In the wake of ICANN's recent approval of ICM Registry's application for the .XXX domain, brand owners will have the opportunity to protect the use of their trademarks in the .XXX domain by using an opt-out or blocking process. The .XXX domain is, as you might expect, intended for adult entertainment and related content. The registry provides a short window of time known as a "sunrise" period, in this case 30 days, for trademark owners to block domain names that exactly match their trademarks.
Brand owners should be aware of the following facts related to the sunrise-period blocking process:
- The sunrise period will begin in early September 2011. It will
last for 30 days and will be open to two groups:
- Sunrise A is for members of the sponsored community (the online
adult entertainment industry and those supplying products and
services to that industry).
- Sunrise B is for trademark owners who want to block the use of
their names in the .XXX domain extension.
- Sunrise A is for members of the sponsored community (the online
adult entertainment industry and those supplying products and
services to that industry).
- To qualify for the sunrise period, brand owners must have
registrations for their trademarks in any country where the
applicant conducts substantial commerce.
- One time domain-blocking fees for Sunrise B applicants will be
set by the registrars, but the exact amount has not yet been
determined.
- There will likely be some cost advantage to blocking domains
during the sunrise period, rather than afterward.
- If an application to block is successful, the blocked domain
name will resolve to a standard page indicating that the domain is
not available.
- Additional information on domain blocking can be found at www.xxxempt.com. Don't worry—it is safe to access this site for work!
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
