Transcript Slide 1

Overview of .EU Sunrise Validation
Services for EURid
Bart Lieben, Legal Counsel, PricewaterhouseCoopers
September 13, 2005
*connectedthinking
PwC
Agenda
• Background of .EU
• How Will the Validation of Prior Rights Take Place ?
• Rules for .EU Domain Name Applications During
Sunrise
• Status, Way Forward & Timing
•Q&A
Background
PwC
Legal Framework
• Launch of e-Europe initiative by the European Council at its
Lisbon meeting on March 23 and 24, 2000
- Decision to create a .EU top level domain
• Regulation (EC) No 733/2002 of 22 April 2002 on the
implementation of the .EU Top Level Domain (TLD)
- Management of the .EU TLD to be awarded by the Commission to a
non-for-profit “Registry”
• Regulation (EC) 874/2004, laying down public policy rules
concerning the implementation and functions of the .EU Top
Level Domain and the principles governing registration
.EU Sunrise Validation Services for EURid
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Responsibilities of the Registry
• May 21, 2003
- European Commission selects EURid to manage .EU TLD
- Collaboration between DNS BE, IIT CNR and NIC SE
• General obligations of EURid
- Organise, administer and manage the .EU TLD
- Register domain names in .EU through any accredited Registrar
• Specific obligations of EURid prior to the launch of .EU
- Organise Phased Registration (“Sunrise”) Period
- Select Validation Agents and ADR Providers
- Contract Registrars
.EU Sunrise Validation Services for EURid
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How Will the Validation of Prior Rights
Take Place ?
PwC
Two « Types » of Domain Name Applicants
• General Domain Name Applications
- Cf. General and Specific Eligibility Requirements
- Companies, physical persons, etc.
- Validation process will be described in the following
pages
• Names and acronyms of Public Bodies
- Validation will be done by Government Validation Points,
individually appointed by each Member State/European
Commission
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Validation Process for General Domain Name Applications
.eu
Domain Name Applicants
1
.eu Domain Name Applications
send confirmation of receipt + hyperlink to
template cover page
3
notify receipt of
documentary
evidence
Registrar 1
PwC
Registrar 2
2
updates Sunrise
Database (WHOIS)
Registrar 3
6
Sunrise
Database
Registrar X
Bart Lieben
VA
Platform
WHOIS
provide documentary evidence on prior
rights within 40 days after application
.EU Sunrise Validation Services for EURid
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5
Content
Server
scanning
centre
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Validation Process for General Domain Name Applications
In case domain name
applicant is first in the
queue for the domain name
concerned and his
documentary evidence has
been received in time
Allocate file to PwC employee,
native speaker participating in the
project, trained to perform the
validation of prior rights; quality
control by IP experts
positive or negative
notification
7
Sunrise
Database
.EU Sunrise Validation Services for EURid
Bart Lieben
WHOIS
instruction to
validate
+ communicate
metadata to VA
Platform
8
PwC
VA
Platform
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Questions to be Asked in the Validation Process
1. Is the Cover Page undersigned?
2. Does the name of the domain name applicant corresponds
with the “holder of the prior right”?
3. Does the “prior right” invoked exist?
4. Does the domain name correspond with the name for
which a prior right exist?
5. Does the documentary evidence substantiates the
existence of a prior right over the domain name applied
for?
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Validation Process for General Domain Name Applications
.EU
Domain Name Applicants
communicates decision 9
Takes decision on basis
of (positive or negative)
notification by PwC
Registrar 1
Registrar 2
updates Sunrise
Database (WHOIS)
Registrar 3
10
Sunrise
Database
Registrar X
.EU Sunrise Validation Services for EURid
Bart Lieben
WHOIS
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For the record …
• Elements of the contract with EURid
- PwC receives
• Fixed fee for handling documents (electronic +
physical) and scanning
• Variable fee for assessing applications
- depending on prior right claimed
- Service levels to be attained by PwC
• Scanning capacity
• Number of applications to be treated per day
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Rules for .EU Domain Name
Applications during Sunrise
PwC
.EU Domain Name Applicants
Contractual Framework
Rules for .EU Applications
During Sunrise
Registrar 1
Validation
Agent Agreement
Registrar 2
ADR
MoU
Registrar 3
Registrar X
.EU Sunrise Validation Services for EURid
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Registrar
Agreement
ADR
Provider
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What Are the Rules for .EU Sunrise Applications?
• Rules to which domain name applicants must comply when
applying for a .eu domain name during the Phased
Registration Period
- cf. Article 12(1), third § of Regulation 874/2004:
“The Registry shall publish on its Web site two months
before the beginning of the phased registration a detailed
description of all technical and administrative manners
that it shall use to ensure a proper, fair and technically
sound administration of the phased registration period.”
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Rules During the Phased Registration Period
• General Eligibility Requirements
- cf. Article 4(2)b of Regulation 733/2002
• Specific Eligibility Requirements during Sunrise
- cf. Article 10(1) of Regulation 874/2004
• List of acknowledged Prior Rights
- cf. Article 10(1) second § of Regulation 874/2004
• List of documentary evidence acknowledged for each type
of Prior Right
- cf. Article 14, first § of Regulation 874/2004
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General Eligibility Requirements
Article 4(2) of Regulation 733/2002)
“The Registry shall:
(a) […]
(b) register domain names in the .EU TLD through any
accredited .EU Registrar requested by any:
(i) undertaking having its registered office, central
administration or principal place of business within
the Community;
(ii) organisation established within the Community
without prejudice to the application of national law; or
(iii) natural person resident within the Community.”
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Specific Eligibility Requirements
(Article 10(1) of the Public Policy Rules)
“Holders of prior rights recognised or established by
national and/or Community law and public bodies shall be
eligible to apply to register domain names during a period
of phased registration before general registration of .eu
domain [names] starts.”
• What are these “prior rights”?
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List of Acknowledged Prior Rights
(Article 10(1), second § PPR)
“Prior Rights” shall be understood to include, inter alia,
- Registered national and community trade marks,
- Geographical indications or designations of origin, and
- In as far as they are protected under national law in the
Member-State where they are held:
-
unregistered trade marks;
trade names;
business identifiers;
company names;
family names;
distinctive titles of protected literary and artistic works.
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Issues concerning the list of acknowledged Prior Rights
(Article 10(1), second § PPR)
Public Policy Rules raise a number of interpretation
problems:
1) Which registered trade marks are acknowledged?
2) Quid with signs in a non-standard typeface? Device
(figurative) marks?
3) Licensees?
4) “The complete name for which the prior right exists”?
5) “Protected under national law in the member state
where the prior rights are held”?
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Our Commitment towards the “Prior Rights” Community
• Transparency:
- It should be clear for a domain name applicant which
evidence is to be provided to the Validation Agent
• enable domain name applicants to access clear
instructions prior to and following his application (direct
communication)
• EURid Accredited Registrars shall receive information on
how to inform domain name applicants (indirect
communication)
• Keep (administrative) requirements to the minimum, and reduce
possibility of abusive registration to the maximum
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Prior Rights and Documentary Evidence
• Per member state, an overview will be given of
- The prior rights that are considered protected
- The documentary evidence that needs to be provided, and
- The conditions that need to be fulfilled
• Important: documentary evidence
- Can only be couched in the official language of the EU
indicated in the application / on the cover page
- Administrative requirements
• No staples, not folded, in A4 or letter format, …
- Only first set received by PwC within 40 calendar days after
receipt of the application by EURid will be considered
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Status, Way Forward & Timing
PwC
Tentative Timetable
Project Preparation
Project Execution
Drafting the Rules for
Application & Validation
Discussion with Interested Parties
Finalisation of
Sunrise Rules
today
2 months
2 months
Phase 1
Phase 2
Validation Ph. 1
min. 2 months
Validation Ph. 2
X
.EU Sunrise Validation Services for EURid
Bart Lieben
Final Rules:
end September
2005 (tentative)
4th Quarter (tentative)
Start Phased
Registration Period
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Q&A
PwC
Contact Information
Bart Lieben, Legal Counsel
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Gen. Lemanstraat 67
2018 Antwerpen,Belgium
E-mails:
[email protected]
[email protected]
Web sites:
http://validation.pwc.be
http://www.eurid.eu
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