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Two-Character Letter/Letter Label Comments and Mitigation Measures

As of 13 December 2016, this page is no longer active. Please visit here for more information.

For comments submitted before 6 October 2015, view the archive of comments received.

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TLD  Two
Characters  		Comments from GovernmentLast
updated  		RO Mitigation PlanRO NameBRAND TLD
anzsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

anz Mitigation

By Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited

Proposed Measure to Avoid Confusion—Brand TLD (Specification 13)
Provide a brief explanation of the TLD: Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited has applied for .ANZ to run a closed .brand environment.
Protections
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited for the .ANZ TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .ANZ is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .ANZ is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .ANZ has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .ANZ that requires that all domain names in the .ANZ TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .ANZ TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .ANZ TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.
Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .ANZ TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .ANZ TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited - its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the Government or the corresponding country code operator.
By this letter, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13


2016-04-22

Australia and New Zealand Banking Group LimitedYes
apartmentssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

apartments Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
applesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03Yes
aquarellesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03Yes
archisgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

archi Mitigation

By Starting Dot

The proposed measure to avoid confusion for .ARCHI applies across all two-character labels.

The proposed measure can be found in the file attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Starting DotNo
armysgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

army Mitigation

By United TLD Holdco

Please see attached PDF on behalf of United TLD Holdco


View Documents
2016-04-25

United TLD Holdco No
artesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

arte Mitigation

By Association Relative à la Télévision Européenne G.E.I.E.

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:
Association Relative à la Télévision Européenne G.E.I.E. has applied for .ARTE to run a closed .brand environment.

Protections
Association Relative à la Télévision Européenne G.E.I.E. for the .ARTE TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that the Association Relative à la Télévision Européenne G.E.I.E. will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .ARTE is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .ARTE is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .ARTE TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .ARTE that requires that all domain names in the .ARTE TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .ARTE TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .ARTE TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .ARTE TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .ARTE TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Association Relative à la Télévision Européenne G.E.I.E., its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator.
By this letter Association Relative à la Télévision Européenne G.E.I.E. confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-25

Association Relative à la Télévision Européenne G.E.I.E.Yes
associatessgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

associates Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
attorneysgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

attorney Mitigation

By United TLD Holdco

Please see attached PDF on behalf of United TLD Holdco


View Documents
2016-04-25

United TLD Holdco No
auctionsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

auction Mitigation

By United TLD Holdco

Please see attached PDF on behalf of United TLD Holdco


View Documents
2016-04-25

United TLD Holdco No
audiblesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

audible Mitigation

By Amazon Registry Services, Inc.

Amazon Registry Services, Inc. (“ARSI”), the Registry Operator for the .Brand TLDs .AUDIBLE, .AWS, .FIRE, .IMDB, .KINDLE, .PRIME, .SILK, and .ZAPPOS (collectively, “the .Brand TLDs”) proposes release of the following 2-character letter-letter combinations: : ai, bh, bm, ci, cn, eg, il, in, io, it, kr, ky, me, ms, pt, ru, sg, sh, su, tc, or tw.

ARSI has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement for each of the .Brand TLDs. Specification 13 contractually requires ARSI to apply measures which, in and of themselves, avoid confusion with the country codes corresponding to the 2-character letter-letter combinations listed above, namely:

1. Each of the .Brand TLDs is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. Each of the .Brand TLDs is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. ARSI has developed and will implement a registration policy for each of the .Brand TLDs that requires all domain names in each such TLD be registered only by ARSI, its Affiliates, or Trademark Licensees of ARSI or its Affiliates;
4. ARSI will publish the registration policy for each of the .Brand TLDs upon delegation; and
5. ARSI has ensured, and will continue to ensure, its compliance with the registration policy through annual certification of qualification for Specification 13 for each of the .Brand TLDs.

Compliance with Specification 13 clearly designates to the public that the .Brand TLDs are proprietary spaces in which ARSI, its Affiliates, or Trademark Licensees of ARSI or its Affiliates use all second-level domain names. Accordingly, there will be no basis on which a letter-letter domain name registered in any of the .Brand TLDs could be confused with the country codes corresponding to the 2-character letter-letter combinations listed above.


2016-04-25

Amazon Registry Services, Inc.Yes
autosgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
autossgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

autos Mitigation

By DERAutos LLC, DERBoats LLC, DERHomes LLC, DERMotorcycles LLC, DERYachts LLC (collective Dominion Registries)

See attached document


View Documents
2016-04-26

DERAutos LLC, DERBoats LLC, DERHomes LLC, DERMotorcycles LLC, DERYachts LLC (collective Dominion Registries)No
awssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

aws Mitigation

By Amazon Registry Services, Inc.

Amazon Registry Services, Inc. (“ARSI”), the Registry Operator for the .Brand TLDs .AUDIBLE, .AWS, .FIRE, .IMDB, .KINDLE, .PRIME, .SILK, and .ZAPPOS (collectively, “the .Brand TLDs”) proposes release of the following 2-character letter-letter combinations: : ai, bh, bm, ci, cn, eg, il, in, io, it, kr, ky, me, ms, pt, ru, sg, sh, su, tc, or tw.

ARSI has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement for each of the .Brand TLDs. Specification 13 contractually requires ARSI to apply measures which, in and of themselves, avoid confusion with the country codes corresponding to the 2-character letter-letter combinations listed above, namely:

1. Each of the .Brand TLDs is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. Each of the .Brand TLDs is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. ARSI has developed and will implement a registration policy for each of the .Brand TLDs that requires all domain names in each such TLD be registered only by ARSI, its Affiliates, or Trademark Licensees of ARSI or its Affiliates;
4. ARSI will publish the registration policy for each of the .Brand TLDs upon delegation; and
5. ARSI has ensured, and will continue to ensure, its compliance with the registration policy through annual certification of qualification for Specification 13 for each of the .Brand TLDs.

Compliance with Specification 13 clearly designates to the public that the .Brand TLDs are proprietary spaces in which ARSI, its Affiliates, or Trademark Licensees of ARSI or its Affiliates use all second-level domain names. Accordingly, there will be no basis on which a letter-letter domain name registered in any of the .Brand TLDs could be confused with the country codes corresponding to the 2-character letter-letter combinations listed above.


2016-04-25

Amazon Registry Services, Inc.Yes
azuresgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

azure Mitigation

By Microsoft Corporation

Proposed Measure to Avoid Confusion—Brand TLD (Specification 13)

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:

.AZURE TLD is a closed Brand new gTLD operated by Microsoft Corporation

Protections:

Microsoft Corporation for the .AZURE TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that Microsoft Corporation will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:

1. .AZURE is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .AZURE is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .AZURE TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .AZURE that requires that all domain names in the .AZURE TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .AZURE TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .AZURE TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .AZURE TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .AZURE TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Microsoft Corporation, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator. By this Microsoft Corporation confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-05

Microsoft CorporationYes
bandsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

band Mitigation

By United TLD Holdco

Please see attached PDF on behalf of United TLD Holdco


View Documents
2016-04-25

United TLD Holdco No
banksgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bank Mitigation

By fTLD Registry Services, LLC

Please see the attached file that details fTLD Registry Services' implementation plan for .BANK and .INSURANCE to avoid confusion with corresponding country codes.


View Documents
2016-04-20

fTLD Registry Services, LLCNo
barclaycardsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

barclaycard Mitigation

By Barclays Bank PLC

.barclaycard is a closed top-level domain name for the sole and exclusive use of Barclays Bank PLC.

Protections
Barclays Bank PLC is the Registry Operator for the .barclaycard TLD and has executed Specification 13 of the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that Barclays Bank PLC will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .barclaycard is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .barclaycard is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .barclaycard TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .barclaycard that requires that all domain names in the .barclaycard TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .barclaycard TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .barclaycard TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.
Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .barclaycard TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .barclaycard TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Barclays Bank PLC, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator.
By this text Barclays Bank PLC confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-08

Barclays Bank PLCYes
barclayssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

barclays Mitigation

By Barclays Bank PLC

.barclays is a closed top-level domain name for the sole and exclusive use of Barclays Bank PLC.

Protections
Barclays Bank PLC is the Registry Operator for the .barclays TLD and has executed Specification 13 of the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that Barclays Bank PLC will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .barclays is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .barclays is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .barclays TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .barclays that requires that all domain names in the .barclays TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .barclays TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .barclays TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.
Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .barclays TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .barclays TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Barclays Bank PLC, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator.
By this text Barclays Bank PLC confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-08

Barclays Bank PLCYes
bargainssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bargains Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
bayernsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bayern Mitigation

By Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbH

Registry Operator understands the concern that confusion may arise, and in order to mitigate such concern is willing to commit to:
a. investigate any reports of misuse, including misleading or deceptive conduct, including those from any relevant government and provide a written report in response; and
b. where, in Registry Operator’s sole opinion, misuse has occurred, registry operator will seek to work indirectly with the sponsoring registrar and/or directly with the registrant to address the misuse.
c. In the event that misuse continues to occur, the Registry Operator may, in its sole discretion, undertake direct action up to and including suspension or deletion of the domain name.


2016-04-22

Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbHNo
bbvasgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bbva Mitigation

By BANCO BILBAO VIZCAYA ARGENTARIA, S.A.

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:
BANCO BILBAO VIZCAYA ARGENTARIA, S.A. has applied for .BBVA to run a closed .brand environment.


Protections

BANCO BILBAO VIZCAYA ARGENTARIA, S.A. for the .BBVA TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that the BANCO BILBAO VIZCAYA ARGENTARIA, S.A. will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .BBVA is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .BBVA is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .BBVA TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .BBVA that requires that all domain names in the .BBVA TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .BBVA TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .BBVA TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .BBVA TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .BBVA TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by BANCO BILBAO VIZCAYA ARGENTARIA, S.A., its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the [GOVERNMENT] or the corresponding country code operator.

By this [LETTER] BANCO BILBAO VIZCAYA ARGENTARIA, S.A. confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-15

BANCO BILBAO VIZCAYA ARGENTARIA, S.A.Yes
beatssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03Yes
beersgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

beer Mitigation

By Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbH

Registry Operator understands the concern that confusion may arise, and in order to mitigate such concern is willing to commit to:
a. investigate any reports of misuse, including misleading or deceptive conduct, including those from any relevant government and provide a written report in response; and
b. where, in Registry Operator’s sole opinion, misuse has occurred, registry operator will seek to work indirectly with the sponsoring registrar and/or directly with the registrant to address the misuse.
c. In the event that misuse continues to occur, the Registry Operator may, in its sole discretion, undertake direct action up to and including suspension or deletion of the domain name.


2016-04-22

Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbHNo
bentleysgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bentley Mitigation

By Bentley Motors Limited

Proposed measures to avoid confusion relating to all two-character labels

.Bentley
.Bentley TLD is a closed Brand new gTLD operated by Bentley Motors Limited. Within the .Bentley namespace, Internet traffic will be driven to sites that are a reflection of the brand and users will gain the full benefit of the Bentley experience, secure in the knowledge of its authentic, credible and reliable source. .Bentley will be positioned, promoted and deployed as the single, dependable and trustworthy domain for Internet users to access information relating to the brand.

Protections
Bentley Motors Limited for the .Bentley TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that Bentley Motors Limited will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:

1. .Bentley is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .Bentley is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .Bentley TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .Bentley that requires that all domain names in the .Bentley TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .Bentley TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .Bentley TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .Bentley TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .Bentley TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Bentley Motors Limited, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator.

By this notice Bentley Motors Limited confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-22

Bentley Motors LimitedYes
berlinsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

berlin Mitigation

By dotBERLIN GmbH & Co. KG

Proposed Measures to Avoid Confusion within the Community-based GeoTLD .BERLIN for ci, cn, eg, hk, il, in, it, me, pt, sg, tw

“.BERLIN is the top-level domain for the Community of Berliners in the Internet (the .BERLIN Community). The local domain names available with the .BERLIN top-level domain are concise and create an identity for citizens, companies and institutions. Those providing and looking for information, goods and services can thus intuitively come together. The .BERLIN domain names strengthen the feeling of community amongst Berliners, improve communication and make interaction easier, thus providing a stimulus for innovation and development. Both for Berliners and for non-Berliners, Berlin becomes more attractive as a place to visit, as a commercial location and as a place to live.”

Protections

To address the confusion concerns cited by the governments regarding the use of the second-level domains cited above in the .BERLIN, the Registry Operator dotBERLIN GmbH & Co. KG has implemented a restricted registration policy for .BERLIN that mitigates the potential confusion. To these ends, Registry Operator commits to the following (as mentioned in its application at https://gtldresult.icann.org/application-result/applicationstatus/applicationdetails:downloadapplication/1777?t:ac=1777):

dotBERLIN developed and implemented a restricted registration policy and enforces this restricted Registration Policy for .BERLIN including:

Eligibility Requirements: To meet the requirements of ICANN to a community-based designation of the application and to meet a sufficient reference to BERLIN, the group of registrants is limited. Exclusively eligible to register a domain name under the top-level domain .BERLIN is any natural person, legal person, organization or association of persons, if they can demonstrate that they have an economic, cultural, historical, social or any other connection to the German capital Berlin, verifiable by
-their residence or second home, office or place of business, a branch or permanent establishment in the City of BERLIN, or
-a contact listed in the Whois database with a domicile in the City of BERLIN, or
-other appropriate proof e.g. the certification by an employer to enroll at a school or college, or birth certificate.

With the registration of a .BERLIN domain name each registrant implicitly signs the registration policies and agrees with the fact that he acknowledges compliance with the registration guidelines. A review of whether the applicant meets the required eligibility, does not take place regularly on the date of registration, however, anyone can check compliance with the registration requirements by initiating an extrajudicial dispute resolution procedure (ʺ.BERLIN Eligibility Requirements Dispute Resolution Policyʺ) or an objection process.

Content and Use Requirements: To meet the requirements of ICANN to a community-based designation of the application, the registrant must satisfy the following criteria for the content and the use of .BERLIN domain names:
- The contents of the website under a domain name must be directly related to the eligibility requirements, and
- the domain must be in use within 12 months of registration.

Legal Safeguards, Enforcement and continued Compliance: To meet the requirements of ICANN to a community-based designation of the application, the registrant must use the .BERLIN domain in an economic, cultural, social or any other meaningful connection to the City of Berlin.

This designation of .BERLIN to the .BERLIN Community will be enforced by specific language in the Registry-Registrar-Agreement that holds gTLD registrars responsible to include the restrictions as outlined above in respective agreements with their gTLD registrants.

The .BERLIN Registry will, from time to time in its sole discretion or upon evidence or advice manually conduct continuing or recurring audits of domain names registered to ensure continued compliance with these requirements. Failure to comply will result in a notice providing 20-days to comply. Non-compliance following such a notice period may result in take-down of the relevant domain name, at the discretion of the Registry.

Those policies have been clearly publishing policy on Registry Operator’s homepage for .BERLIN.

This registration and usage policy would prevent governments from registering domains in the .BERLIN TLD. It would clearly designate to users that .BERLIN was a restricted space in which all second-level domains were registered by eligible Registrants.


2016-04-25

View Mitigation

berlin Mitigation

By dotBERLIN GmbH & Co. KG


Proposed Measures to Avoid Confusion within the Community-based GeoTLD .BERLIN for su, ru, uk, it, gb, ac, gi, tc, sh, ms, ky, io, bm, fk, ng, kr, il, sg, hk, pn, gs, tw, vn, ln, in, pt

“.BERLIN is the top-level domain for the Community of Berliners in the Internet (the .BERLIN Community). The local domain names available with the .BERLIN top-level domain are concise and create an identity for citizens, companies and institutions. Those providing and looking for information, goods and services can thus intuitively come together. The .BERLIN domain names strengthen the feeling of community amongst Berliners, improve communication and make interaction easier, thus providing a stimulus for innovation and development. Both for Berliners and for non-Berliners, Berlin becomes more attractive as a place to visit, as a commercial location and as a place to live.”

Protections

To address the confusion concerns cited by the governments regarding the use of the second-level domains cited above in the .BERLIN, the Registry Operator dotBERLIN GmbH & Co. KG has implemented a restricted registration policy for .BERLIN that mitigates the potential confusion. To these ends, Registry Operator commits to the following (as mentioned in its application at https://gtldresult.icann.org/application-result/applicationstatus/applicationdetails:downloadapplication/1777?t:ac=1777):

dotBERLIN developed and implemented a restricted registration policy and enforces this restricted Registration Policy for .BERLIN including:

Eligibility Requirements: To meet the requirements of ICANN to a community-based designation of the application and to meet a sufficient reference to BERLIN, the group of registrants is limited. Exclusively eligible to register a domain name under the top-level domain .BERLIN is any natural person, legal person, organization or association of persons, if they can demonstrate that they have an economic, cultural, historical, social or any other connection to the German capital Berlin, verifiable by
-their residence or second home, office or place of business, a branch or permanent establishment in the City of BERLIN, or
-a contact listed in the Whois database with a domicile in the City of BERLIN, or
-other appropriate proof e.g. the certification by an employer to enroll at a school or college, or birth certificate.

With the registration of a .BERLIN domain name each registrant implicitly signs the registration policies and agrees with the fact that he acknowledges compliance with the registration guidelines. A review of whether the applicant meets the required eligibility, does not take place regularly on the date of registration, however, anyone can check compliance with the registration requirements by initiating an extrajudicial dispute resolution procedure (ʺ.BERLIN Eligibility Requirements Dispute Resolution Policyʺ) or an objection process.

Content and Use Requirements: To meet the requirements of ICANN to a community-based designation of the application, the registrant must satisfy the following criteria for the content and the use of .BERLIN domain names:
- The contents of the website under a domain name must be directly related to the eligibility requirements, and
- the domain must be in use within 12 months of registration.

Legal Safeguards, Enforcement and continued Compliance: To meet the requirements of ICANN to a community-based designation of the application, the registrant must use the .BERLIN domain in an economic, cultural, social or any other meaningful connection to the City of Berlin.

This designation of .BERLIN to the .BERLIN Community will be enforced by specific language in the Registry-Registrar-Agreement that holds gTLD registrars responsible to include the restrictions as outlined above in respective agreements with their gTLD registrants.

The .BERLIN Registry will, from time to time in its sole discretion or upon evidence or advice manually conduct continuing or recurring audits of domain names registered to ensure continued compliance with these requirements. Failure to comply will result in a notice providing 20-days to comply. Non-compliance following such a notice period may result in take-down of the relevant domain name, at the discretion of the Registry.

Those policies have been clearly publishing policy on Registry Operator’s homepage for .BERLIN.

This registration and usage policy would prevent governments from registering domains in the .BERLIN TLD. It would clearly designate to users that .BERLIN was a restricted space in which all second-level domains were registered by eligible Registrants.


2016-04-25

dotBERLIN GmbH & Co. KGNo
bestsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
betsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bet Mitigation

By Afilias

Afilias has reviewed the comments submitted for the release of certain 2 character labels. We have taken these comments into consideration and will will continue to block the respective labels at the second level until further notice to avoid confusion.


2016-04-20

AfiliasNo
bhartisgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03Yes
biblesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bible Mitigation

By American Bible Society

.BIBLE Proposed Measure to Avoid Confusion—Registry Operator with Open Registration

The .BIBLE TLD is owned and operated by the American Bible Society (Registry Operator). .BIBLE is a Top Level Domain with a vision to be the trusted online source for all things Bible. The .BIBLE TLD will make available .BIBLE domain names that are memorable, meaningful, and shorter to help people, organizations and communities come together online to engage with Scripture and share Bible-related content.
The mission of .BIBLE is to encourage Bible engagement, translation, innovation, and global partnerships so that all people may experience the life-changing message of the Bible

Protections

Registry Operator understands the concern that confusion may arise, and in order to avoid such confusion is willing to offer the following:

1. Registry Operator will commit to:

a. investigate any reports of misuse, including misleading or deceptive conduct, including those from the governments of Côte d'Ivoire, China, Egypt, Israel, India, Italy, Montenegro, Portugal and Singapore and provide a written report in response; and

b. where, in Registry Operator’s sole opinion, misuse has occurred, cause the domain name’s records to be removed from the DNS.

Furthermore, contained within our Acceptable Use Policy for the .BIBLE TLD is the following text:

5.1.1.14 Use of the domain name, where that domain name is a two letter Label that corresponds to a country code described in the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 standard, avoids confusion with the corresponding country code.

Should a Registrant fail to comply with the Acceptable Use Policy, the domain name may be cancelled, locked, placed on hold, transferred or deleted. Thus all Registrants in the TLDs, including ourselves, have an obligation to avoid confusion with two letter country codes and we have clear penalties for any failure to do so.


View Documents
2016-04-15

American Bible SocietyNo
bidsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bid Mitigation

By Famous Four Media Limited

By Famous Four media Limited.

Registry Operator understands the concern that confusion may arise, and in order to avoid such confusion is willing to offer the following:

1. Registry Operator will commit to:

a. investigate any reports of misuse, including misleading or deceptive conduct, including those from any relevant governments, and provide a written report in response; and

b. where, in Registry Operator’s sole opinion, misuse has occurred, cause the domain name’s records to be removed from the DNS.

2. Registry Operator will enforce the terms of its Acceptable Use and Take down Policy against Registrants.

3. Should a Registrant fail to comply with the Acceptable Use and Take down Policy, the domain names may be cancelled, locked, placed on hold, transferred or deleted. Thus, all Registrants in the TLDs, including ourselves, have an obligation to avoid confusion with two letter country codes and we have clear penalties for any failure to do so.


2016-04-25

Famous Four Media LimitedNo
bikesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bike Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
bingsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bing Mitigation

By Microsoft Corporation

Proposed Measure to Avoid Confusion—Brand TLD (Specification 13)

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:

.BING TLD is a closed Brand new gTLD operated by Microsoft Corporation

Protections:

Microsoft Corporation for the .BING TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that Microsoft Corporation will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:

1. .BING is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .BING is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .BING TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .BING that requires that all domain names in the .BING TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .BING TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .BING TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .BING TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .BING TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Microsoft Corporation, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator. By this Microsoft Corporation confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-05

Microsoft CorporationYes
bingosgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bingo Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
biosgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bio Mitigation

By Starting Dot

This response applies across all two-character labels.

PROPOSED MEASURE TO AVOID CONFUSION – .BIO

StartingDot is the Registry Operator of the .BIO generic Top Level Domain string (gTLD) since June 2, 2014.

The .BIO gTLD is generally available to all Registrants, and among others, to actors in the fields of agriculture, food and farming. The .BIO gTLD intends to serve all of these topics and areas, while ensuring that national and international organic standards are respected.

The .BIO gTLD is established on the basis of the core organic agriculture principles that have been formulated by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (“IFOAM – Organics International”). IFOAM – Organics International is an official Partner of the .BIO Registry Operator.

The Principles of Organic Agriculture (“POA”) aim to inspire the organic movement in its full diversity, and to help steer the development of positions, programs and standards in the organic community. They are used as the principal framework for defining the .BIO registration policies. In order to apply for a .BIO domain name, the registrant is required to comply with specific requirements related to organic agriculture compliance mechanisms.

To address the confusion concerns cited by the relevant governments regarding the use of second-level domains (SLDs) in .BIO, StartingDot, has (i) implemented a registration policy for .BIO and (ii) established an Anti-Abuse Policy that mitigates the potential confusion addressed by the governments. Based on the above, StartingDot has:

• Developped and implemented a restricted registration policy for .BIO included in the .BIO Domain Name Policy (“.BIO DNP”). According to the .BIO DNP, although a .BIO domain name can be registered by anyone, specific terms of use apply to Registrants who are producers, transformers and retailers, or otherwise involved in the field of agriculture, food and farming when there is:

- A nexus with the European Union (i.e.: selling, exporting to or trading agricultural or food product in the European Union) or other relevant markets where the word “bio” may be used to refer to legally labeled and marketed organic, biological, ecological, biodynamic, or similarly named goods or intending to do so (“nexus with the European Union”); and

- No nexus with the European Union.

b. The Registrant who has no nexus with the European Union must commit to abiding by the POA.

c. The Registrant who has a nexus with the European Union must commit to abiding by both:

- The POA; and

- The Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 of 28 June 2007 on organic production and labeling and its derived legislation, or any regulations in force in other relevant markets (the “E.C Regulations”).

• Made public on StartingDot’s website (www.startingdot.com) the abovementioned .BIO DNP;

• Included the .BIO Domain Name Policy in the StartingDot Registry – Registrar Agreement (RRA) signed with all the appointed registrars for .BIO;

• Enforced the .BIO Domain Name Policy by monitoring registrations on a random basis. StartingDot performs quarterly controls of .BIO registrations together with IFOAM – Organics International and ensures that registrants meet the eligibility criteria established in the .BIO DNP. StartingDot has also developped an Anti-Abuse Policy published on its website, which establishes StartingDot’s actions in case of an abuse of the .BIO domain space.

• Made public on StartingDot’s website (www.startingdot.com) the abovementioned Anti-Abuse Policy which contains specific text with regards to domain names that correspond to a country code described in the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 standard.

The .BIO Domain Name Policy would not prevent governments from registering domains in the .BIO TLD. However, if the latter register a .BIO domain name they must abide by the principles established under the .BIO DNP .

Finally, as stated in the Anti-Abuse Policy, should a Registrant fail to comply with the Anti-Abuse Policy, the domain name may be subject to cancellation or other penalty measures (domain being locked, placed on hold, transferred or deleted). Thus all Registrants in the .BIO gTLD, have an obligation to avoid confusion with two letter country codes and we have clear penalties for any failure to do so.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Starting DotNo
bloombergsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bloomberg Mitigation

By Bloomberg IP Holdings LLC

Bloomberg IP Holdings LLC for the .BLOOMBERG TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that Bloomberg IP Holdings LLC will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .BLOOMBERG is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .BLOOMBERG is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .BLOOMBERG TLD has developed and implemented a closed registration policy for .BLOOMBERG that requires that all domain names in the .BLOOMBERG TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .BLOOMBERG TLD has published this registration policy;
5. .BLOOMBERG TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.
Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .BLOOMBERG TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus the public understands that .BLOOMBERG TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are operated by Bloomberg IP Holdings LLC, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the Government or the corresponding country code operator.
By this letter Bloomberg IP Holdings LLC confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names in the .BLOOMBERG TLD shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-19

Bloomberg IP Holdings LLCYes
bmwsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bmw Mitigation

By Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft

Please find Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft's "Mitigation Measures to Avoid Confusion" (concerning 2-letter labels in general) for the “.MINI” and the ."BMW" TLDs attached.


View Documents
2016-04-23

Bayerische Motoren Werke AktiengesellschaftYes
bnpparibassgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bnpparibas Mitigation

By BNP PARIBAS

Brief explanation of the TLD: The TLD .BNPPARIBAS belongs to BNPPARIBAS a financial institution of high repute, known worldwide and is a closed TLD restricted to BNPPARIBAS its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees. The BNPPARIBAS gTLD is intended for the exclusive use of BNPPARIBAS products, services and branding purposes.

Protections:
BNPPARIBAS for the .BNPPARIBAS TLD has executed the Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that BNPPARIBAS will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .BNPPARIBAS is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .BNPPARIBAS is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .BNPPARIBAS TLD has developed and implemented a closed registration policy for .BNPPARIBAS that requires that all domain names in the .BNPPARIBAS TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .BNPPARIBAS TLD clearly published this registration policy;
5. .BNPPARIBAS TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.
Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .BNPPARIBAS TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .BNPPARIBAS TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by BNPPARIBAS, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the designated country or the corresponding country code operator.

By this proposed plan BNPPARIBAS confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.

It can be added that all domain name registration requests under the TLD BNPPARIBAS are centralized within BNPPARIBAS to ensure that all deposits comply with Specification 13 when they are processed.

As regards risks of potential malicious use of the gtld BNPPARIBAS, it is a problem widely taken into account by BNPPARIBAS. Indeed BNPPARIBAS has a CSIRT (Corporate Security Incident Response Team) member of the FIRST (Forum of Incidental Response and Security Teams) and of the Task Force-CSIRT. This task force promotes collaboration and coordination between CSIRTs in Europe and neighboring regions, whilst liaising with relevant organisations at the global level and in other regions. The gTLD BNPPARIBAS is part of the CSIRT processes.

Thus BNPPARIBAS processes in place and the use of the gTLD BNPPARIBAS avoid confusion with the ISO code representing the designated country.


View Documents
2016-04-21

BNP PARIBASYes
boatssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

boats Mitigation

By DERAutos LLC, DERBoats LLC, DERHomes LLC, DERMotorcycles LLC, DERYachts LLC (collective Dominion Registries)

See attached document


View Documents
2016-04-26

DERAutos LLC, DERBoats LLC, DERHomes LLC, DERMotorcycles LLC, DERYachts LLC (collective Dominion Registries)No
boehringersgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

boehringer Mitigation

By Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:
Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH has applied for .BOEHRINGER to run a closed .brand environment.
Protections

Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH for the .BOEHRINGER TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that the Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .BOEHRINGER is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .BOEHRINGER is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .BOEHRINGER TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .BOEHRINGER that requires that all domain names in the .BOEHRINGER TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .BOEHRINGER TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .BOEHRINGER TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .BOEHRINGER TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .BOEHRINGER TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator.
By this letter Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-25

Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbHYes
bomsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bom Mitigation

By Núcleo de Informação e Coordenação do Ponto BR - NIC.br

Here follows the measures to avoid confusion submitted by NIC.br for its gTLDs .bom and .final are attached. We note the incorrect usage of the word "mitigation" in ICANN 2-char website since it's not what is prescribed in the registry agreement.

.bom and .final are Portuguese words and the target market for such domains is mostly Brazil, the largest Portuguese speaking country in the world, although not restricted to Brazilians.

We divided our comment into 3 sets of 2-letter combinations.

Set 1: ci, cn, eg, il, sg
=========================
Although we do not perceive any of these combinations as confusing, we won't file measures for these combinations at this time. We reserve the right to refile for these combinations in the future, as they might be referenced in the yet to be published registration policies.


Set 2: in, it, me
=================
Although not a native language, most Internet users in Brazil have at least a rudimentary understanding of the English language. The 3 2-letter combinations in this set are incredibly common words of the English language that are known even by less skilled Internet users. Also of notice is that the word "it" is also known as the acronym "IT" for Information Technology; IT specialists have a higher understanding of English than the average Internet user and commonly see "IT" as referencing their area of expertise. Considering this, we understand that no further measures to avoid confusion with these combination are required.

Set 3: pt
=========
pt is not only the country designation for Portugal, it's also the language designation in ISO 639-1 code for the Portuguese language. A myriad of websites use the form pt.example.com or example.com/pt for their Portuguese versions, which makes pt most known for Internet users as a language designator rather than a country designator. We note that this reasoning has already been accepted in RSEP2014007 for all ISO 639-1 and 639-2 codes, and is even more applicable to this context considering it being the native language of the target registrants and the likely target users of such domains.

"PT" is also widely recognized in Brazil for the acronym of the Workers's Party ("Partido dos Trabalhadores"), the ruling party in Brazil since 2002.

"PT" is also known in the Brazil, and possibly other Portuguese speaking countries, as an abbreviation for "Ponto" (dot). In telegrams or telex messages of the previous century, it was used to replace "Ponto" due to having less letters at a time each character was costly to transmit.

"PT" is also commonly used as acronym of "Perda Total", which is a total loss of an insured property (usually a car). This become a slang used not only in the insurance business but to mean that anything was beyond repair, or even to mean that a person was totally drunk.

Considering the many uses of the 2-char combination 'pt', it would be surprising for someone to understand it as a reference to Portugal or .pt domains, and we understand that no further measures to avoid confusion with this 2-char combination are required.




2016-04-22

Núcleo de Informação e Coordenação do Ponto BR - NIC.brNo
booksgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

book Mitigation

By Amazon Registry Services, Inc.

Amazon Registry Services, Inc. (“ARSI”), the Registry Operator for the .BOOK TLD, proposes release of the following 2-character letter-letter combinations: ai, bh, bm, ci, cn, eg, es, il, in, io, it, kr, ky, me, ms, pt, ru, sg, sh, su, tc, and tw. ARSI further proposes the following measures to avoid confusion with the corresponding country codes.

ARSI will commit to:
1. Investigate in a timely manner a report by the government of the country, state, or territory for which a 2-character letter-letter combination listed above (ai, bh, bm, ci, cn, eg, es, il, in, io, it, kr, ky, me, ms, pt, ru, sg, sh, su, tc, or tw) corresponds to its country code:
a. the use in the .BOOK TLD of a domain name consisting of a 2-character letter-letter combination listed above; and
b. corresponds to that government’s country code; and
c. implies or represents that it is, or has the approval of, such government; and
2. Where, in ARSI’s sole opinion, such use has occurred, ARSI, in its sole discretion:
a. will seek to work indirectly with the sponsoring registrar and/or directly with the registrant to address such use, or
b. may cause the domain name’s records to be removed from the DNS; and
3. Provide a written response within a commercially reasonable time period.

ARSI’s Acceptable Use Policy for the .BOOK TLD will require registrants of a domain name in the .BOOK TLD to ensure that their use of a 2-character letter-letter combination does not imply or represent that it is, or has the approval of, any government. ARSI will reserve the right to cancel, lock, place on hold, transfer or delete the domain name in accordance with our commitment above.


2016-04-25

Amazon Registry Services, Inc.No
bootssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

boots Mitigation

By THE BOOTS COMPANY PLC

.boots is a closed top-level domain name for the sole and exclusive use of THE BOOTS COMPANY PLC.

Protections
THE BOOTS COMPANY PLC is the Registry Operator for the .boots TLD and has executed Specification 13 of the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that THE BOOTS COMPANY PLC will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .boots is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .boots is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .boots TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .boots that requires that all domain names in the .boots TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .boots TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .boots TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.
Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .boots TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .boots TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by THE BOOTS COMPANY PLC, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator.
By this text THE BOOTS COMPANY PLC confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-25

THE BOOTS COMPANY PLCYes
boutiquesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

boutique Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
bridgestonesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

bridgestone Mitigation

By Bridgestone Corporation

Proposed Measure to Avoid Confusion—Brand TLD (Specification 13)

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:

.bridgestone is a closed Brand new gTLD operated by Bridgestone Corporation

Protections:

Bridgestone Corporation for the .bridgestone TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that the Bridgestone Corporation will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:

1. .bridgestone is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;

2. .bridgestone is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;

3. .bridgestone TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .bridgestone that requires that all domain names in the .bridgestone TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;

4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .bridgestone TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;

5. .bridgestone TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .bridgestone TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .bridgestone TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Bridgestone Corporation, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator. By this Bridgestone Corporation confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-25

Bridgestone CorporationYes
brokersgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

broker Mitigation

By dotBroker Registry, dotCFD Registry, dotForex Registry, dotMarkets Registry, dotSpreadbetting Registry, dotTrading Registry [collectively, the "Boston Ivy Registry"]

Please find attached a document which outlines the Registry's plans to avoid confusion in respect of the below TLDs:

.Markets
.Trading
.Forex
.Broker
.Spreadbetting
.CFD


View Documents
2016-04-21

dotBroker Registry, dotCFD Registry, dotForex Registry, dotMarkets Registry, dotSpreadbetting Registry, dotTrading Registry [collectively, the "Boston Ivy Registry"]No
budapestsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

budapest Mitigation

By Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbH

Registry Operator understands the concern that confusion may arise, and in order to mitigate such concern is willing to commit to:
a. investigate any reports of misuse, including misleading or deceptive conduct, including those from any relevant government and provide a written report in response; and
b. where, in Registry Operator’s sole opinion, misuse has occurred, registry operator will seek to work indirectly with the sponsoring registrar and/or directly with the registrant to address the misuse.
c. In the event that misuse continues to occur, the Registry Operator may, in its sole discretion, undertake direct action up to and including suspension or deletion of the domain name.


2016-04-22

Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbHNo
buildsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
builderssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

builders Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
businesssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

business Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
buzzsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
bzhsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
cabsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cab Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
cafesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cafe Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
camerasgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

camera Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
campsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

camp Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
capitalsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

capital Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
carsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
cardssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cards Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
caresgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

care Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
careerssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

careers Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
carssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
cartiersgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cartier Mitigation

By Richemont DNS Inc.

Proposed Measure to Avoid Confusion—Brand TLD (Specification 13)

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:

.CARTIER TLD is a closed Brand new gTLD operated by Richemont DNS Inc

Protections:

Richemont DNS Inc for the .CARTIER TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that Richemont DNS Inc will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:

1. .CARTIER is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .CARTIER is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .CARTIER TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .CARTIER that requires that all domain names in the .CARTIER TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .CARTIER TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .CARTIER TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .CARTIER TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .CARTIER TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Richemont DNS Inc, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator. By this Richemont DNS Inc confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-05

Richemont DNS Inc.Yes
casasgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

casa Mitigation

By Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbH

Registry Operator understands the concern that confusion may arise, and in order to mitigate such concern is willing to commit to:
a. investigate any reports of misuse, including misleading or deceptive conduct, including those from any relevant government and provide a written report in response; and
b. where, in Registry Operator’s sole opinion, misuse has occurred, registry operator will seek to work indirectly with the sponsoring registrar and/or directly with the registrant to address the misuse.
c. In the event that misuse continues to occur, the Registry Operator may, in its sole discretion, undertake direct action up to and including suspension or deletion of the domain name.


2016-04-22

Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbHNo
cashsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cash Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
casinosgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

casino Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
cateringsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

catering Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
cbasgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cba Mitigation

By Commonwealth Bank of Australia

Refer measures in attached PDF document


View Documents
2016-04-13

Commonwealth Bank of AustraliaYes
centersgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

center Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
ceosgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
cernsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cern Mitigation

By European Organization for Nuclear Research ("CERN")

Proposed Measure to Avoid Confusion—Brand TLD (Specification 13)

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:

.cern is a closed top-level domain name for the sole and exclusive use of THE EUROPEAN ORGANIZATION FOR NUCLEAR RESEARCH (“CERN”).

Protections

THE EUROPEAN ORGANIZATION FOR NUCLEAR RESEARCH (“CERN”) is the Registry Operator for the .cern TLD and has executed Specification 13 of the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that CERN will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:

1. .cern is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;

2. .cern is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;

3. .cern TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .cern that requires that all domain names in the .cern TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator and its Affiliates;

4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .cern TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;

5. .cern TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .cern TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .cern TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by CERN and its Affiliates and not the government or the corresponding country code operator.

By this text CERN confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-25

European Organization for Nuclear Research ("CERN")Yes
cfdsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cfd Mitigation

By dotBroker Registry, dotCFD Registry, dotForex Registry, dotMarkets Registry, dotSpreadbetting Registry, dotTrading Registry [collectively, the "Boston Ivy Registry"]

Please find attached a document which outlines the Registry's plans to avoid confusion in respect of the below TLDs:

.Markets
.Trading
.Forex
.Broker
.Spreadbetting
.CFD


View Documents
2016-04-21

dotBroker Registry, dotCFD Registry, dotForex Registry, dotMarkets Registry, dotSpreadbetting Registry, dotTrading Registry [collectively, the "Boston Ivy Registry"]No
chanelsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

chanel Mitigation

By Chanel International B.V.

CHANEL INTERNATIONAL B.V., the Registry Operator for the .CHANEL TLD, has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that CHANEL INTERNATIONAL B.V. will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .CHANEL is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .CHANEL is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11 of the Registry Agreement;
3. CHANEL INTERNATIONAL B.V. has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .CHANEL that requires that all domain names in the .CHANEL TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, CHANEL INTERNATIONAL B.V. submitted this policy as part of its application for Specification 13 and has clearly published this registration policy; and
5. CHANEL INTERNATIONAL B.V. will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13, as required by the Registry Agreement.
Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .CHANEL TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designates to the public that the .CHANEL TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by CHANEL INTERNATIONAL B.V., its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the Government or the corresponding country-code operator.
By this letter, CHANEL INTERNATIONAL B.V. confirms that all registrations of two-letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-22

Chanel International B.V.Yes
chatsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

chat Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
cheapsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cheap Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


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2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
chloesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

chloe Mitigation

By Richemont DNS Inc.

Proposed Measure to Avoid Confusion—Brand TLD (Specification 13)

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:

.CHLOE TLD is a closed Brand new gTLD operated by Richemont DNS Inc

Protections:

Richemont DNS Inc for the .CHLOE TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that Richemont DNS Inc will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:

1. .CHLOE is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .CHLOE is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .CHLOE TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .CHLOE that requires that all domain names in the .CHLOE TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .CHLOE TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .CHLOE TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .CHLOE TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .CHLOE TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Richemont DNS Inc, its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator. By this Richemont DNS Inc confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-05

Richemont DNS Inc.Yes
churchsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

church Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
circlesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

circle Mitigation

By Amazon Registry Services, Inc.

Proposed Release of 2-Character Letter-Letter Combinations in .AUTHOR, .BOT, .BUY, .CALL, .CIRCLE, .COUPON, .DEAL, .FAST, .GOT, .HOT, .JOT, .JOY, .LIKE, .MOI, .NOW, .PAY, .PIN, .READ, .ROOM, .SAFE, .SECURE, .SAVE, .SMILE, .SONG, .SPOT, .TALK, .TUNES, .TUSHU, .WANGGOU, and .xn--rovu88b.

Amazon Registry Services, Inc. (“ARSI”), the Registry Operator for the TLDs listed above (“the TLDs”), proposes release of the following 2-character letter-letter combinations: ai, bh, bm, ci, cn, eg, il, in, io, it, kr, ky, me, ms, pt, ru, sg, sh, su, tc, and tw. ARSI further proposes the following measures to avoid confusion with the corresponding country codes.

ARSI will commit to:
1. Investigate in a timely manner a report by the government of the country, state, or territory for which a 2-character letter-letter combination listed above (ai, bh, bm, ci, cn, eg, il, in, io, it, kr, ky, me, ms, pt, ru, sg, sh, su, tc, or tw) corresponds to its country code, that:
a. the use in any of the TLDs of a domain name consisting of a 2-character letter-letter combination listed above; and
b. corresponds to that government’s country code; and
c. implies or represents that it is, or has the approval of, such government; and
2. Where, in ARSI’s sole opinion, such use has occurred, ARSI, in its sole discretion:
a. will seek to work indirectly with the sponsoring registrar and/or directly with the registrant to address such use, or
b. may cause the domain name’s records to be removed from the DNS; and
3. Provide a written response within a commercially reasonable time period.

ARSI’s Acceptable Use Policy for the TLDs will require registrants of a domain name in each of the TLDs to ensure that their use of a 2-character letter-letter combination does not imply or represent that it is, or has the approval of, any government. ARSI will reserve the right to cancel, lock, place on hold, transfer or delete the domain name in accordance with our commitment above.


2016-04-25

Amazon Registry Services, Inc. No
citysgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

city Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
claimssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

claims Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
cleaningsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cleaning Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
clinicsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
cliniquesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

clinique Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.Yes
clothingsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

clothing Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
cloudsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cloud Mitigation

By Aruba PEC SpA

.cloud proposal for Mitigation Measures to Avoid Confusion in the use of domain names corresponding to ccTLDs

Protections

Registry Operator understands the concern that confusion may arise, and in order to avoid such confusion is willing to offer the following:
1. Registry Operator will commit to:
a. investigate any reports of misuse, including misleading or deceptive conduct, including those from the government of a related country code, and provide a written report in response; and
b. where, in Registry Operator’s sole opinion, misuse has occurred, cause the domain name’s records to be removed from the DNS.

Furthermore, the Registry Operator considers the issue of domain name used in a way that generates confusion to be already covered in its Registration Policies (available for review at https://www.get.cloud/policies.aspx), for example in:

9.1 [...] Without limiting any other agreement or policy, by submitting an Application for a domain name an Applicant will be deemed to have warranted that:
[...]
d) it is not submitting the Application or Domain Name Registration request and, upon registration, will not use the Domain Name for an unlawful purpose, contrary to public policy or morality, for offensive purposes, to mislead the public and/or contrary to good and fair business practices;

Should a Registrant fail to comply with the .cloud Registration Policies, the domain name may be canceled, locked, placed on hold, transferred or deleted. Thus all Registrants in the TLD, have an obligation to avoid misleading the public by generating confusion also with two letter country codes and there are clear penalties for any failure to do so.

Registry Operator is however also open to further clarify this point by including in its Registration Policies a specific requirement for Registrants of domain names that are two letter Labels that correspond to a country code described in the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 standard not to use them in a manner that generates confusion with the corresponding country code.



2016-04-25

Aruba PEC SpANo
clubsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
clubmedsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

clubmed Mitigation

By Club Méditerranée S.A.

Provide a brief explanation of the TLD:
Club Méditerranée S.A. has applied for .CLUBMED to run a closed .brand environment.

Protections
Club Méditerranée S.A. for the .CLUBMED TLD has executed Specification 13 to the Registry Agreement. Specification 13 already contractually requires that the Club Méditerranée S.A. will apply measures which, by their very nature, avoid confusion with the corresponding country code, namely the following:
1. .CLUBMED is identical to a qualifying registered trademark;
2. .CLUBMED is not a Generic String, as this is defined in Specification 11;
3. .CLUBMED TLD has developed and will implement a closed registration policy for .CLUBMED that requires that all domain names in the .CLUBMED TLD be registered ONLY by Registry Operator, its Affiliates, and its Trademark Licensees;
4. As required under the Registry Agreement, the .CLUBMED TLD will clearly publish this registration policy;
5. .CLUBMED TLD will conduct internal reviews at least once per calendar year to ensure continued compliance with Specification 13.

Compliance with Specification 13 prohibits the .CLUBMED TLD from registering domain names to unaffiliated third parties and thus clearly designate to the public that .CLUBMED TLD is a proprietary space in which all second-level domains in the TLD are being operated by Club Méditerranée S.A., its Affiliates and Trademark Licensees and not the government or the corresponding country code operator.
By this letter Club Méditerranée S.A. confirms that all registrations of two letter domain names shall comply with the requirements of Specification 13.


2016-04-25

Club Méditerranée S.A.Yes
coachsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

coach Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
codessgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

codes Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
coffeesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

coffee Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
collegesgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03No
commbanksgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

commbank Mitigation

By Commonwealth Bank of Australia

Refer measures in attached PDF document


View Documents
2016-04-13

Commonwealth Bank of AustraliaYes
communitysgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

community Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
companysgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

company Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
computersgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

computer Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
condossgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

condos Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
constructionsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

construction Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
consultingsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

consulting Mitigation

By United TLD Holdco

Please see attached PDF on behalf of United TLD Holdco


View Documents
2016-04-25

United TLD Holdco No
contractorssgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

contractors Mitigation

By Donuts Inc.

Attached.


View Documents
2016-04-25

Donuts Inc.No
cookingsgView Comments
2015-11-11
2015-12-03View Mitigation

cooking Mitigation

By Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbH

Registry Operator understands the concern that confusion may arise, and in order to mitigate such concern is willing to commit to:
a. investigate any reports of misuse, including misleading or deceptive conduct, including those from any relevant government and provide a written report in response; and
b. where, in Registry Operator’s sole opinion, misuse has occurred, registry operator will seek to work indirectly with the sponsoring registrar and/or directly with the registrant to address the misuse.
c. In the event that misuse continues to occur, the Registry Operator may, in its sole discretion, undertake direct action up to and including suspension or deletion of the domain name.


2016-04-22

Minds + Machines Group Limited, Bayern Connect GmbH, Minds + Machines GmbHNo

sg Comments

By Queh Ser Pheng, Deputy Director, Internet Resource Management, Policy & Competition Development Group, Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore

We hereby respectfully submit our comment regarding the release of letter/letter two-character labels as second level domains.

At this stage, we are unable to agree to the release of the two-character "sg" label at the second-level under gTLDs because of the concern that such use would create confusion with the ccTLD "sg" representing Singapore. Until further notice, this policy is to be applied to all gTLDs who have requested or will be requesting for the release of letter-letter two-character labels at the second level.

To elaborate further, we are open to considering the release of "sg" to registry operators who have robust framework in place to address concerns of government. We recognise there are legitimate and valid reasons for such use. However, we are of the view that it is prudent for ICANN to first put in place a holistic and robust framework before approvals can be given. More thoughts need to be given to the evaluation process and in particular the remedies available should a registry operator use the approved names in an undesirable manner. Besides possible confusion with the corresponding country code and/or country/territory name, we are also concerned with:

(a) The possible reputational harm if ".sg." is associated with illegal or objectionable content and/or manner-of-use; and

(b) The direct harm if ".sg." content or manner-of-use targets Singapore as a nation or Singapore entities (e.g., websites could masquerade as Singapore Government agencies).

ICANN's current policy focuses only on the "initial release" process. There needs to be considerations given to "post-release" issues. As such, the ICANN framework should include:

(a) A recourse for the government/country code manager to issue a notice to object to the content and/or manner-of-use that is misleading, questionable, objectionable or contrary to the country’s reputation and laws. There should be an effective and robust process acceptable by the government/country code manager for the registry operator to address the concern; and

(b) Provisions to require the registry operator to re-seek approval from government/country code manager should there be material changes in ownership or organisational control (for example merger with or acquisitions by another entity).

In addition, ICANN must be committed to take actions against the registry operator should they fail to comply with the framework (e.g. implement a process for country/territory to raise objections to ICANN and for ICANN to take appropriate remedial actions such as remove/delete/revoke affected names).

Domain Name System
Internationalized Domain Name ,IDN,"IDNs are domain names that include characters used in the local representation of languages that are not written with the twenty-six letters of the basic Latin alphabet ""a-z"". An IDN can contain Latin letters with diacritical marks, as required by many European languages, or may consist of characters from non-Latin scripts such as Arabic or Chinese. Many languages also use other types of digits than the European ""0-9"". The basic Latin alphabet together with the European-Arabic digits are, for the purpose of domain names, termed ""ASCII characters"" (ASCII = American Standard Code for Information Interchange). These are also included in the broader range of ""Unicode characters"" that provides the basis for IDNs. The ""hostname rule"" requires that all domain names of the type under consideration here are stored in the DNS using only the ASCII characters listed above, with the one further addition of the hyphen ""-"". The Unicode form of an IDN therefore requires special encoding before it is entered into the DNS. The following terminology is used when distinguishing between these forms: A domain name consists of a series of ""labels"" (separated by ""dots""). The ASCII form of an IDN label is termed an ""A-label"". All operations defined in the DNS protocol use A-labels exclusively. The Unicode form, which a user expects to be displayed, is termed a ""U-label"". The difference may be illustrated with the Hindi word for ""test"" — परीका — appearing here as a U-label would (in the Devanagari script). A special form of ""ASCII compatible encoding"" (abbreviated ACE) is applied to this to produce the corresponding A-label: xn--11b5bs1di. A domain name that only includes ASCII letters, digits, and hyphens is termed an ""LDH label"". Although the definitions of A-labels and LDH-labels overlap, a name consisting exclusively of LDH labels, such as""icann.org"" is not an IDN."