By Baldwin Shelston Waters staff

Important News In Brief

- Affilias officially begins accepting applications for .info domain names on Wednesday 25 July 2001 when the 'Sunrise Period' commences. During the Sunrise Period only applications based on trade marks having an effective registration date prior to 2 October 2000 will be accepted. For the best chance of filing a successful application, it is recommended that you apply during the first week of the Sunrise Period i.e. up to 31 July 2001.

- The .biz Intellectual Property ("IP") claim period has been extended and now runs up to 6 August 2001.

- The official period for filing pre-registration .biz applications has now commenced and runs up to 17 September 2001.

.Info - what is it?

.info is a Top Level Domain that is open to any business or person and is not restricted so far as access or content is concerned.

Is it useful?

As a Top Level Domain .info provides for businesses:

- A global site for the promotion of businesses, products, and services.

- An opportunity to enhance your IP portfolio and marketing options.

- An opportunity to protect your IP portfolio against third party interests.

Although .info is not as business specific as .biz, the Internet is primarily concerned with the search for and provision of information. Informative sites are sought after by persons searching the Web and can be powerful marketing tools. While the future importance of all domains cannot be predicted with certainty, it is anticipated that .info will be a useful domain name to acquire and is likely to be a highly used domain.

Securing a .info domain for your most important names and trademarks will add to your IP portfolio, increase your international presence, expand your marketing options, and provide security against third party access to those site names. Given the potential benefits from securing and detriments from not securing important names, it is a highly cost effective strategy to seek .info domain names for your important trademarks during the Sunrise Period.

What is the "Sunrise Period" and who is eligible to file?

The Sunrise Period is the initial official period for filing applications and securing .info domain names.

The persons entitled to apply during the Sunrise Period have been limited in order to give priority to the owners of registered trade marks.

Any person who holds a registered trade mark having an effective registration date prior to 2 October 2000 may apply to register the .info domain name corresponding to their registered trade mark.

The Sunrise Period runs from 25 July 2001 to 27 August 2001

Affilias will process .info applications over several rounds. The first round will commence 7 days after the Sunrise Period commences i.e. after 31 July 2001. Therefore, to have the best chance of securing a name based on an existing trade mark registration, it is recommended that you file within that period.

Filing a .info application does not guarantee registration because it is possible that someone else may file a conflicting application.

Due to the fact that .info is a global Domain, applications will be accepted from all around the world thereby increasing the likelihood of businesses filing for the same names. Where identical names are sought, the person to be allocated the domain will be chosen by a random selection process.

Land Rush Period - After 12 September

During the Land Rush period, applications can be filed by anyone for any .info domain name they desire.

Where conflicting applications are filed, the person to be allocated the domain name will be chosen by a random selection process. The applications filed will be randomised for selection after the first 7 days, therefore, filing before 19 September 2001 is highly recommended to have the best chance of securing .info domain names which are not based on relevant trade mark registrations.

Real Time Registrations

Shortly after 19 September 2001, it is expected that applications will be processed on receipt on a first to file basis.

Dates

We advise that the .info dates stated in this newsletter are subject to change by Affilias.

.Biz Update

The period for filing IP claims has been extended to 6 August 2001.
Pre-registration applications can be filed up to 17 September 2001. Thereafter, they will be randomised and the .biz domain names will be allocated.

Where there are exactly conflicting .biz domain name applications, the random selection process can be likened to a lottery and due to the expected demand for .biz domain name, it is likely that there will be numerous conflicting applications.

Generic names are presently unallocated and it is recommended that you consider seeking registration for such names.

Strategies for seeking valuable .biz domain names include:

- Filing multiple applications for the name desired.

- Filing for variations of your principal name (this may decrease the probability of an exact conflict and increase the prospects of being allocated the name sought).

- Applying for generic domains.

Conclusion

It is recommended that you seek .info domain names corresponding to your most important trade marks and that you consider seeking relevant generic .info domain names.

If you have not already done so, it is recommended that you consider and assess your options and strategies for seeking .biz domain names, and the possibility of securing generic .biz domain names.

We are happy to assist you with any matters arising in relation to your .biz and .info domain names and advise that you should feel free to contact your usual Baldwin Shelston Waters
trademarks specialist for assistance.
This is a general summary only and should not be taken as a substitute for specific advice.

Web site: Baldwin Shelston Waters
Email: email@bsw.com
July 2001