auDA Domain Name News - May 12
12/May/2008
auDA Domain Name News is compiled by David Goldstein on auDA's behalf. The views expressed in the news items linked from auDA's website (Linked Documents), do not necessarily reflect the views of auDA. auDA does not warrant the accuracy or reliability of the information contained in the Linked Documents, and assumes no liability to any person for any reliance placed upon any information contained in the Linked Documents.
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GOVERNANCE
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US warns China of 'technological isolation' [AFP]
The United States warned China Thursday that it risked "technological isolation" for developing unique technical standards of its own that also are shutting out foreign competition.
news.smh.com.au/us-warns-china-of-technological-isolation/20080509-2ci1.html
news.theage.com.au/us-warns-china-of-technological-isolation/20080509-2ci1.html
Academic says gadgets threaten Internet's future
The rise of gadgets like the iPhone, Blackberry and Xbox threatens to unravel the decades of innovation that helped to build the Internet, a leading academic has warned in a new book.
uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKL0875110620080508
www.nzherald.co.nz/feature/story.cfm?c_id=1501833&objectid=10509015
www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/145738/tethered_gadgets_stagnate_the_net_researcher_says.html
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DOMAIN NAMES
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**********************- ICANN
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ICANN attacks 'fat and happy' IPv4 users
Big businesses need to start planning now to handle changes that will take place when a new version of the internet's fundamental routing protocol becomes ubiquitous, or risk losing online customers, according to ICANN.
news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/0,1000000097,39413760,00.htm
www.zdnet.com.au/news/business/soa/ICANN-IPv4-will-run-out-by-2011/0,139023166,339288828,00.htm
www.builderau.com.au/news/soa/ICANN-IPv4-will-run-out-by-2011/0,339028227,339288828,00.htm
ICANN: Start planning for IPv6 [Video]
Paul Twomey, president and chief executive of ICANN, advises chief executives to start discussions with internet service providers on moving to systems compatible with internet protocol version 6.
news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/0,1000000097,39413765,00.htm
Pakistan: A Case for Small Government
... ICANN is a practical example of such an international organization for the internet. It is designed to handover the administration of the internet from the government to private enterprise. It manages domain names and IP addresses for the internet and the World Wide Web for much of the world.
www.americanchronicle.com/articles/61083
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- ccTLD & gTLD NEWS
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As of now prepayment at nic.at!
As of 04/30/2008 10:00am nic.at will introduce prepayment for end customers. For the completion of a registration, a payment during the registration-process will be obligatory in the future.
www.nic.at/en/uebernic/current_issues/nicat_news/news_view/period/1210478258///article/81/ab-sofort-vorauszahlung-bei-nicat/
Australia: Domain Name Transfer Made Easier
As of 1 June 2008, a new and more flexible registrant transfer policy comes into effect, allowing domain name registrants to transfer their domain name licence to another eligible entity for any reason. The new policy has been approved by the Australian domain name administrator .au Domain Administration Ltd (auDA) - the policy authority and industry self-regulatory body for the .au domain space.
mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=60284
ch/li: Your e-mail address is crucial to SWITCH [news release]
As of 8 May 2008, we will add your e-mail address to our address database – if it is not already registered. As soon as you update the address entry in your account, you will therefore be requested to enter your e-mail address.
switch.ch/about/news/2008/benutzerkonto.html
The allure of the .com domain name
A TLD is the final part of a domain name -- the letters that come after the dot. The most famous is .com, but there are others -- .net, .org, .tv and .us, for example. But none holds as much allure as the .com extension.
thestandard.com/news/2008/05/06/allure-com-domain-name
computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9083999
DNSSEC Protecting Czech ENUM Domains [news release]
The CZ.NIC association prepared the 0.2.4.e164.arpa domain to be signed by a digital signature in April, publishing the signature key to the superior domain e164.arpa, managed by the RIPE organization.
www.nic.cz/page/454/dnssec-protecting-czech-enum-domains/
.KN changing hands
Currently managed by the University of Puerto Rico, the islands of St. Kitts and Nevis' Internet suffix will soon have a new registry.
domainesinfo.fr/english/199/kn-changing-hands.php
.ME General Sunrise begins for eligible Trademark holders [news release]
Today, May 6th, General Sunrise begins for all eligible Trademark holders anywhere in the world.
www.nic.me/index.php?page=12&news=82
dotMobi Acquires Mowser Assets [news release]
dotMobi announced it has acquired the intellectual property assets of Mowser, a San Mateo, Calif.-based mobile browsing company.
mtld.mobi/node/1032
Mowser purchased by dotMobi; is there a need for a .mobi domain?
A couple of weeks ago, Russell Beattie announced that Mowser was at the end of its life. His post took on a life of its own into a discussion of the mobile web and approaches to the internet on mobile devices. I heard today that Mowser will continue to live on as the service has been purchased by dotMobi. You can check out the press release for details. I’m glad that things worked out for Russell and wish him all the best in the future.
blogs.zdnet.com/mobile-gadgeteer/?p=1084
Fees for '.org' domain names to increase 10 pct [AP]
Wholesale fees for Internet addresses ending in ".org" will increase 10 percent Nov. 9.
news.smh.com.au/fees-for-org-domain-names-to-increase-10-pct/20080510-2cs1.html
news.theage.com.au/fees-for-org-domain-names-to-increase-10-pct/20080510-2cs1.html
.org owners facing 10% hike in registration fees this fall
Organizations that own .org domains may soon find themselves paying a bit more to renew, transfer, and register new domains. The company that operates the .org domain, Public Interest Registry (PIR), has decided to raise wholesale rates from $6.15 to $6.75 per domain this year—a 10 percent fee increase, following last year's 2.5 percent increase.
arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080510-org-owners-facing-10-hike-in-registration-fees-this-fall.html
One million .pl domain names
There are now one million .pl domain names registered, with the magical one million barrier crossed on May 6. This is the eighteenth ccTLD to pass this mark quickly following .ca in recent weeks.
technewsreview.com.au/article.php?article=4885
www.domainpulse.com/2008/05/09/one-million-pl-domain-names/
One million names in the .pl domain
A millionth .pl domain has been registered in the national internet domain register kept by NASK (Scientific and Academic Computer Network). Head of the NASK Internet Domains Division, Andrzej Bartosiewicz, informs that the domain has been registered on 6 May 2008.
nask.pl/newsID/id/472
ICANN okays .PRO derestriction
The suffix for professionals has ICANN's green light to make itself more accessible to a higher number of professionals.
domainesinfo.fr/english/200/icann-okays-pro-derestriction.php
pt: Internet Domain Registration for “Sucursais na Hora” (On the Spot Branches) [news release]
Following on from what is already the case for Firms and Associations, since 17th April Internet.pt domain registration is now automatically provided when creating an "On the Spot Branch”.
https://online.dns.pt/dns_2008/do?com=DS;2217917768;111;+PAGE(4000002)+K-NOTICIA(986)+K-CAT-CODIGO(LNH)+RCNT(1);
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- DNS SECURITY
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DARPA Plans Cyberwar 'Matrix'
Police officers practice their firearm skills on a shooting range, so why shouldn't government computer security experts have the same kind of training ground? The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or Darpa, on Monday issued a call for research proposals to develop the National Cyber Range, or NCR, a virtual network environment for cyberwar simulation.
www.informationweek.com/news/personal_tech/virtualworlds/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=207601201
How Estonia's attacks shook the world
The idea that attacks on computer systems could provide an alternative method of spreading terror and disruption has been a concern for governments since IT systems began to proliferate.
www.zdnet.com.au/insight/security/soa/How-Estonia-s-attacks-shook-the-world/0,139023764,339288625,00.htm
Belgium accuses China of cyberattacks
It's not just the US and UK who are crying foul over China's behavior in cyberspace - now the government of tiny Belgium has accused hackers from the country of targeting its systems.
techworld.com/security/news/index.cfm?newsID=101438
www.pcworld.com/article/id,145732-c,security/article.html
www.pcworld.idg.com.au/index.php/id;726798155;fp;2;fpid;1
India and Belgium decry Chinese cyber attacks
Belgium and India have joined the growing ranks of countries voicing concerns about cyber attacks originating from China. Earlier this week, officials from both countries said computer networks inside their borders are routinely targeted by hackers trying to ferret information that could benefit the Chinese government.
www.theregister.co.uk/2008/05/08/belgium_india_china_warnings/
Management group warns CEOs of data-breach risks
Top-level managers and chief executives often do not realise the impact that IT-security incidents can have on their organisations, according to influential group the British-North American Committee. In a report entitled Cyber Attack: A Risk Management Primer for CEOs and Directors, launched on Wednesday, the British-North American Committee (BNAC) said that chief executives underestimate the scale of data-security problems and fail to recognise the consequences of data breaches for business.
news.zdnet.co.uk/security/0,1000000189,39412987,00.htm
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- IPv4/IPv6
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IPv4 addresses as "hot goods"?
With IPv4 addresses in short supply, they could become increasingly interesting and marketable goods. The Regional Internet Registries (RIR), the guardians of IP address allocation, are viewing this with concern. If they officially permit transfers or sales in the future, they will be implicitly accepting commercialisation and privatisation. Any attempt to insist on the return of addresses to the RIRs could drive trading, which is probably inevitable, underground. After a rumour went round that IP address blocks had turned up on eBay, the RIRs were compelled to begin discussing how to handle IPv4 black-marketeering.
www.heise-online.co.uk/news/IPv4-addresses-as-hot-goods--/110699
Google explains its IPv6 strategy
The next steps on the road towards the implementation of IPv6 as the new internet protocol include greatly improved peering, less tunnelling of IPv4 data traffic, and proper monitoring. At least, that's the way developer Lorenzo Colitti, one of those handling Google's IPv6 strategy, saw it in his presentation for providers and network experts at the 56th meeting of RIPE, the regional IP Registry for Europe. Google's search engine can already be brought to life at ipv6.google.com with a dancing logo.
www.heise-online.co.uk/news/Google-explains-its-IPv6-strategy--/110705
EU Commission promotes IPv6
Twenty-five per cent of all European users should have the opportunity to use IPv6 by the end of 2010, and should be able to access most of their normal services and content with it. The EU Commission will set this goal in a statement, to be published at the end of May, on the new internet protocol and progress in the net.
www.heise-online.co.uk/news/EU-Commission-promotes-IPv6--/110672
www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/107616
IPv6 hype suggests real problems
IPv6 is getting the kind of support that, in my experience, usually goes with a failed standard. ICANN is trying to scare us into adopting it, saying that "the people using new network applications are using IPv6". As far as I know that isn't true - there are backbones that can do IPv6, and at the moment all our IPv4 traffic is tunnelling through them. That's not the same thing at all.
community.zdnet.co.uk/blog/0,1000000567,10008100o-2000469549b,00.htm
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- MISCELLANEOUS
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Trademarks and International Domain Names
In the past, the lettering in domain names was limited to alphanumeric characters (that is, English-based ASCII characters). This created an access barrier to internet users who only understood Arabic, Chinese, Hebrew, or other alphabets which could not be incorporated into domain names. For example, Pepsi must still rely on www.pepsi.co.jp for their Japanese website and does not have an option to use Japanese characters. International Domain Names (IDNs) seek to resolve this problem. The goal is to further internationalize the web and increase both accessibility and efficiency.
legalblawg.com/index.php/2008/05/09/trademarks-and-international-domain-names/
Will ARIN Establish a Gatekeeper? by Milton Mueller
If you’re reading this within an hour after it was posted, you’ve got about 17 hours to comment on an important change being proposed at ARIN, the manager of Internet Protocol addresses for the North American region. ARIN is proposing a new “Policy Development Process.” (Sound familiar?) A step by step description of the proposal can be found here. The essence of the change is that the ARIN Advisory Council would manage and dispose of all policy proposals. The new PDP proposal is an example of the increasing formalization of IP address policy making. This trend, which is probably inevitable, will continue. Everyone interested in Internet governance needs to understand that and be attuned to the consequences. ARIN’s Advisory Council will become more of a gatekeeper for policy proposals.
blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2008/5/9/3682004.html
A Patent for SiteFinder-Like Resolution by Christopher Parente
I saw an interesting news item that broke Monday courtesy of DomainNameNews and SlashDot that hasn’t been broadly covered yet. I’m surprised no one has posted on this yet on CircleID, so here goes. Apparently VeriSign has been awarded a patent for the resolution of mis-typed domain names.
www.circleid.com/posts/85760_verisign_patent_sitefinder_resolution/
2Connect MD on RIPE NCC board
Fahad Al Shirawi, managing director and chief executive officer 2Connect, has been elected to the board of RIPE NCC at a general meeting held in Berlin, which was attended by over 111 members from across the world.
www.menafn.com/qn_news_story_s.asp?StoryId=1093196188
May ARIN Report Now Available
The ARIN Report is a periodic publication that informs the ARIN community about recent and future activities. In the May 2008 issue you will find articles about ARIN & CAIDA Survey Report, ARIN XXI, Denver, CO 6-9 April 2008, revised PDP, IPv6 Event and more.
arin.net/announcements/20080509.html
VeriSign Reports First Quarter 2008 Results [news release]
VeriSign, Inc. reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2008. VeriSign reported revenue of $354 million for the first quarter of 2008. On a GAAP basis, VeriSign reported a net loss of $19 million and a net loss per share of $0.09. These GAAP results reflect a $25.5 million impairment on certain assets held for sale as well as a restructuring charge of $26.5 million for both continuing and discontinued operations.
www.verisign.com/static/043702.pdf
Tucows Financial News Release, Q1 2008
Tucows Inc. announced its financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2008. All figures are in U.S. dollars.
about.tucows.com/investors/financials/tucows-financial-release-2008-q1.php
Net gains for The Hour - Strombo talk show gets new fans via YouTube, CBC.ca [Canadian Press]
George Stroumboulopoulos has been quietly amassing a devout Internet following that reaches beyond Canada's borders with his low-key CBC talk show, "The Hour." ... "Ten years from now, the cable channel isn't going to be nearly as important as the domain name. CBC.ca, that's the television channel of the future. We don't worry about where people are watching us, as long as they're watching us."
www.metronews.ca/vancouver/entertainment/article/31120
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- DOMAINING & AFTERMARKET
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Six Figure Sale of MeetPeople.com Leads this Week's Domain Sales Pack
People love to meet online and that fact helped Rick Latona close a $100,000 sale of MeetPeople.com this week to take the #1 spot on our weekly Top 20 sales chart. SearchEngines.com ran a close second at $92,500. Moniker.com had auctioned that domain off at T.R.A.F.F.I.C. West in February but the deal wasn't completed until this week.
dnjournal.com/archive/domainsales/2008/domainsales05-06-08.htm
Selling Domain Names on eBay
Is it worth trying to sell domain names on eBay? An experiment with Headcase.com.
domainnamewire.com/2008/05/09/update-selling-domain-names-on-ebay/
israel.com on the block
Israel is being sold off to the highest bidder. The Internet domain name israel.com is expected to fetch at least $5.5 million when it is sold at auction, said Monte Cahn, CEO of Moniker.com, which is running the sale.
www.nypost.com/seven/05082008/news/worldnews/israel_com_on_the_block_109869.htm
Israel.com headed for auction [UPI]
A Pompano Beach, Fla., Internet domain-selling business said Israel.com is expected to sell for at least $5.5 million when it goes on the auction block May 23.
upi.com/NewsTrack/Quirks/2008/05/08/israelcom_headed_for_auction/4840/
social.moldova.org/stiri/eng/117817/
Inside Microsoft's War Against Google
With Yahoo off the table, Microsoft plans to challenge Google's online-ad juggernaut alone. A behind-the-scenes look at its provocative strategy
businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_20/b4084036492860.htm
Advocacy groups take aim at Google-Yahoo partnership
An online advertising partnership between Yahoo Inc. and Google Inc. is facing opposition from consumer and civic groups that didn't wait for an official deal announcement to voice their discontent.
businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D90IC1200.htm
Alarm at Google Yahoo partnering
Regulators in the US are being urged to investigate any potential online advertising and search partnership between Google and Yahoo.
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7393486.stm
Google addresses antitrust issue on Yahoo ad deal
Google's top executives on Thursday gave a glimpse into how it might try to deflect antitrust concerns of a possible ad-sharing deal with rival Yahoo, advising observers to look at the overall ad market.
www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9939473-7.html
Google-Yahoo: Deal or No Deal?
Will Google and Yahoo come together on a search advertising partnership? The two companies have been discussing an agreement under which Google would deliver some ads alongside Yahoo’s search results. Since Google on average earns much more than Yahoo for every search, the deal, at least in theory, would boost Yahoo’s revenue. The two companies conducted a two-week experiment to make sure that was indeed true and both companies have called the test a success.
bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/09/google-yahoo-deal-or-no-deal/
Odd coalition opposes Google-Yahoo ad plan
Internet search king Google Inc. and Yahoo Inc. have yet to agree on a deal to put some Google ads next to Yahoo search results. But their discussions have already provoked objections from an unusually diverse set of Washington players. In fact, it is safe to say that the American Corn Growers Assn. has never before joined forces with the Dominican American Business Network.
www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-google10-2008may10,0,7614776.story
What's in a domain? Gift for Jenna, hubby
Matthews resident Jeff Jones has offered first daughter Jenna Bush an unusual wedding gift to celebrate her nuptials, planned for today.
www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1067620.html
www.charlotte.com/local/story/617880.html
