Proposed IRT Joint Statement with ALAC

[Konstantinos Komaitis]

Dear Kathy,

Great statement ­ great job. Just a brief addition in the URS (hope it is
not too late) - can we also add here that the system further illegitimitizes
the process of ADR and what is meant to serve ­ it is both procedurally and
substantively unjust.

Best
Konstantinos


On 23/06/2009 07:25, "Kathy Kleiman" <Kathy at KathyKleiman.com> wrote:

> Hi All,
> For discussion purposes a little later in our meeting today, here is a DRAFT
> Joint Statement on the IRT Report between NCUC and ALAC.
> It would be very nice if, at the Board Public Forum on Thursday, we could go
> up together with ALAC to make a strong joint statement.
> That would make the Board wake up! :-)
> 
> Best,
> Kathy
> (below in text and attached in Word)
> 
> 
> DRAFT
> Joint Statement on the DIRT Report
> From ALAC and NCUC
>  
>  
> The At-Large Community, ALAC and the Non-Commercial Users Constituency of
> ICANN strongly support the creation of new gTLDs. Having said that, the
> process to move forward with changes to the DAG Guidebook requires the
> legitimacy of full community participation and full transparency.
> In the case of the IRT Report, we had neither transparency nor openness. The
> IRT Report and its recommendations harm the interests of domain name
> Registrants and Internet end users, and consequently we must object to the
> vast bulk of its recommendations.
>  
> To be more specific:
> 1. The Globally Protected Marks List ­ the GPML database- is a matter well
> beyond ICANN's scope and its core competence. It presumes to be able to
> resolve an issue that even WIPO wrestles with. Clearly the creation of the
> GPML, if even possible, would cause enormous complexity. Instead of speeding
> up the process of creating new gTLDs, it would introduce delays that would
> last for years. But the creation of this list must take place outside of
> ICANN.
> 2. The GPML takes no consideration of the actual limits of rights and
> protections allowed to trademarks. In the real world, trademark owners apply
> for a trademark in a specific class of goods and services, and their use is
> bound to that class or classes. By protecting a string of letters in all new
> gTLDs, the GPML would extend trademarks into new gTLDs far beyond the bounds
> of their class of goods and services, far beyond existing national laws and
> internationatreaties.
>  
> 3. We have enormous problems with the Uniform Suspension Service (URS). The
> URS mechanism subverts conventional UDRP practice as it gives entirely
> insufficient time for notice to the registrant of the pending dispute. Thus,
> the registrant is unfairly limited in his/her right of response and the
> process is missing the fundamental principle of due process.
>  
> [ Kathy Note: This paragraph below seems to be somewhat controversial within
> ALAC. I think we will be dropping it. Don't worry, we'll include the statement
> in our comments -- if you all agree]
> 4. ALAC and NCUC strongly object to the Thick Whois Registry. In mandating
> such, the IRT Committee did not address any of the privacy issues that arise
> from moving personal data from many countries with data protection laws,
> perhaps, to a single country without data protection. Does ICANN really want
> to be in a position in which it may be violating national laws?
> 
> 
> Overall, we wish the result were different. We wish the IRT had delivered a
> reasonable proposal for the protection of trademarks. But the product
> delivered is far outside the scope and core competence of ICANN, and outside
> the bounds of trademark law.
> We can do better; we must do better before we move forward.
> Consequently, NCUC and ALAC stand before this forum together in fundamental
> opposition to many of the IRT Results.
>  
>  
> Signed [for sharing a written cop y of a floor statement with the Board]
>  
> ALAC             
> NCUC
>  
> __________________
> __________________
> __________________
> __________________
>  
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Dr. Konstantinos Komaitis,
> Lecturer in Law,
> GigaNet Membership Chair,
> University of Strathclyde,
> The Lord Hope Building,
> 141 St. James Road,
> Glasgow, G4 0LT,
> UK
> tel: +44 (0)141 548 4306
> email: k.komaitis at strath.ac.uk 

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