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Authorization Process for Release of Two-Character ASCII Labels

Retired

This page was updated 13 December 2016. This page was the main landing page for the Authorization Process for Release of Two-Character ASCII Labels. The Authorization Process was retired 13 December 2016. For current information about two-character ASCII labels, go here: https://www.icann.org/resources/two-character-labels

To view a list of historical documents related to the retired Authorization Process, go here: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/two-character-historical-information-2016-12-13-en

To view an index of archived versions of this webpage, go here: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/two-character-labels-archive-2015-03-24-en

Authorization for Release of Non-Letter/Letter Two-Character Labels

Effective 1 December 2014, ICANN published a general authorization for release of all non-Letter/Letter two-character ASCII labels for all new gTLD Registry Operators. No further actions are required from new gTLD Registry Operators that seek to register and activate these two-character ASCII labels.

Process for Requesting Authorization for Release of Letter/Letter Two-Character Labels

The process for new gTLD Registry Operators to request authorization for the release of Letter/Letter two-character ASCII labels, will require the Registry Primary contact to complete the Authorization for Release of Letter/Letter Two-Character Request Form provided below. Note: In accordance to Section 6 of Specification 5 of the Registry Agreement, a list of reserved names for this section are still subject to the reservation requirements and will not be available for release at this time.

Once the request is received, ICANN will validate the completeness of the request and post it to this page for comments. The comment period for each request is 60 calendar days, and the governments will be notified of each request posted to this page. Within 7-10 days of the close of the comment period, the non-objected Letter/Letter two-character ASCII labels and labels with comments that do not pertain to confusion will be released via an Authorization that will be provided by ICANN to the Registry Operator.

All authorizations to release two-character ASCII labels from reservation will continue to be subject to all terms of the Registry Agreement.

As of 6 October 2015, labels that have received comments regarding their release will be evaluated using the process described in ICANN's 11 August 2015 blog regarding resolving the release of two-character ASCII labels that have received comments. For more information, please view the Two-Character Letter/Letter Comments Consideration Process webpage.
 

Submitting Comments on Letter/Letter Requests
To post a comment to a request, click the "Submit Comments" hyperlink located next to the request in the table below. You will be directed to a web form. After you complete the web form and click "Verify Your Email," a box requesting a verification code will appear and the verification code will be sent to the e-mail address provided. Please input the verification code in the box, and your comment will be published. If you do not receive the verification code within one hour, we encourage you to check your spam folder. If the issue persists, please submit an inquiry to globalsupport@icann.org.

Comments are to be submitted while the 60-day public comment period is open for the corresponding gTLD or they might not be considered. If a comment is submitted for a letter/letter two-character label that has previously been authorized for release for the gTLD, the comment will not be considered.

ICANN may use the email address of the commenter to further communicate with the commenter and/or to substantiate or clarify the request. The commenter's email address may also be provided to the Registry Operator, if requested.

Comments will be reviewed and considered by ICANN in determining whether to authorize the release of requested Letter/Letter Two-Character ASCII Labels. ICANN will evaluate comments in light of the standard in the registry agreement, which states, "The Registry Operator may also propose the release of these reservations based on its implementation of measures to avoid confusion with the corresponding country codes, subject to approval by ICANN." As a result, comments not pertaining to confusion with the corresponding country code might be directed to recourse mechanisms, such as the Abuse Point of Contact, outside of this Authorization Process.

Two-Character Letter/Letter Comments Consideration Process webpage

Submit comments
View all comments submitted on or after 6 October 2015
View all comments submitted before 6 October 2015

 

Announcements and Updates
Read ICANN's announcement of the process launch for considering comments for two-character letter/letter labels (6 October 2015)
Read ICANN's blog on resolving the release of two-character ASCII labels with comments (11 August 2015)
Read ICANN's announcement of the updates to the process for release of two-character letter/letter ASCII Labels (20 February 2015)
Read ICANN's announcement of the process to request the release of two-character letter/letter ASCII Labels (1 December 2014)
Read ICANN's blog on the launch of the process for two-character ASCII Label Authorizations (12 November 2014)


Resources
View the Authorization for Release of Non-Letter/Letter Two-Character ASCII Labels
Download the Request for Release of Letter/Letter Two-Character Labels
Download the Request for Release of Letter/Letter Two-Character Labels – Appendix A
Download a How-to-Guide describing how to receive automated updates regarding Two-Character Requests

Submit comments
Submit mitigation measures to avoid confusion

View existing Two-Character Letter/Letter Comments and Mitigation Measures

 

Click here to read Background information regarding the Authorization Process

Request Status
Click here to view Requests that are Closed for comment and the comments are under review.
Click here to view Archived Requests that have been Authorized, Partially Authorized, Not Authorized, or Withdrawn.

View status descriptions for Authorization Requests

Active Requests in Comment Period   Download Excel

No active requests were found.


Authorization Request Status

ActiveThe authorization request is in a 60-day comment period.
Active - ExtendedThe authorization request comment period has been extended to a total of 60 days.
Active - Re-openedThe authorization request comment period has been re-opened for an additional 30 days, making the comment period a total of 60 days.
AuthorizedAll requested characters are authorized for release.
Authorized*Request includes letter/letter two-character labels for which the TLD has already received authorization. All additional requested characters are authorized for release.
Comments Under ReviewThe authorization request is closed for comment and the comments are under review.
Not AuthorizedNone of the requested characters are authorized for release.
Partially AuthorizedSome requested characters are authorized for release and some requested characters are not authorized for release.
WithdrawnAuthorization request withdrawn by Registry Operator.

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."