.wiki Pre-Register Domain - .wiki Domain Information

Top Level Design, LLCʹs goal for the .wiki gTLD is to create a designated Internet space for wikis. This TLD will clearly identify wikis from among the millions of other websites populating the Internet, and allow Internet users to easily find wikis relevant to their interests. Wiki websites are a growing phenomenon on the Internet and an innovative, easy-to-use peer-production method of creating and presenting information. They are generally open and editable and often community-driven; furthermore, individual wikis and the wiki platform are in constant flux in much the same way that the Internet as a whole is in flux. Wikis, like the broader Internet, are repositories of information that depend on each individual user to create value; they are meeting points and revolutionary ways to share ideas and knowledge; and they are both set to be expanded through the implementation of ICANN's New gTLD Program, and a .wiki TLD specifically. We believe a .wiki TLD is an intuitive and necessary addition to the collection of new gTLDs to be added as a result of the New gTLD Program.

The .wiki TLD will be an open TLD, with wholesale pricing higher than currently available gTLDs. The TLD will be targeted at subject matter wikis. We believe that this pricing strategy will help encourage the productive development of the domain space, and encourage those individuals that wish to create malicious content, parked pages, or other irrelevant websites to use cheaper, more generic TLD offerings to host their content.

Top Level Design, LLC has a passion for wikis. Our CEO has worked extensively with the inventor of wiki technology, Ward Cunningham, and in addition to having launched quite a few wikis, is currently managing three other wiki-based ventures: AboutUs Inc., WikiIndex.com and ICANNWiki.com. The latter has established itself as a primary resource for neutral, third-party information on all aspects and members of the ICANN community. Thus, we are productive and active participants of both the ICANN and wiki communities, and it is our goal to merge the revolutionary opportunities of the New gTLD Program with the innovative knowledge-sharing possibilities of wikis.

It is Top Level Design, LLC's goal to make the .wiki TLD a viable and profitable business. We believe this to be the most likely scenario, and the projections and financial analysis included in this application demonstrate such. We hope to grow at a rate that allows us to continually improve our registry offerings and increase benefits for both our customers and employees. However, our commitments and projections at this time are focused on conservatively estimating our revenue in order to best prepare for a TLD market with the possibility of many more TLDs.

i.) What is the goal of your proposed gTLD in terms of areas of specialty, service levels, or reputation?

.Wiki will have an open registration policy targeted at wiki owners who use wikis as a way to create and disseminate sector specific information. We hope to attract both groups and individuals to develop wikis about their favorite hobby, cause or other passion. We believe that the term "wiki" and what the concept entails are widely understood, and that the average Internet use will understand that the content of a .wiki domain will be largely populated by this innovative presentation of open, editable information.

We hope to quickly become a reputable and desired TLD for wikis and wiki users by working with prominent companies in the wiki engine and wiki content space, well-known wikis, and all the various wiki-related websites to ensure that they feel comfortable and are excited about the possibilities presented by the .wiki TLD. While we firmly believe that these endorsements may help our marketing efforts, what ultimately matters most is the reputation created within the Internet community as a whole, and not with specific well-known members. Thus, we will focus on creating a safe and secure space that all Internet users can rely on and choose to join; we believe that pursuing this bottom-up model is not only in the best interest of the productive development of the .wiki TLD, but also that it further underscores the importance of the bottom-up, multi-stakeholder model of Internet governance.

ii.) What do you anticipate your proposed gTLD will add to the current space, in terms of areas of competition, differentiation, or innovation?

It is our goal at Top Level Design, LLC to create a competitive, specified alternative to the popular but more generic TLDs available today. It is a commonly accepted notion that the Internet's biggest TLDs are reaching a point of saturation, and that the best, most marketable and memorable domains were registered years ago. We believe that implementing a .wiki TLD will bring greater attention and market success to all kinds of wikis. At Top Level Design, LLC, we believe that the .wiki TLD is an intuitive top-level domain that represents a progressive development in how end-users share information via the Internet. Wikis themselves are a revolutionary innovation, so creating a dedicated space for them will not only allow the technology to continue to change the way we share but also help us find information via the Internet.

We do not expect that all wikis will want to move to a .wiki extension. Many wiki owners may think that their wiki is better hosted as a subdomain, or are satisfied with their current TLD. However, by adding a .wiki to the root zone, ICANN will be improving existing TLDs by allowing them to become more focused on their intended significance, while simultaneously providing a differentiated and specific extension for those who want to clearly label their website as a wiki. This will certainly facilitate more TLD competition, and allow the current offerings to become significantly more differentiated than they currently are. Implementation of .wiki will be due recognition of a technology that allows any individual to add value and knowledge to the greater Internet, and it will allow the medium to continue to flourish and innovate.

iii.) What goals does your proposed gTLD have in terms of user experience?

Top Level Design, LLC believes the .wiki extension is largely self-explanatory and its content readily apparent to both potential registrants and end-consumers. Registrants will have the opportunity to clearly identify themselves as a site using a wiki platform, and Internet users browsing and using sites with a .wiki extension will know that the website they are visiting is a site built upon peer production principles. We hope that the Internet experience of both types of users will therefore be enhanced and simplified by the implementation of .wiki into the root zone.

We will create a safe and secure TLD, and believe that this is the most important way to ensure that our users have positive experiences when using .wiki.

iv.) Provide a complete description of the applicant's intended registration policies in support of the goals listed above.

We intend to implement an open registration policy offered through ICANN-accredited registrars. There will be no proof of legitimacy required for registration, although we will encourage that the domains utilize wiki software. Through targeted marketing efforts and niche pricing levels, we expect to see that a large majority of the domains registered will be by those with plans to develop relevant sites.

We will fully implement the requirements made by the ICANN Board with regards to the Trademark Clearinghouse, the URS, Trademark PDDRP, the RRDRP, and the UDRP. We believe the these measures have been suitably developed to prevent defensive registrations, bad faith registrations, and other malicious registrations.


v.) Will your proposed gTLD impose any measures for protecting the privacy or confidential information of registrants or users? If so, please describe any such measures.

As per the current requirements in Section 4 of the Registry Agreement, we will implement all necessary thick WHOIS services. We recognize how imperative it is for each registry and ICANN-accredited registrar to be in full compliance with ICANN's current WHOIS standards, and we plan to update our policy in accordance with any future measures taken by the ICANN Board in regard to the continuous work by the GNSO's WHOIS Task Force and other recommendations from the SOs. We have no plans to implement any privacy or confidential measures other than fully implementing any and all such measures required by ICANN.

i. How will multiple applications for a particular domain name be resolved, for example, by auction or on a first-come/first-serve basis?

About six months following the signing of the registry agreement, we will hold a standard Sunrise Period reserved for those entities with appropriate IP and Trademark claims, which we anticipate to last about 3 months. Then, after the conclusion of the Sunrise Period, we will hold a Landrush Period that will be open to the public, and which will last a few weeks to a month. At the conclusion of each period we will hold closed auctions for the domains that have been applied for by more than one party. We anticipate separating the end of the Sunrise from the beginning of the Landrush by a few weeks.

For general availability of the .wiki TLD following the sunrise and landrush periods, we will be operating on a first-come, first-served basis. However, we reserve the right to create a list of domain names within our .wiki TLD to be set aside and then sold or auctioned off to interested parties. We have included auction related revenue in the first year of operations of our financial projections.

ii.) Explain any cost benefits for registrants you intend to implement (e.g. advantageous pricing, introductory discounts, bulk registration discounts).

We have no plans to implement any cost benefits for registrants at this time. However, we have discussed the possibility of promotions, such as bulk registration discounts and advantageous pricings, should they be necessitated due to currently unforeseen circumstances or become part of a targeted marketing campaign during any part of our launch.

iii.) Note that the Registry Agreement requires that registrars be offered the option to obtain initial domain name registrations for periods of one to ten years at the discretion of the registrar, but no greater than ten years. Additionally, the Registry Agreement requires advance written notice of price increases. Do you intend to make contractual commitments to registrants regarding the magnitude of price escalation? If so, please describe your plans.

We intend to fully comply with the provisions in the Registry Agreement stating that registration being made available by our registrars for a period of one to ten years, while not exceeding ten years.

Wholesale price increases may be necessary due to inflation or other unforeseen circumstances. However, we recognize that it is important to protect registrants from unreasonable price increases, and therefore plan not to exceed the industry-precedented reasonable maximum annual wholesale price increase of 10%. As dictated by the Registry Agreement, we plan to provide ICANN and ICANN-accredited registrars 30 days written notice for price increases on initial domain name registrations, and 180 days for domain name renewals, excepting the provisions stated in Article 2, Section 10(b) and (c), which we shall follow as they are described. We plan to give written notice of at least 90 days to our registrants of such increases. We have no plans at this time to make further contractual commitments to our registrants regarding wholesale price escalation, but do intend to follow the best practices set forth by the industry and treat our registrants with respect, both financially and otherwise. We do not anticipate the need for significant price increases and are equally likely to lower the price in the future.

We plan to work with the GAC to protect their interests in country codes, country names, and major cities at the second level via a reserve list, as per the ʺGAC Principles Regarding New gTLDs" document of March 28, 2007, and per any forthcoming mandates from the GAC as approved by the ICANN Board. Pursuant to the specification provided in ICANNʹs Applicant Guidebook, the list will include country and territory names based on the following internationally recognized lists:

• the short form (in English) of all country and territory names contained on the ISO 3166-1 list;
• the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names, Technical Reference Manual for the Standardization of Geographical Names, Part III Names of Countries of the World; and
• the list of United Nations member states in 6 official United Nations languages prepared by the Working Group on Country Names of the United Nations Conference on the Standardization of Geographical Names;

As the above documents get updated from time to time, the exact list of reserved names will be compiled shortly before the TLD launch to account for any updates. The list of reserved names will be published on the Registry website. We recognize that we may need future permission from the GAC, its members, and the ICANN Board to use certain names.

Given the precedent of the .info TLD as described in the document "GAC Chair circular letter on Reservation of Country Names in Dot Info, ICANN Board Resolutions of 10 September 2001 and 14 March 2002" from September 9, 2003, we will protect/reserve the above described names for a suitable amount of time following the launch of the TLD, during which time we will encourage governments to register their country-specific domains. We look forward to working with all GAC representatives in order to ensure that their representation under the .wiki TLD is suitable to their wants and needs. Domains that are not permanently reserved or registered will be made available to the general public after securing any necessary permissions.

For ongoing operation, we will implement procedures that allow governments, public authorities, or IGOs to challenge potential abuses of names with national or geographic significance at the second level or other levels. Such procedures may include the blocking of offending domains in a system similar to URS. We intend to respect standard, ICANN-approved arbitration practices that consider both the registrant and the objecting government's rights and concerns.