Re: [wg-c] New gTLDs and ISPs (was: URGENT . . . )

[Craig Simon <cls@flywheel.com>]

Hi Mark,

I want to be sure I understand your priorities.

> 1) Recommendations made by WG-C must not adversely affect the ubiquity of
> the Internet (no logical partitioning should result from any namespace
> expansion).

I'm not sure how you mean to use the term ubiquity here. The Internet is far
from ubiquitous now. 

Perhaps the term coherence reflects this sentiment better than ubiquity. I
endorse your position, if that is what you mean. Partitioning of the Internet's
name space across multiple roots would be a lamentable thing. I can think of few
things that would create more confusion for the average user.

That's why I advocate the concept of adding gTLDs. This would head off pressures
that might lead to the logical partitioning of the Internet into a proliferation
of widely used name spaces. The current DNS scales well enough. It's only the
politics of TLD management that's become ossified.

That's also why I mentioned in LA that I think TLDNS and alternate partitions
like it are a real concern. Fortunately, you made a good case that TLDNS is
actually the tip of no iceberg. 

But new bids to foment alternate roots will become likely, I think, as .com
continues to saturate.   Since there is no law (and there certainly shouldn't
be) preventing alternate roots from forming, the onus is on ICANN to do its best
to anticipate this demand, and to be prepared to satisfy that before others do
(and of course they will, if the opportunity presents itself).


> 2) Recommendations of the WG-C must not compromise the usability of the
> Internet for any of its constituencies. This includes end-users and ISPs.

Again, I strongly endorse this sentiment, but I wonder if it means the same
things for us. 

I believe that careful expansion of the gTLD space can improve usability,
whereas you've been referring to some otherwise unavailable studies that you say
support the opposite view. 

So I agree with the call to "show us the evidence."  

Keep in mind that I think there is an important distinction to be made between
the usability of the Internet and the usability of well-known english language
brand names. 

I don't think that usability of the Internet (or, more to the point, the DNS)
requires that it first of all serve as a directory of brand names. 

As others here have already mentioned, it's surprising that the TM folks and the
big entrenched companies aren't advocating introducing LOTS of new gTLDs. Doing
so would undermine their potential for diluting the mindshare that NSI has
secured for .com as the guessable URL suffix of choice for advertised
commodities.



Craig