[ga] EFF joins Sex.com case

[Jeff Williams <jwkckid1@ix.netcom.com>]

All assembly members,

Who's Always Screwing up???

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http://news.com.com/2100-1023-823122.html
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By Lisa M. Bowman 
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
January 25, 2002, 10:20 AM PT

A technology civil liberties group is jumping into a dispute between 
the owner of the Sex.com Web address and domain name provider 
VeriSign. 
The Electronic Frontier Foundation said it filed a brief this week 
with a federal appeals court on behalf of Gary Kremen, the original 
owner of the Sex.com address. Kremen lost the domain name to another 
porn entrepreneur and then won it back after a protracted legal 
battle. 

In it's brief, the EFF asked the court to hold VeriSign, which now 
owns the Net name registrar that transferred the Web address, 
responsible for the error. VeriSign acquired registrar Network 
Solutions in 2000.

"A court has ruled that (Network Solutions) can screw up its monopoly 
on dot-com domain name management and face no consequence for its 
actions," EFF Attorney Robin Gross said in a statement announcing the 
court filing. "We hope the appellate court will recognize the danger 
in eliminating all accountability for this key component of Internet 
governance." 

Kremen lost the Sex.com address after Stephen Cohen tricked Network 
Solutions into giving him the name. Network Solutions had a monopoly 
on domain names at the time. A court ordered Cohen, who is still at 
large, to pay Kremen $65 million and give up the domain name. 
However, the judge also said VeriSign wasn't liable, a ruling Kremen 
appealed. 

Many of the cases the EFF takes on involve free speech and consumer 
rights in an increasingly wired world, but some of its officials have 
said they plan to watch disputes surrounding domain names more 
closely. The organization usually joins cases that reach beyond a 
particular individual to affect the Internet community at large. 

VeriSign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



Regards,
--
Jeffrey A. Williams
Spokesman for INEGroup - (Over 121k members/stakeholdes strong!)
CEO/DIR. Internet Network Eng/SR. Java/CORBA Development Eng.
Information Network Eng. Group. INEG. INC.
E-Mail jwkckid1@ix.netcom.com
Contact Number:  972-244-3801 or 214-244-4827
Address: 5 East Kirkwood Blvd. Grapevine Texas 75208
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