Matias Vangsnes

The six months ending 30 June were a less-than-stellar first half for web services company MelbourneIT, but managing director Theo Hnarkis has revealed a new revenue stream to help get the company back in the black: premium top-level domain names. Article source: http://www.zdnet.com.au/gtlds-to-become-melbourneits-cash-cow-339320993.htm

A series of hacks have hit the South Korean population, in a string of hacking attacks which have caused widespread disruption to the country’s state-run and privately operated firms. South Korean domain registrar Gabia has been hacked, exposing over 100,000 domains and 350,000 users. Article source: http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/epson-hsbc-korea-domain-registrar-hacked-100000-domains-affected/55864

“If you choose a new generic top-level domain (gTLD), will it be able to compete with .com? A recent academic paper indicates that the answer is yes if your new is of outstanding quality. Article source: http://www.thedomains.com/2011/08/20/circle-id-a-new-quality-gtld-can-compete-with-com/

In preparation for a new triple-x Internet domain that will launch in December, lawyers for the most storied brands in the United States are scrambling to prevent an x-rated rip-off of an invaluable asset: corporate Web addresses. Article source: http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/chi-rush-is-on-to-register-xxx-domain-names-to-fight-cyberextortion-20110815,0,6099005.story

Industry leaders gathered at the Master Of Your Domain? New TLD Conference for the first time since the New gTLD Program was passed at ICANN Singapore in June, 2011. Proceedings began with a special keynote from Kurt Pritz, SVP; of Stakeholder Relations for ICANN. Special guests included Jeffrey Hayzlett, from The Hayzlett Group, and Esther [...]

In late June, ICANN, the group that oversees internet domain names, lifted its restriction on internet address endings (also known as generic top-level domain names or gTLD) from the current 22, which includes such domains as .com, .org and .net, to infinity. Starting on January 12 (and ending April 12), anyone who wants to pay [...]

“Today’s decision will usher in a new Internet age. We have provided a platform for the next generation of creativity and inspiration.”This is how Peter Dengate Thrush described an end of restrictions on internet suffixes such as .com, .org and .gov. At the time of those comments he was chairman of ICANN – the Internet [...]

News from the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) recently has a lot of business people in a stir. Intellectual property and branding attorneys to some of the world’s biggest brands, the new domain naming convention for domain name endings, also known as generic top-level domains (gTLDs), will certainly change the game of [...]

The Luxembourg government initiative intends to promote the development of intellectual property and new technologies in the country. VAYTON Brand Capital (http://www.vayton.com) has recently launched its DotBrands service, for all companies interested in registering a branded domain, to take advantage of the new ICANN gTLD program, announced by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and [...]

The music industry still has concerns about the potential creation of a .music top-level domain name. This time, they’re taking their case to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, an agency of the Department of Commerce that is soliciting feedback on new proposed rules for how new top-level domains are granted. ICANN, the entity that [...]

Tucows Inc. (NYSE AMEX: TCX, TSX:TC), a global provider of domain names, email and other Internet services, announced today that it has acquired all the shares of EPAG Domainservices GmbH from QSC AG for approximately US$2.5 Million (€1.5 Million to purchase the shares and the settlement of a working capital adjustment of €0.25 Million) through [...]

Colombia’s newest major export does not require intensive labour. In fact, it essentially just requires a bit of typing. The two letters that identify Colombian domains on the web – .co – have become a hot asset since they were made available internationally a year ago. Article source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-14305361

As part of the strategic planning process each year, ICANN seeks public comment to inform the development of the next version of its Strategic Plan. The 2012-2015 strategic planning process kicked-off in May and community input discussions were held prior to and during Singapore. Leadership also held workshops exploring strategic issues facing ICANN. The next [...]

The “dot com” era is expanding and will soon be joined with a myriad of possibilities. This is the web’s new lakefront property frontier. Cities, brands, industries, interest groups, even start-up concepts could be your domain. ICANN’s recent ruling to open up the process to apply for and run new domain registries forever will alter [...]