18(b) How do you expect that your proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others?

Prototypical answer:

gTLDFull Legal NameE-mail suffixDetail
.hotelsBooking.com B.V.markmonitor.comView

Booking.com intends to organize the registry operation for the .hotels gTLD in such a manner that it will minimize the likelihood of having multiple applications or registration requests for a particular domain name.

According to the Applicant, Booking.com, this can be achieved in any of the following ways, which likely needs to be further refined following ICANN’s award and delegation of the .hotels gTLD to Booking.com:

i. From the Applicant’s perspective, .hotels may bring a high degree of recognition and specialization to the currently existing name space. Where in most cases the specific connotation that has been initially given to the gTLDs (or even ccTLDs) has disappeared, the .hotels top-level domain is currently intended to be unambiguous as regards:

* the identity of Booking.com as the Registry Operator;
* the source of the content and services offered under the .hotels gTLD, by Booking.com and⁄or a third party appointed by the latter;
* the affiliation between the Registry Operator and the .hotels gTLD, as well as the domain names registered in such gTLD; and
* in term, and at the discretion of Booking.com, the affiliation between the Registry Operator and any third party that may become authorized by Booking.com to register and⁄or use one or more domain name registrations in the .hotels gTLD, to be delegated and⁄or using such domain name registrations, providing content under such domain names and⁄or hotel reservations services.

ii. As mentioned in the vision and mission statement above, the key reasons why Applicant is applying for .hotels include but are not limited to:

1. Operate the highly recognizable .hotels gTLD at the top-level of the DNS’ hierarchy, for the benefit of the Applicant and the various stakeholders supported by the Applicant in its current day-to-day activities;

2. Safety and security; and

3. Implement measures in the near or distant future and when more adequate tools and techniques become available to mitigate and even avoid abuse, phishing, and even counterfeiting and piracy.

However, a further detailled plan on how the Applicant will use this gTLD has not been developed so far, which is mainly due to the short time frame between the announcement of the roll-out of the New gTLD Program, and the actual opening of the application window.

iii. The Applicant intends to implement the following policies and procedures with respect to the registration of domain names in the .hotels top-level domain:

(i) reservation and registration of domain names in the name of Booking.com. It is likely that this will be the scenario that Booking.com will put in place during the first months or even years of operation of the .hotels gTLD.

These names may include, but are not limited to:
a. descriptive names, referring to the actual day-to-day business activities of the Applicant or its Affiliates;
b. descriptive names, referring to the internal departments of the Applicant;
c. descriptive names, referring to the subsidiaries, affiliates and⁄or partners of the Applicant;
d. potentially also names relating to other stakeholders of Booking.com, to be determined by Booking.com following ICANN’s award and delegation of the .hotels gTLD to Booking.com;
e. etc.

(ii) launch of the TLD: if and when implemented by the Registry Operator, this is likely going to be a gradual process, whereby selected third parties that meet certain criteria, which Booking.com will be entitled to set at its own discretion, may register domain names in the .hotels gTLD. These processes may include the following:

a. Sunrise: allow physical persons, organizations and entities that meet the eligibility requirements determined by Booking.com at that point in time to choose and, where allowed by Booking.com, to register the domain names that are identical to their trademarks. These parties are generally expected to include hotels and hotel chains, and the corresponding domain names would then include the names of hotels, hotel chains, including or excluding their geographic location;

b. Land rush and general availability: other available domain names may be registered by physical persons, organizations and entities that meet the eligibility requirements in force at that point in time to choose the domain names in accordance with the applicable terms and conditions.

Depending on the terms and conditions in force at the time of launch of the TLD, these domain names may or may not be registered in the name of the applicant for the domain name or in the name of the Registry Operator of the TLD (i.e., Booking.com). In any case, Booking.com reserves the right to impose additional and other restrictions from time to time at its sole discretion. These restrictions will be mainly inspired by the following elements and factors:

a. protecting and safeguarding the Applicant’s brand and reputation;

b. the willingness to safeguard the trustworthiness of the .hotels gTLD, especially because of the fact that it will be operated by a respectable company;

c. the Applicants plan to provide users of the .hotels gTLD with a safe and secure experience; and

d. providing hotels and affiliates with a new indirect or perhaps in the longer term a more direct platform to promote themselves in the safe and secure .hotels online environment.

iv. Given the fact that the Applicant is a company that is established in the Netherlands, it is subject to both European and national privacy and data protection rules and practices. In particular, given the fact that the European and Dutch data protection authorities have issued strict guidelines, Booking.com will at all times be obliged to carefully consider and, where applicable, implement these policies, and this prior to and during the operation of the .hotels gTLD.

v. At this stage, Booking.com has not developed concrete and tangible plans in order to develop specific domain name registration activities in the .hotels gTLD apart from the activities described above. However, it is clear that the Applicant intends to operate the .hotels gTLD to the joint benefit of the Applicant, its affiliates, business partners and customers. In this respect, the Applicant has different ways in order to make existing and future customers, visitors and stakeholders aware of the (gradual) development of a new online environment under the .hotels TLD, including but not limited to:

a. Direct and indirect marketing and branding initiatives;
b. Internet advertising campaigns, including paid search, pay-per-click advertising, etc.;
c. Using its current on line presences, including various URLs under the Applicant’s key Booking.com domain name, in order to drive Internet traffic towards domain name registrations in the .hotels gTLD, hereby promoting this new space, provide relevant content with respect to hotels and hotel reservations, and the opportunity to make such reservations by way of a secured platform;
d. Email marketing campaigns;
e. etc.

Similar gTLD applications: (3)

gTLDFull Legal NameE-mail suffixzDetail
.TAOBAOAlibaba Group Holding Limitedmarkmonitor.comCompare
.TMALLAlibaba Group Holding Limitedmarkmonitor.comCompare
.bookingBooking.com B.V.markmonitor.comCompare