It is unknown yet exactly how we will be affected by the latest developments related to the new domain name extensions, which may potentially change the way people find information on the Internet. It seems that there would be approximately 400 community or standard applications made for new extensions during the first opening of the TLD space. The release of these new extensions will certainly cause a strain on infringement monitoring purposes and will further increase costs and resources needed to combat these issues as they arise. Community extensions may not guarantee that a domain name will continue to be used for its intended purpose so monitoring in that space will be necessary. Standard extensions would not allow people to register domain names if the owner does not sell them. This does not mean that we can forego monitoring though.

With the release of the fourth draft of the Applicant Guidebook that describes the process of applying for new gTLDs, this new system becomes more practical. However, it should continue to improve and carefully address the issues at stake.

We are particularly attentive to the latest developments regarding the protection against cybersquatting and others trademark infringements. The recourse to ICANN’s Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP), which has proved successful in protecting rights in the current system, may be a useful mechanism to face the potential issues in implementing new gTLDs. Thus the proposal for a simplified resolution mechanism (URS and trademark clearing house) may not be sufficient.

Companies are facing an increasing number of online threats: cybersquatting, typosquatting, phishing, slamming, etc. In 2003, the number of cases heard by the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Centre for the resolution of domain name disputes was 1100. This number has doubled, reaching 2107 in 2009. Cybersquatting is thus a growing issue for trademark owners and the trademark community at large, taking also into account new trademarks infringements within social networks.

Domain names represented by local language characters, also known as Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs), offer benefits by allowing Internet users to use top-level domains in their native languages and scripts. They represent a mean to increase trademark owners’ presence on the internet in multiple languages, beneficial to reach a great audience. Nevertheless, registration requirements are often strict and require to own a trademark in non Latin character (often a national trademark registration) - this is essential to ensure an efficient detection of rights infringement.

As the internet is making the world a much smaller and smaller place, companies need to establish a sustainable trademark protection strategy, which anticipates the upcoming issues on a global scale. Tactics to combat potential threats related to the foreign language and new gTLD extension releases would be in establishing monitoring for them (adjusted to particular areas and languages) along with making IP protection a very visible feature to all members of the company so that they fully understand the importance of this aspect of the business.