RE: [ga] WIPO recommendations on IGOs and Country Names

[Joanna Lane <jo-uk@rcn.com>]

From: owner-ga@dnso.org [mailto:owner-ga@dnso.org]On Behalf Of Richard
Henderson
Sent: Wednesday, April 16, 2003 3:54 AM
To: ga@dnso.org
Subject: [ga] WIPO recommendations on IGOs and Country Names


While I understand the desire to "control" sites that resolve to the name of
a sovereign state, I still regard this as a matter of "control" - part of a
process which closes down the variety and freedoms of the net.

For example, here in UK we have a long-established supermarket chain called
Iceland. They're legitimate, they're trademarked, they are bona fide.

>

Iceland is a good example. For those that don't know, at least 80% of the UK
population recognize the brand name "Iceland" as a frozen food retailer as
well as a country. There is no confusion. There is one in nearly every town
which has been around for decades, if not generations. It is ludicrous to
deny this business the benefits of trading on its registered mark using the
DNS, in line with every other trademark holder. To do otherwise would be
discrimination and an unfair restraint of trade,  which sounds like a
lawsuit to me.

Also, if this is an indication of the measure of control that ICANN seeks
over the DNS, then it will end up controlling the DNS out of existence, for
it is already very easy to use Google to search for relevant domain names,
and if Iceland is not allowed to use its brand name in its Domain Name, not
even in .co.uk, where it currently operates, then the only way to find them
will be Google, in which case, we might just as well revert to IP numbers
and get rid of the DNS altogether.

Am I going wrong?

Regards,
Joanna


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