<nettime> The Top 100 & Public Comments

[Paul Garrin <pg {AT} lokmail.net>]

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The Top 100 Emerging Generic
Toplevel Domains (gTLDs)

space   3213
web     2813
art     1344
shop    1251
info    929
sex     913
zone    854
design  794
music   779
firm    766
media   748
travel  735
online  624
inc     614
arts    468
mail    447
home    436
ltd     423
mag     422
bank    417
usa     415
world   414
x       409
2000    404
corp    397
news    393
free    389
fuck    381
service 373
family  372
games   364
cam     361
casino  356
auction 353
asia    352
fun     350
mall    350
cafe    348
law     352
love    346
hacker  341
internet        338
market  334
jam     333
cat     328
zero    328
consulting      326
city    324
radio   324
wine    323
sports  323
software        323
fax     320
channel 319
club    319
sale    318
hole    317
time    313
graphics        313
game    313
network 313
4u      312
film    311
europe  311
lab     309
4all    310
trade   307
irc     306
site    305
host    305
one     305
school  305
power   305
magazine        304
computer        304
group   302
systems 302
girl    302
moon    300
show    300
watch   300
books   299
commerce        299
productions     299
tech    298
now     296
med     295
solutions       295
agency  294
nyc     294
red     293
soft    293
shoes   292
pub     292
box     291
insurance       290
cool    290
etc     290
computers       289
photo   289

If you could only choose 10 new gTLDs what would they be?
Should you stop there?  If not, what are the limits?
(think not just in terms of numbers, but in terms of
use and diversity...)

The Working Group C (WG-C) of the ICANN Domain Name Supporting Organization (DNSO) is tasked with making recommendations for the addition ofnew gTLDs to the internet's root so that they will become globally operable.   A proposal is to select between six and ten new gTLDs to activate in a "testbed" period, where different technical models and policies will be developed and hopefully successfully deployed.

There is a public comment period that ends on January 10, 1999 that will affect the direction of the policy making decisions that will effect every internet user from now on, from issues of domain name rights and freedoms vs. intellectual property, to privacy (i.e. ICANN's mandatory database escrow of personal contact information).
It is important that you take some time and review the proposals presented by WG-C and comment on them.  It is equally important that you voice your positions on the policies that will ultimately affect all internet users.
http://www.dnso.org/dnso/announce/Archives/msg00054.html

Issues revolving around domain names include the rights to publish (domains are CONTENT) and the rights to access (without a domain, your site is difficilt to reach, or unreachable), as well as your rights to privacy (who has access to your personal information tied to your domain, and under what circumstances).

Leonardo v. Leonardo, Etoys v. Etoy, and the recent actions of the DVDCCA are just a taste of the times to come unless proactive measures are taken.   Already the ICANN/WIPO/NSI policies for legacy domains, COM., ORG., NET., are exhibiting their negative and opressive effects.  It is important to stop these policies from ruling the new gTLDs that will soon come about, in possibly a mixed environment of ICANN ruled TLDs (such as COM., ORG., NET., and the "six to ten" ICANN gTLDs, and "FREE gTLDs" that are run by autonomous entities, much as the country code ccTLDs are today--they are run independently and are not subject to the rule of ICANN.

Name.Space has in place what it believes a model policy for fair use of and access to the internet namespace.  Technology and policy through practice, evolved through the constant interaction with the users and the systems which enable their access, to provide fairness and freedoms of speech and privacy for the users of the internet.
http://namespace.org/policy

The forced "gentrification" and "disneyfication" of cyberspace need not extend to all aspects of it.  Freedoms are being negotiated away, far from public view, by commercial contracts.  The internet is not borderless, nor is it public--it is a private road connecting gated communities, subject to the terms and conditions the commercial service agreements that bind it all together, creating one interwoven private commercial space.  There is no guaranteed free speech or Constitutional protections on this private property.  There is potential coercion and "reverse censorship", much more insidious than the "reverse hijacking" as in Etoys v. Etoy.  Network Solutions, Inc. (NSI, a/k/a f/k/a/ InterNIC)has won the right in court First Amendment protection, as a private company, NOT to publish anything it judges inappropriate.  Their First Amendment rights to Free Speech are protected over YOURS because they own the PROPERTY that provides you with their domain services.

When Thing.net was cut off by their upstream provider, many cried "CENSORSHIP".  Perhaps it was, in spirit, but the Denial of Service (DoS) attack was in fact a violation of the commercial use policy and service agreement between Thing.net and their upstream provider.

The days are counting down to when the last of your rights will be negotiated away in backroom deals between commercial companies.  Send your comments to ICANN by January 10, 2000, 18.00 CET.

Show your support for DNS FREEDOM while there is still a chance.

- --Paul Garrin

switch your dns to Name.Space http://namespace.org/switch

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