Re: [ICANN-EU] fwd: Name.Space Answers ICANN Ultimatum

[Jefsey Morfin <jefsey@wanadoo.fr>]

Andy,
Thank you for this very interesting piece. We would certainly be happy if
Louis Touton responded:

-  to these questions
-  why the DNSO has not been consulted on these points

Also, I do not know the differences between the European and American
laws. But I have been warned by two well known international law firms about
my personnal risks in gathering the $ 50.000 for the ".sys" and ".wiz" TLDs.

-  both as a crook to gather a commity of sponsors for what should probably
    turn into personnal interest only (to be the person having proposed new
    concepts) since I was to give up every IP claim on these concepts
-  and for company assets collective abuse because the collected money was
    to be spend without enough warranties (most of the questions of Paul 
Garrin).

I warned M. Mike Roberts about this. He only responded that our exchange
was counterproductive. I therefore created two non profit organizations, one
for each TLD and developped the ULD concept to make immediate actions
possible on a legally paying basis. The $ 50.000 were considered as a part
of  our advertizing budget (for the press we could get through the ICANN).

As Paul Garin says "A sum of $50,000.00 is not insignificant to small
businesses". We determined late september the amount would be better
spent in other forms of advertizing. Up to onw this seems to be more
actually productive as:

-  none took our ".sys" and ".wiz" strings (which are the names of our
    consortia (.SYS and .WIZ)
-  we expect to be operationnal before Xmas as ULDs
-  we will grow at a more reasonable path than being under ICANN pressure
-  we will retain the full IP of our projects
-  we will benefit from the "multiple TLD is better" campaigning probably to
    come the same as the retained TLD
-  we will have time to document our UDRP positions from experience
-  we will be in a better position for a second round, if any.

We plan to propose deceived applicants a joint alternative in the coming
weeks. It will be based upon our current works. This would allow them to
retain some IP rights (they have signed the form) and to share advertzing.
Jefsey Morfin


At 00:21 07/10/00, you wrote:
> >From: Paul Garrin <pg@namespace.org>
> >Subject: Name.Space Answers ICANN Ultimatum
> >Date: Fri, 06 Oct 2000 17:09:10 -0400
> >Sender: pg@mail.lokmail.net
> >
> >name.space, inc.
> >11 east 4th street, new york, ny 10003 usa  212.677.4080 
> fax  677.3603  internet:
> >info@name-space.com
> >
> >
> >To:    Louis Touton
> >       Vice President, ICANN
> >       4676 Admirality Way Suite 330
> >       Marina Del Rey, California 90292-6601
> >       310.823.9358  fax 823.8649
> >
> >
> >
> >Dear Louis Touton,
> >
> >Thank you for your email regarding the Name.Space application to ICANN's 
> TLD
> >registry review.
> >
> >Name.Space has every intention to comply with your request and to 
> participate in
> >the ICANN review process in good faith.
> >
> >The purpose of the disagreement over the non-refundable $50,000.00 fee 
> was to
> >focus on issues pertaining to that fee which Name.Space believes ICANN has
> >neglected to
> >articulate.  Those issues are:
> >
> >       1)      How was the amount of the fee determined?
> >
> >       2)      What oversight was there over determining that amount?
> >
> >       3)      What body provided oversight over the fairness of the fee?
> >
> >       4)      If a proposal is not accepted in this round will there
> >               be further rounds of TLD registry review and approval?
> >
> >       5)      If there are to be more rounds of TLD registry review,
> >               when will that be?
> >
> >       6)      If a proposal is not accepted in this round and there
> >               are future rounds, will a balance left over from the
> >               costs of reviewing a proposal be carried over and
> >               applied to the next round?
> >
> >       7)      Is it ICANN's intention to restrict the number of TLDs
> >               or does ICANN intend to expand the number of TLDs?
> >
> >       8)      What does ICANN consider its concept of range of expansion
> >               if the answer to the above is "expand" the number of TLDs?
> >
> >       9)      What timeline would be descriptive for reaching any limits
> >               on expansion, if ICANN seeks to impose limits on the number
> >               of TLDs?
> >
> >   10)         What is ICANN's perception on the number of TLDs it will
> >               approve in this first round?
> >
> >Our clients and investors would like to know the answers to these 
> questions, as I
> >am certain the public and the Congress would like to know the answers as 
> well.
> >
> >A sum of $50,000.00 is not insignificant to small businesses and their 
> investors.
> >While we raised the funds to apply for ICANN review, many potential 
> sponsors
> >could not justify the cost or the risks involved given the unclear 
> positions that
> >the above questions seek to clarify.  The prevailing opinion of potential
> >sponsors who declined to fund the ICANN review process believed that 
> $50,000.00
> >is best spent paying salaries at Name.Space rather than funding an 
> uncertain
> >agenda of ICANN, especially when all indications point to the 
> possibility that
> >ICANN seeks to restrict rather than expand the number of TLDs. Your honest
> >answers to the above may help to clarify the validity of the $50,000.00 
> fee and
> >the "no refund" policy as well as to articulate ICANNís position on 
> whether it
> >intends to restrict the number of TLDs or to expand them.
> >
> >Sincerely,
> >
> >Paul Garrin
> >Founder/CEO
> >Name.Space, Inc.
> >
> >
> >========================original message below============================
> >
> >------- Forwarded Message
> >
> >Message-ID: <39DCBE60.BF5E08E1@icann.org>
> >Date: Thu, 05 Oct 2000 10:46:08 -0700
> >From: Louis Touton <touton@icann.org>
> >X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7 [en] (Win98; I)
> >X-Accept-Language: en,ja
> >MIME-Version: 1.0
> >To: pg@name-space.com
> >Subject: Name.Space's Unsponsored TLD Submission
> >Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
> >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
> >
> >To:  Paul Garrin
> >
> >ICANN received Name.Space, Inc.'s TLD application for an unsponsored
> >top-level domain.  The last paragraph of item B6 of the
> >Unsponsored TLD Application Transmittal Form was crossed out and the
> >words "Do Not Agree" written over the paragraph.
> >
> >The New TLD Application Instructions posted at
> ><http://www.icann.org/tlds/application-process-03aug00.htm> state that
> >one of the elements of a complete application is "[a] completed and
> >signed Unsponsored TLD Application Transmittal Form." (item I6.1)
> >
> >Because the last paragraph of item B6. was crossed out, Name.Space,
> >Inc.'s application is incomplete.  ICANN is unwilling to consider the
> >application on the basis of Name.Space's proposed changes to the
> >terms of the transmittal form.
> >
> >ICANN would like to offer Name.Space, Inc. an opportunity to correct
> >this deficiency.  Please fax a completed and signed Unsponsored TLD
> >Application Transmittal Form (without any changes or markings to its
> >terms) to ICANN by 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time on Friday, October 6, 2000
> >and send the original of the completed and signed form to ICANN at
> >its offices in Marina del Rey, CA by overnight courier for delivery
> >no later than Saturday, October 7, 2000.
> >
> >If ICANN does not receive a completed and signed Unsponsored TLD
> >Application Transmittal Form as described in the preceding paragraph,
> >Name.Space, Inc.'s application will not be considered complete and
> >ICANN will return the application, along with the application fee, to
> >Name.Space, Inc.
> >
> >Please note that Name.Space, Inc.'s application will receive no further
> >review unless and until ICANN receives a completed, signed, and
> >unaltered Unsponsored TLD Application Transmittal Form as stated above.
> >Accordingly, ICANN has not determined in what other ways, if any,
> >Name.Space, Inc.'s application is incomplete.
> >
> >Thank you for your attention to this matter.
> >
> >Best regards,
> >
> >Louis Touton
> >ICANN Vice President
> >
> >------- End of Forwarded Message