RE: [atlarge-discuss] Trademark debate

["Bruce Young" <bruce@barelyadequate.info>]

Richard Henderson wrote:

|  The hijacking of our language by the Intellectual Property brigade,
|  supported and condoned by ICANN, is one or the great offences of this
|  "organisation" which purports to operate on behalf of the whole world.

Yes indeed.  Their UDRP, in one fell swoop, reworte long-standing trademark
laws, in the US at least.  Prior to the UDRP (as noted in the Roadrunner
cartoons!) you could have hundreds of "Acme" trademarks, as long as the
companies weren't in the same line of business.  But ICANN's egregious UDRP
allow *anyone* holding a trademark for the name "Acme" to sue to obtain the
rights for ACME.COM (which BTW currently belongs to ACME Laboratories, a
Unix software geek's site!). Unless the little guy can afford the cost of
arbitration (I couldn't!) and then potentially a lengthly court battle to
the tune of six or seven-figures if they win arbitration, the big guys
always win by simply filing!

|  Let's be frank : ICANN is craven and serves corporate industry,
|  and American corporate industry in particular.

Yes.  Without a counterbalancing public voice, ICANN has been selling out
the Internet to their corporate friends as fast as they can.  That was the
reason for the original decison to create the At Large, and give it half the
power on the board, to serve as a counervailing force.  And that is why the
Internet industry cronies on the ICANN board have tried so had to
invalidatev and eliminate the At Large.  They don't want anyone interfering
with their unbridled greed!

And that is why I feel they wouldn't hesitate to drag us into court over
ICANNATLARGE.COM, now that the idea has been brought to their attention!

Bruce Young
Portland, Oregon USA
bruce@barelyadequate.info
http://www.barelyadequate.info
--------------------------------------------
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