish real organic providers online from the pretenders. That’s why almost 60% of respondents claimed they would be more inclined to visit a site on .ORGANIC, which is restricted to verified organic entities, than legacy .COM sites when searching for organic products.

 

The research showed the depth of confusion consumers feel when searching for organic products online: 43% of respondents acknowledge that they can’t easily differentiate who’s truly organic and who’s not when they are researching or shopping online; whereas only 5% claim they don’t have such a problem.  69% think companies should stop associating themselves with the term “organic” if they are not.

 

1 in 4 consumers believe that true organic companies and products SHOULD have a .ORGANIC web address, as only verified organic entities are allowed to have one.

 

“In traditional .COM or .CO.UK addresses, any site can have the word ‘organic’ in its web address and content because no one checks,” said Roland LaPlante, CMO of Afilias. “.ORGANIC addresses are different.  We DO check every applicant to be sure they are certified organic or otherwise meet stringent eligibility requirements.  Consumers have asked for help identifying real organic online, and .ORGANIC sites make it easy: if it’s in .ORGANIC, it’s organic!”

 

Beyond a preference to visit sites on .ORGANIC, consumers now EXPECT to see their favorite organic brands with a .ORGANIC web address. The most mentioned brands include:

 

•  U.K. – Abel & Cole, Biona, Green and Black’s, Green People Organic Beauty, Lush, Planet Organic, Organix, Riverford, Planet Organic, Waitrose/Duchy Original’s, Wholefoods, Yeo Valley, and more.

•  U.S. – Amy’s Kitchen, Annie’s Homegrown, Applegate, Clif Bar, Dole, Horizon Organic, Kashi, Nature’s Path, Newman’s Own, Organic Valley, Stonyfield, Trader Joe’s, Wholefoods/365 Everyday Value, and more.

 

It’s easy to understand why: traditional .COM and .CO.UK addresses are where the pretenders are; only .ORGANIC addresses are restricted to qualified products and services, and consumers have a right to expect the most trustworthy organic brands in the safest space.

 

Fig. 1: Brands that U.K. consumers believe should be on the .ORGANIC domain

 

Fig. 2: Brands that U.S. consumers believe should be on the .ORGANIC domain

 

Afilias commissioned independent research agency YouGov to undertake this research. Conducted in mid-November 2014, the research surveyed over 3,200 U.K. and U.S. Internet users (2,057 and 1,147 adults respectively). The findings were sampled and weighted to be nationally representative of each nation (adults aged 18+). The full report can be found here.

 

 

About Afilias

Afilias is the .ORGANIC registry operator and the world’s second largest domain registry provider, with more than 20 million names under management. Afilias powers a wide variety of top level domains, and will soon support hundreds of new TLDs now preparing for launch, including TLDs for cities, brands, communities and generic terms. Afilias’ specialized technology makes Internet addresses more accessible and useful through a wide range of applications, including Internet domain registry services, Managed DNS and mobile Web services like goMobi® and DeviceAtlas®.

Yahoo Files UDRP Complaint for Yahoo-Beauty.com Domain Name

The American multinational Internet Corporation,Yahoo,has recently filed a complaint against the owner of  domain name Yahoo-Beauty.com,seeking control of it.

Yahoo filed the complaint with the National Arbitration Forum on December 10,2014.

According to whois records, the domain name was first registered in October 2008.

The National Arbitration Forum will examine over the next days if the domain name is confusingly similar to Yahoo’s trademark,if the current owner has rights over it and if the domain is being used in bad faith .Yahoo-Beauty.com will be passed over to Yahoo if it falls under all three of these stipulations.

At the time of writing this article, the case is still pending compliance checks with the National Arbitration Forum.

Reminder: .EE Domain Registration Price Drops From 12 To 9 Euros From 1 January 2015

The Estonian Internet Foundation will drop the price for .EE domain names starting January, 1st,2015 from 12 to 9 Euros.

You can register a .EE domain name for one, two or three years. Starting January 1st,2015 everyone who wants to register a .EE domain name will pay 9,17 or 24 Euros,depending on the registration period.

 “The Estonian Internet Foundation is implementing the strategy adopted in 2013; the activity of the Foundation is increasingly cost-effective and the number of registered .ee domain names is increasing year on year, last year by even as much as 9%. These factors have allowed us to bring the price of the service down,”said Aet Rahe, chairman of the Foundation’s Supervisory Board,explaining this way how it is possible to lower the price.

9,17 or 24 Euros are the prices asked by the Estonian Internet Foundation from registrars.Every registrar will established their own price.

Check out EuroDNS here to register your .EE domain name.

One Other New TLD Delegated : .Cartier

One other new top-level domain name was delegated ,binging the total number to 446. The newly delegated TLD is .Cartier.

Here are the other 445 TLDs delegated so far:

.Samsung
.Irish
.latrobe
.Aquarelle
.网店
.Money
.Coach
.Legal
.Everbank
.Memorial
.Firmdale
.Madrid
.グーグル
.谷歌
.Lds
.Mormon
.Android
.Reit
.Science
.Bloomberg
.Delivery
.Energy
.Taipei
.TOP
.Emerck
Alsace
.Forsale
.PYC
.TUI
.Vermögensberater
.Vermögensberatung
.Budapest
.Casa
.Work
.cal
.channel
.chrome
.fly
.gle
.google
.nexus
.prof
.zip
.WME
.pharmacy
.gmx
.手机
.rsvp
.new
.mov
.meme
.ing
.frl
.eat
.day
.dad
.boo
.youtube
.prod
.here
.esq
.pizza
.otsuka
.immo
.gmail
.gbiz
.network
.business
.企业
.uol
.property
.ooo
.ltda
.how
.hosting
.help
.diet
.click
.cern
.caravan
.sca
.bnpparibas
.广东
.佛山
.wales
.tatar
.sarl
.restaurant
.gifts
.cymru
.top
.realtor
.healthcare
.williamhill
.ong TLD Delegation
.Praxi
.yandex
.whoswho
.nra
.ngo
.lacaixa
.krd
.auction
.LGBT
.Spiegel
.Bloomberg
.NRW
.SCB
.Cuisinella
.Schmidt
.CancerResearch
.Active
.Mini
.capetown
.durban
.green
.joburg
.lotto
.ovh
.physio
.wang
.Brussels
.BZH
.Surf
.Vlaanderen
.Global
.army
.engineer
.gives
.hamburg
.navy
.nhk
.rehab
.republican
.tirol
.bio
.vet
.software
.press
.mortgage
.market
.lawyer
.host
.hiv
.dentist
.attorney
.Reise
.Versicherung
.Audio
.Beer
.Church
.Guide
.HipHop
.Juegos
.Life
.Luxe
.Loans
3 May 2014 GMO GMO Internet, Inc.
3 May 2014 GLOBO Globo Comunicação e Participações S.A
3 May 2014 BAYERN Bayern Connect GmbH
30 April 2014 AIRFORCE United TLD Holdco Ltd.
29 April 2014 CREDITCARD Binky Frostbite, LLC
29 April 2014 INSURE Pioneer Willow, LLC
29 April 2014 FINANCE Cotton Cypress, LLC
29 April 2014 WTC World Trade Centers Association, Inc.
29 April 2014 CITIC CITIC Group Corporation
24 April 2014 москва (xn--80adxhks) – Russian for “Moscow/ moskva”Foundation for Assistance for Internet Technologies and Infrastructure Development (FAITID)
24 April 2014 MOSCOW Foundation for Assistance for Internet Technologies and Infrastructure Development (FAITID)
23 April 2014 LIMITED Big Fest, LLC
23 April 2014 FAIL Atomic Pipe, LLC
23 April 2014 EXCHANGE Spring Falls, LLC
23 April 2014 TAX Storm Orchard, LLC
23 April 2014 WTF Hidden Way, LLC
23 April 2014 FUND John Castle, LLC
23 April 2014 SURGERY Tin Avenue, LLC
23 April 2014 INVESTMENTS Holly Glen, LLC
23 April 2014 FINANCIAL Just Cover, LLC
23 April 2014 GRATIS Pioneer Tigers, LLC
23 April 2014 FURNITURE Lone Fields, LLC
23 April 2014 DENTAL Tin Birch, LLC
23 April 2014 CARE Goose Cross, LLC
23 April 2014 CASHD elta Lake, LLC
23 April 2014 DISCOUNT Holly Hill, LLC
23 April 2014 BLACKFRIDAY Uniregistry, Corp.
23 April 2014 CLINICoose Park, LLC
23 April 2014 FITNESS Brice Orchard, LLC
19 April 2014 SCHULE Outer Moon, LLC
19 April 2014 FOO Charleston Road Registry, Inc.
19 April 2014 SOY Charleston Road Registry, Inc.
19 April 2014 PARIS City of Paris
19 April 2014 FROGANSOP3FT
16 April 2014 QUEBEC PointQuébec Inc
11 April 2014 PICTURES Foggy Sky, LLC
11 April 2014 UNIVERSITLittle Station, LLC
11 April 2014 GALAsociación puntoGAL
11 April 2014 ASSOCIATES Baxter Hill, LLC
11 April 2014 REISE New Cypress, LLC
11 April 2014 MEDIA Grand Glen, LLC
11 April 2014 CAREEr dotCareer LLC
11 April 2014 TOWN Koko Moon, LLC
11 April 2014 TOYS Pioneer Orchard, LLC
11 April 2014 LEASE Victor Trail, LLC
11 April 2014 SERVICES Fox Castle, LLC
11 April 2014 ENGINEERING Romeo Canyon
11 April 2014 GRIPE Com Sunset, LLC
11 April 2014 EUS Puntueus Fundazioa
11 April 2014 CAPITAL Delta Mill, LLC
10 April 2014 DESIDesi Networks, LLC
10 April 2014 FEEDBACK Top Level Spectrum, Inc.
10 April 2014 COLLEGE XYZ.COM, LLC
10 April 2014 ROCKS United TLD Holdco, Ltd.
10 April 2014 网址 (xn--ses554g) – Chinese for “network address”Hu Yi Global Information Resources (Holding) Company Hong Kong Limited
4 April 2014 GOP Republican State Leadership Committee, Inc.
3 April 2014 RYUKYU BusinessRalliart Inc.
3 April 2014 YOKOHAMA GMO Registry, Inc.
2 April 2014     REST     Punto 2012 Sociedad Anonima Promotora de Inversion de Capital Variable
2 April 2014     SAARLAND     dotSaarland GmbH
31 March 2014     CONSULTING     Pixie Station, LLC
31 March 2014     VODKA     Top Level Domain Holdings Limited
31 March 2014     HAUS     Pixie Edge, LLC
31 March 2014     COOKING     Top Level Domain Holdings Limited
31 March 2014     MOE     Interlink Co., Ltd.
31 March 2014     RODEO     Top Level Domain Holdings Limited
31 March 2014     COUNTRY     Uniregistry, Corp.
31 March 2014     商城(xn--czru2d) – Chinese for “mall”     Zodiac Capricorn Limited
31 March 2014     HORSE     Top Level Domain Holdings Limited
31 March 2014     FISHING     Top Level Domain Holdings Limited
31 March 2014     VEGAS     Dot Vegas, Inc.
31 March 2014     MIAMI     Top Level Domain Holdings Limited
31 March 2014     ARCHI     Starting Dot Limited
27 March 2014     BLACK     Afilias Limited
27 March 2014     REN     Beijing Qianxiang Wangjing Technology Development Co., Ltd.
27 March 2014     MEET     Afilias Limited
25 March 2014     SOHU     Sohu.com Limited
22 March 2014     LONDON     Dot London Domains Limited
20 March 2014     NYC     The City of New York by and through the New York City Department of Information Technology & Telecommunications
19 March 2014     COLOGNE     NetCologne Gesellschaft für Telekommunikation mbH
19 March 2014     AXA     AXA SA
19 March 2014     WEBCAM     dot Webcam Limited
19 March 2014     TRADE     Elite Registry Limited
15 March 2014     JETZT     New TLD Company
12 March 2014     世界 (xn--rhqv96g) – Chinese for “world/shijie”     Stable Tone Limited
11 March 2014     DNP     Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.
11 March 2014     INK     Top Level Design, LLC
9 March 2014     机构 (xn--nqv7f) – Chinese for “agencies/institutions”     Public Interest Registry
9 March 2014     संगठन (xn--i1b6b1a6a2e) – Hindi for “organization/sangathana”     Public Interest Registry
9 March 2014     组织机构 (xn--nqv7fs00ema) – Chinese for “organization”     Public Interest Registry
5 March 2014     орг (xn--c1avg) – Russian for “organization/org”     Public Interest Registry
5 March 2014     KOELN     NetCologne Gesellschaft für Telekommunikation mbH
2 March 2014     BID     dot Bid Limited
2 March 2014     OKINAWA     BusinessRalliart Inc.
2 March 2014     VOTE     Monolith Registry LLC
2 March 2014     VOTO     Monolith Registry LLC
27 February 2014     BAR     Punto 2012 Sociedad Anonima Promotora de Inversion de Capital Variable
27 February 2014     KRED     KredTLD Pty Ltd
27 February 2014     BEST     BestTLD Pty Ltd
26 February 2014     CHRISTMAS     Uniregistry, Corp.
26 February 2014     PUB     United TLD Holdco, Ltd.
26 February 2014     дети (xn--d1acj3b) – Russian for “kids/deti”     The Foundation for Network Initiatives “The Smart Internet”
26 February 2014     ACTOR     United TLD Holdco, Ltd.
25 February 2014     SUPPLIES     Atomic Fields, LLC
21 February 2014     FISH     Fox Woods, LLC
21 February 2014     삼성 (xn―cg4bki) – Korean for “Samsung/Samseong”     Samsung SDS Co., LTD
21 February 2014     VACATIONS     Atomic Tigers, LLC
21 February 2014     INDUSTRIES     Outer House, LLC
21 February 2014     SUPPLY     Half Falls, LLC
19 February 2014     XYZ     XYZ.COM, LLC
19 February 2014     WIKI     Top Level Design, LLC
19 February 2014     NEUSTAR     NeuStar, Inc,
18 February 2014     بازار (xn--mgbab2bd) – Arabic for “bazaar/bazar”     CORE Association
16 February 2014     MANGO     Punto FA S.L.
12 February 2014     QPON     dotCOOL, Inc.
11 February 2014     CARDS     Foggy Hollow, LLC
11 February 2014     FOUNDATION     John Dale, LLC
11 February 2014     REVIEWS     United TLD Holdco, Ltd.
11 February 2014     FUTBOL     United TLD Holdco, Ltd.
11 February 2014     VISION     Koko Station, LLC
11 February 2014     CONDOS     Pine House, LLC
11 February 2014     VILLAS     Koko Station, LLC
11 February 2014     PARTS     Sea Goodbye, LLC
11 February 2014     PRODUCTIONS     Magic Birch, LLC
11 February 2014     MAISON     Victor Frostbite, LLC
5 February 2014     移动 (xn--6frz82g) – Chinese for “mobile”     Afilias Limited
5 February 2014     BLUE     Afilias Limited
4 February 2014     FLIGHTS     Fox Station, LLC
4 February 2014     CLEANING     Fox Shadow, LLC
4 February 2014     REPORT     Binky Glen, LLC
4 February 2014     EVENTS     Pioneer Maple, LLC
4 February 2014     CRUISES     Spring Way, LLC
4 February 2014     RENTALS     Big Hollow, LLC
4 February 2014     PARTNERS     Magic Glen, LLC
4 February 2014     PROPERTIES     Big Pass, LLC
4 February 2014     CATERING     New Falls, LLC
4 February 2014     EXPOSED     Victor Beach, LLC
29 January 2014     VOTING     Valuetainment, Corp.
29 January 2014     TOKYO     GMO Registry, Inc.
29 January 2014     NAGOYA     GMO Registry, Inc.
27 January 2014     DATING     Pine Fest, LLC
27 January 2014     COMMUNITY     Fox Orchard, LLC
23 January 2014     BOUTIQUE     Over Galley, LLC
23 January 2014     BARGAINS     Half Hallow, LLC
23 January 2014     TIENDA     Victor Manor, LLC
23 January 2014     WORKS     Little Dynamite, LLC
23 January 2014     WED     Atgron, Inc.
23 January 2014     EXPERT     Magic Pass, LLC
23 January 2014     WATCH     Sand Shadow, LLC
23 January 2014     KIM     Afilias Limited
23 January 2014     COOL     Koko Lake, LLC
23 January 2014     TOOLS     Pioneer North, LLC
18 January 2014     CLUB     .Club Domains, LLC
18 January 2014     BUILD     Plan Bee, LLC
18 January 2014     PICS     Uniregistry, Corp.
18 January 2014     PINK     Afilias Limited
18 January 2014     LUXURY     Luxury Partners, LLC
18 January 2014     PHOTO     Uniregistry, Corp.
18 January 2014     GIFT     Uniregistry, Corp.
18 January 2014     网络 (xn--io0a7i) – Chinese for “network”     Computer Network Information Center of Chinese Academy of Sciences (China Internet Information Center)
18 January 2014     公司 (xn--55qx5d) – Chinese for “company”     Computer Network Information Center of Chinese Academy of Sciences (China Internet Information Center)
18 January 2014     MONASH     Monash University
18 January 2014     RICH     I-REGISTRY Ltd. Niederlassung Deutschland
18 January 2014     RED     Afilias Limited
18 January 2014     SHIKSHA     Afilias Limited
18 January 2014     中信 (xn--fiq64b) – Chinese for “CITIC”     CITIC Group Corporation
18 January 2014     LINK     Uniregistry, Corp.
18 January 2014     GUITARS     Uniregistry, Corp.
14 January 2014     ZONE     Outer Falls, LLC
14 January 2014     CHEAP     Sand Cover, LLC
14 January 2014     MARKETING     Fern pass, LLC
14 January 2014     DEMOCRAT     United TLD Holdco Ltd.
14 January 2014     SOCIAL     United TLD Holdco Ltd.
14 January 2014     AGENCY     Steel Falls, LLC
14 January 2014     MODA     United TLD Holdco Ltd.
14 January 2014     DANCE     United TLD Holdco Ltd.
8 January 2014     BERLIN     dotBERLIN GmbH & Co. KG
3 January 2014     集团 (xn--3bst00m) – Chinese for “group”     Eagle Horizon Limited
3 January 2014     我爱你 (xn--6qq986b3xl) – Chinese for “I love you”     Tycoon Treasure Limited
3 January 2014     中文网 (xn--fiq228c5hs) – Chinese for “Chinese network”     TLD Registry Limited
3 January 2014     WANG     Zodiac Leo Limited
3 January 2014     KIWI     Dot Kiwi Limited
3 January 2014     WIEN     punkt.wien GmbH
2 January 2014     EMAIL     Spring Madison, LLC
2 January 2014     IMMOBILIEN     United TLD Holdco Ltd.
2 January 2014     在线 (xn--3ds443g) – Chinese for “online”     TLD Registry Limited
28 December 2013     INSTITUTE     Outer Maple, LLC
28 December 2013     CEO     CEOTLD Pty Ltd
28 December 2013     SOLAR     Ruby Town, LLC
28 December 2013     FARM     Just Maple, LLC
28 December 2013     EDUCATION     Brice Way, LLC
28 December 2013     GLASS     Black Cover, LLC
28 December 2013     ONL     I-REGISTRY Ltd. Niederlassung Deutschland
28 December 2013     INTERNATIONAL     Wild Way, LLC
28 December 2013     CODES     Puff Willow, LLC
28 December 2013     TRAINING     Wild Willow, LLC
28 December 2013     HOUSE     Sugar Park, LLC
28 December 2013     KAUFEN     United TLD Holdco Ltd.
28 December 2013     NINJA     United TLD Holdco Ltd.
28 December 2013     REPAIR     Lone Sunset, LLC
28 December 2013     BUILDERS     Atomic Madison, LLC
28 December 2013     COFFEE     Trixy Cover, LLC
28 December 2013     FLORIST     Half Cypress, LLC
28 December 2013     HOLIDAY     Goose Woods, LLC
28 December 2013     SOLUTIONS     Silver Cover, LLC
18 December 2013     BUZZ     dotStrategy Co.
18 December 2013     SUPPORT     Grand Orchard, LLC
17 December 2013     RECIPES     Grand Island, LLC
17 December 2013     COMPUTER     Pine Mill, LLC
17 December 2013     ACADEMY     Half Oaks, LLC
17 December 2013     CAREERS     Wild Corner, LLC
17 December 2013     CAB     Half Sunset, LLC
17 December 2013     公益 (xn--55qw42g) – Chinese for “charity”     China Organizational Name Administration Center
17 December 2013     政务 (xn--zfr164b) – Chinese for “government”     China Organizational Name Administration Center
17 December 2013     SYSTEMS     Dash Cypress, LLC
17 December 2013     DOMAINS     Sugar Cross, LLC
17 December 2013     VIAJES     Black Madison, LLC
17 December 2013     COMPANY     Silver Avenue, LLC
17 December 2013     CAMP     Delta Dynamite, LLC
17 December 2013     LIMO     Hidden Frostbite, LLC
17 December 2013     MANAGEMENT     John Goodbye, LLC
17 December 2013     PHOTOS     Sea Corner, LLC
17 December 2013     SHOES     Binky Galley, LLC
17 December 2013     CENTER     Tin Mill, LLC
10 December 2013     RUHR     Regiodot GmbH & Co. KG
30 November 2013     MENU     Wedding TLD2, LLC
30 November 2013     UNO     Dot Latin, LLC
23 November 2013     みんな (xn--q9jyb4c) – Japanese for “everyone”     Charleston Road Registry, Inc.
19 November 2013     diamonds     John Edge, LLC
19 November 2013     tips     Corn Willow, LLC
19 November 2013     photography     Sugar Glen, LLC
19 November 2013     directory     Extra Madison, LLC
19 November 2013     enterprises     Snow Oaks, LLC
19 November 2013     kitchen     Just Goodbye, LLC
19 November 2013     today     Pearl Woods, LLC
14 November 2013     plumbing     Spring Tigers, LLC
14 November 2013     graphics     Over Madison, LLC
14 November 2013     contractors     Magic Woods, LLC
14 November 2013     gallery     Sugar House, LLC
14 November 2013     sexy     Uniregistry, Corp.
14 November 2013     construction     Fox Dynamite, LLC
14 November 2013     tattoo     Uniregistry, Corp.
14 November 2013     technology     Auburn Falls
14 November 2013     estate     Trixy Park, LLC
14 November 2013     land     Pine Moon, LLC
14 November 2013     bike     Grand Hollow, LLC
06 November 2013     VENTURES     Binky Lake, LLC
06 November 2013     CAMERA     Atomic Maple, LLC.
06 November 2013     CLOTHING     Steel Lake, LLC
06 November 2013     LIGHTING     John McCook, LLC
06 November 2013     SINGLES     Fern Madison, LLC
06 November 2013     VOYAGE     Ruby House, LLC
06 November 2013     GURU     Pioneer Cypress, LLC
06 November 2013     HOLDINGS     John Madison, LLC
06 November 2013     EQUIPMENT     Corn Station, LLC
23 October 2013     شبكة (xn--ngbc5azd) – Arabic for “web/network”     International Domain Registry Pty. Ltd.
23 October 2013     онлайн (xn--80asehdb) – Russian for “online”     CORE Association
23 October 2013     сайт (xn--80aswg) – Russian for “site”     CORE Association
23 October 2013     游戏(xn--unup4y) – Chinese for “game(s)”     Spring Fields, LLC

Launch of the Implementation Advisory Group to Review Existing ICANN Procedure for Handling WHOIS Conflicts with Privacy Law

ICANN is pleased to announce the launch of the Implementation Advisory Group to Review the Existing ICANN Procedure for Handling WHOIS Conflicts with Privacy Law (IAG-WHOIS Conflicts).

Sixty-one (61) individuals responded to the Call for Volunteers. IAG-WHOIS Conflicts is an open group convened to serve for a limited duration and scope, focusing exclusively on evaluating the ICANN Procedure for Handling WHOIS Conflicts with Privacy Law and providing recommendations on possible changes to the Procedure to the Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO.)

We welcome the following volunteers as members of the newly convened IAG-WHOIS Conflicts:
Tamer Abdallah
Aboyazan Aboyazan
Abdullahi Adhi Gewana
Mona Al Achkar Jabbour
Alyn Andrade
Mark Bayliss
Hela Ben Nejima
Don M. Blumenthal
Gary Campbell
Patrick Charnley
Adrian Cheek
Donna Cunningham
Christian Dawson
Shady El Shafei
Lars-Erik Forsberg
Marianne Georgelin
Allan Ghazi
Ashley Heineman
Raymond Ho
Ismail Hummad
Jordi Iparraguirre
Lazkani Khaled
Tarun Krishnakumar
Taufik Kurniawan
Yuan Lu
Abd Mahmod
Camino Manjon
Steven J. Metalitz
Abdou Mfopa
Don Moody
Manuel Moreno-Torres
Mohamed Mosaad
Basma Nazif
Michele Neylon
Mbabazi Norman
Drew Noyes
Ghislain Nyamfit Ng.
Seun Ojedeji
Chris Pelling
Jonathan Perez
Stephanie Perrin
Elvin Prasad
Adrián Quesada Rodríguez
Mohamed Quriba
Merit Ramses Kamal
Adamantia Rachovitsa
Tariq Rashid
Seth M. Reiss
Mohammed Rezkovic
Carlton Samuels
D. Saravanan
Luc Seufer
Emily Taylor
Bennette Thomas
John WD Thomson
Mbungyuh Tseyah James
Daniel Vidal
Christopher Wilkinson
Ali Yesdel Ibrahim

To track the work of this group, please visit the IAG-WHOIS Conflicts Wiki.
IAG-WHOIS Conflicts Schedule and Operations

The IAG-WHOIS Conflicts is expected to commence its work in January 2015 and produce its recommendations by June 2015.

A kick-off conference call will be scheduled for 7 January.

A schedule of subsequent calls and meetings will be available on the IAG-WHOIS Conflicts Wiki.
IAG-WHOIS Conflicts Mission and Scope

The IAG-WHOIS Conflicts is tasked with providing the GNSO Council suggestions on how to improve the current Procedure. The The IAG’s mission and scope will focus on changes to the Procedure and not ICANN’s contractual requirements. Any recommendations made by the IAG will be forwarded to the GNSO Council to determine whether implementation of the Procedure ought to be changed.

As part of its deliberations, the IAG should, at a minimum, consider the following issues that were highlighted in the recent Report of Public Comments on this topic. Those issues include:

    Process: Should the Procedure be revised to allow for invocation prior to contracting?
        If adopted, how would that alter the contracting process?
        What parties would be most appropriate to include at this early stage of the Procedure?
    Trigger: What triggers would be appropriate for invoking the Procedure?
        Would evidence from a data protection authority that the contract is in conflict with national laws be sufficient to trigger the Procedure? If so, how would ICANN define which data protection authority is an acceptable authority? Would the authority have to be a nationally representative body? Should a regional body’s opinion carry the same weight as a national or local authority?
        Similarly, would an official opinion from a government agency provide enough evidence? If so, which agencies would be most appropriate? Would it have to be an agency tasked with data protection? What about a consumer trust bureau or treasury department that includes consumer protections in its mandate? Or would a foreign ministry provide the best source of information? Which bodies would be considered authoritative enough to provide a creditable opinion?
        Would evidence of a conflict from ICANN-provided analysis provide sufficient information to invoke the Procedure? What type of evidence should this analysis cite?
        If the Procedure allowed for a written opinion from a nationally recognized law firm to provide sufficient evidence for a trigger? What types of firms could be considered nationally recognized? Should it be accredited or made to prove its competency? If so, how? What if ICANN receives contradictory opinions from two firms? How is it to determine the more valid argument?
    Public comment: How should public comments be incorporated into the Procedure?
        What role should comments have in ICANN’s decision-making process?
        What length of public comment period is appropriate to ensure that the Procedure is completed in a timely fashion?
        How should comments be analyzed?
        Should public comments be treated as a safeguard in case a decision is flawed?

The IAG shall invite participation in its discussions from other ICANN Supporting Organizations and Advisory Committees, including the GAC.
Background

ICANN announced a Call for Volunteers for the Implementation Advisory Group to Review Existing ICANN Procedure for Handling WHOIS Conflicts with Privacy Laws on 14 October 2014. The call for volunteers followed a paper published 22 May 2014, which opened a review process to solicit community feedback on the Procedure’s effectiveness. Based on the comments received in response to the paper, ICANN convened this IAG in order to explore suggested changes to the Procedure, which would be forwarded to the GNSO Council for its consideration.

This announcement was sourced from:

https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2014-12-12-en