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

Prototypical answer:

18(b). How proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others.

The .web gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others in a number of ways:
• Increase the domain-name extension inventory: An expanding global population results in more Internet users, coupled with increasing demand for domain name choices. The .web gTLD provides alternatives in every possible imagining of a website, from ecommerce to promotion of free expression.

• Increased availability of generic word domain names. For the first time in decades, generic names that have been locked down by registrants in existing gTLDs will be available in a new and easy-to-remember gTLD, which increases competition and benefits Internet users.

• Increase online innovation: New online properties with the .web gTLD will spur competitors to innovate in ways that will empower consumers, enabling communication instantaneously with others in their own communities and worldwide, at a low cost relative to traditional forms of media. The Internetʹs unique attributes create new opportunities to collaborate, exchange ideas, and promote scientific, cultural, and economic progress. These opportunities will increase when .web is introduced by ICANN and implemented and operated by Web.com.

Web.com is committed to providing best-in-class service to customers by maintaining our position as an industry leader. Our goal is to enable online users to expand their web presence and we are committed to offering a greater choice in top level domain extensions.

18(b)(i) What is the goal of your proposed TLD in terms of areas of specialty, service levels, of reputation?

Many gTLDs introduced by ICANN will, by their nature, appeal only to certain segments of the online population, whether those communities are industries, ethnicities, or other collections of like-minded individuals and organizations. We are hopeful that the .web gTLD will have the same popularity as that of .com.

Web.com has the scalability and processes required to meet the challenges anticipated with the .web gTLD. Today we manage over 8 million domain names across hundreds of TLDs. We are committed to servicing and⁄or providing domain-name resolution services that adhere to industry standards. Following our existing standards of industry benchmark performance, we will continuously monitor and proactively defend the .web infrastructure and associated services in order to provide reliable services for each registrant in areas of specialty, service levels, and reputation:

• Specialty: As the first domain-name ICANN-accredited registrar, Web.com’s Network Solutions subsidiary brings an unprecedented 25 years of domain industry experience to the community as a whole. The .web gTLD will be the baseline by which customers can incorporate new generation web-based technologies, enabling their web presence to be a highly efficient and effective communication mechanism. The experience and trust associated with Web.com will help ensure that outcome.

• Service Levels: Web.com has a long history of succeeding in its mission of providing world-class domain registration services. Our longstanding commitment to the highest service levels will be replicated with .web. Furthermore, we will meet or exceed the service levels mandated within the Registry Agreement enforced by ICANN as it pertains, but not limited, to the registration and resolution of the .web gTLD zone. Web.com is pleased to be working with Verisign, one of the leading Internet infrastructure companies, to launch .web. Verisignʹs unmatched performance in the operation of existing TLDs will ensure a high degree of service, stability and reliability.

• Reputation: Given our success over the course of the last 15 years, we are confident that Web.com will continue to serve customers with the best in class service as it pertains to the .web gTLD. Given the proactive safeguards we incorporate, and will continue to incorporate within the .web gTLD, we believe potential customers will register a .web gTLD in order to be associated with a secure, reliable and scalable gTLD. At Web.com, we believe that a website is only as good as the services and support behind it. With the .web gTLD, we have the opportunity to bring this same level of commitment to a gTLD.

18(b)(ii) What do you anticipate your proposed TLD will add to the current space, in terms of competition, differentiation, or innovation?

As stated in 18(a) above, the .web gTLD will have a dramatic impact by increasing competition, providing more differentiation for customers and consumers, while driving innovation.

• Competition: The addition of a .web gTLD will increase competition across all vertical online platforms. Registrars will compete to offer .web and meet the high demand for .web second-level TLDs. Vendors in the online marketplace will seek to expand their existing footprint or pioneer new products and services with a fresh .web website. The universal appeal of a .web URL will provide competition to every TLD, both broad-based existing ones--such as .com, .org, .biz and .info--as well as others that will be approved by ICANN, whether broad-based or narrowly targeted. Internet users will benefit from the dramatically accelerated competitive environment resulting from ICANNʹs adoption of .web operated by Web.com.

• Differentiation: The .web gTLD will quickly become as ubiquitous as .com. The .web gTLD will be the most versatile gTLD on the World Wide Web. A brand name company might choose .com; a non-profit .org; a start-up .biz; a resource site .info; and so on. But every one of those organizationsʹ sites would be perfectly compatible with a .web second-level domain. More narrow gTLDs will provide differentiation in certain niches and markets; .web will do so in every conceivable area on the Internet, from commerce to information to community-building. The introduction of generics under a new gTLD also will provide differentiated approaches to reaching Internet users.

• Innovation: There is little room for continued innovation by .com registrants seeking to compete with and differentiate themselves from other .com registrants. That is not a negative reflection on .com, but rather the fact that there are a finite number of short and memorable second-level domains. With many keywords and descriptive phrases already registered, incentives to innovate decrease with each year. A land rush of .web addresses will reverse that decline and drive new innovation in web delivery and customer service.

18(b)(iii) What goals does your proposed TLD have in terms of user experience?

Web.com will provide rewarding user experiences on two levels:

• Registrants: Web.com will incorporate the ability to allow various segments of the market to take advantage of registering the desired .web domain name. This includes providing the IP community with the ability to secure the .web domains affiliated or associated with their brands during a proposed Sunrise period, prior to making registrations publicly available to all. This registrant service is a natural extension of decades of experience on the part of Web.com and its holdings. Web.com may also enable registrants who have already purchased domains in other gTLDs the ability to register those domains in the .web gTLD. For registrants who are looking to improve their domain name or looking to purchase a new one, having .web will open up a new swath of choices in a gTLD that is new, fresh and directly tied to their goals of establishing their web presence. Upon enabling registrations to the general public, Web.com will incorporate a Go to Market Launch plan that will focus on ease of use, perspective registrant outreach program, and proactive communication associated with turn-key customer service. We intend to maintain our leading position that includes the lowest churn rates in the industry, which will be critical to the rollout of .web and its long-term success as a vibrant gTLD.

• Internet users: For users of .web gTLD websites, our enhanced efforts to prevent abusive behavior to protect the rights of others will result in a user experience that is more stable and secure than what they currently experience in other gTLDs. We fully recognize that eliminating abusive and fraudulent behavior is a difficult challenge but it is one that we will stress as we develop our plans to launch .web. Web.com plans to vigorously enforce all provisions we have outlined in the responses to Questions 28 and 29 to ensure a positive experience for all users of the .web gTLD.

18(b)(iv) Provide a complete description of the applicantʹs intended registration policies in support of the goals listed above.

Web.com takes its responsibilities in the operation of the .web gTLD very seriously. We have implemented a series of measures that, when taken together, will ensure that registrants have the ability to register names of their choice while ensuring that policies are in place to prevent and mitigate abusive behavior as well as protect the rights of others.

These registration policies include:

• An Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) that clearly defines what is considered abuse and what registrants may and may not do with their .web domain names

• A name selection policy that ensures compliance with ICANN mandated restrictions on second level domains

• Support for Uniform Rapid Suspension (URS) and Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP) to mitigate trademark infringement

The gTLD will be launched in multiple phases, ensuring a stable, secure, and controlled introduction:

• Sunrise A: This initial phase will allow the trademark community the ability to secure the .web domains associated with their brands for a 60-day period - double the ICANN minimum.

• Possible Sunrise B: We are also considering a second phase which might be available for previously registered names in other gTLDs.

• Landrush: Following the Sunrise phases, this phase will allow domain registrants to register domains at a premium price point. Multiple submissions will be auctioned, with the auction provider to be named at a later date.

• General Availability: This final phase will be open to the general public. Domains may be registered on a first-come⁄first-serve basis.


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

Web.com respects the privacy of its customers and the visitors and users of its websites. The .web gTLD will be governed by a strict Privacy Policy to ensure the privacy of information for registrants as well as users. Web.com is an industry leader in providing transparent and rigorous policies on how sensitive information will be used, as well as preventing unauthorized access to information through vigilant use of the latest technological innovations. We will continue our commitment to privacy for our customers and website users by publicly posting our privacy policies on the registry website. Web.com will ensure compliance with all laws and regulations that govern privacy issues.

18(b)(vi) Describe whether and in what ways outreach and communications will help to achieve your projected benefits.

Web.com enables regular dialogue with its registrants by establishing and maintaining clear and secure channels of communication. Web.com has every incentive to ensure that potential and existing .web registrants understand privacy and security measures to protect their information and to assist in their adherence to the AUP in their efforts to protect Internet users.

No other registry is better equipped to deal with the communication challenges inherent in the rollout and maintenance of a gTLD with the appeal and anticipated popularity of .web.

To ensure the success of the .web launch, the company will undertake a global marketing and advertising campaign to create customer awareness and interest in the features and benefits of the .web gTLD.

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