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18(a) Describe the mission/purpose of your proposed gTLD

gTLDFull Legal NameE-mail suffixDetail
.EXTRASPACEExtra Space Storage LLCmsn.comView
Extra Space Storage® Inc. (Extra Space) is a real estate investment trust based in Salt Lake City, Utah with regional offices in California, Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Texas. Extra Space Storage is the second largest operator of self-storage in the U.S., and is a national owner, developer, acquirer and operator of professionally managed self-storage properties.
Extra Space Storage is a thirty year old company that has been involved in the self-storage industry since its inception. It is a growth-oriented company creating a new standard in the self-storage industry. Both customers and communities benefit from Extra Space Storageʹs professional approach to storage. Featuring attractive, convenient and secure facilities operated by professional managers, Extra Space Storage seeks to change the association of self-storage as a temporary holding place for rarely-used things to a desirable, safe, and customer-oriented facility perfectly suited for maintaining and accessing valued personal and business possessions.

Extra Space Storage Inc., headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, is a fully integrated, self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust that owns and⁄or operates 870 self-storage properties in 34 states and Washington, D.C. The Companyʹs properties are comprised of approximately 550,000 units and over 59 million square feet of rentable space, offering customers a wide selection of conveniently located and secure storage solutions across the country, including boat storage, RV storage and business storage. The Company is the second largest owner and⁄or operator of self-storage properties in the United States and is the largest self-storage management company in the United States.

The preservation of this brand is of paramount importance to Extra Space in all aspects of its operations, including and especially on the Internet. Operating the brand as a gTLD will likely be an important part of its digital strategy in the future. Extra Space will be analyzing and evaluating other .BRAND gTLD applications as well as general market adoption to determine short and long-term potential best-in-class use case options to most effectively serve and enhance Extra Space’s online strategy as a leader in the self storage market.

The intended future mission and purpose of the .EXTRASPACE gTLD is to serve as a trusted, hierarchical, and intuitive namespace provided by Extra Space and its qualified affiliates, for Extra Space customers. Extra Space will be the entity to file this application and bring the .EXTRASPACE gTLD to market.

Although ICANN has not specifically recognized a .BRAND gTLD specification in the current round, it is widely anticipated in the brand community that this will become a specialty subset of gTLDs. .EXTRASPACE is intended to be one of those .BRAND gTLDs, with the goal of protecting Extra Space’s online presence and identity, expanding its marketing and promotion efforts, providing a secure channel for online products and services.

Extra Space intends to initially limit registration and use of domain names within the .EXTRASPACE gTLD to Extra Space and its qualified affiliates. This initial limited use will allow Extra Space to establish its operations and achieve full sustainability. This limited distribution coupled with the other requirements set forth in Specification 9 of the Template Registry Agreement is intended to exempt Extra Space from its annual Code of Conduct Compliance requirements.

Extra Space currently plans a three-stage rollout for Extra Space’s gTLD(s):

1. Stage One

The initial stage of implementation of the gTLD will involve Extra Space registering a limited number of .EXTRASPACE second-level domain names.

This initial use will provide Extra Space’s IT and security personnel the time to run a number of tests to ensure seamless and secure access using the .EXTRASPACE gTLD domain names, interoperability with various software and Web-based applications, and unbroken and secure use of all names. This initial allocation will also allow the appropriate Extra Space staff to coordinate with the internal and external staff responsible for the application, delegation and setup phases of the .EXTRASPACE gTLD to ensure a proper transition from delegation to full operation.

2. Stage Two

Once all testing has been successfully completed, Extra Space will begin allocating domain names in .EXTRASPACE for more widespread internal corporate use. During this same period of time, Extra Space will begin evaluating strategies to potential migrate traffic away from its existing second-level domain names.

It is in Stage Two that Extra Space will evaluate expanding the operations of the gTLD to permit registration by other registrants such as licensees or other strategic parties. Should an assessment of its expansion strategy lead to a decision to extend registration rights to other parties, this expansion is currently planned to take place during Stage Three. However, any expansion would be conditioned upon a review of the Specification 9 (Registry Code of Conduct) set forth in the template registry agreement to ensure compliance with Extra Space’s business model.

3. Stage Three

Depending upon the analysis of the evaluations undertaken in Stage Two, Extra Space may begin to implement the migration of Internet traffic away from Extra Space’s legacy domain names, and toward the Extra Space gTLD. It is in this stage that Extra Space also may implement its decision to extend registration rights to licensees or strategic parties, depending upon compliance with Specification 9 as noted above. The dates of such expansion are subject to change depending upon business, strategic, and industry factors at the time.

After consideration of the following factors: analysis of Extra Space’s existing domain name portfolio; internal analysis of marketing initiatives; and the fact that Extra Space will have full control over the number of registrations in the .EXTRASPACE gTLD namespace, Extra Space is confident that the number of domain name registrations will be less than 3,000 in the first five years of operation.

Based on its experience to the end of Year 5, and based on its experience with any expansion implemented in Stage Three, Extra Space will assess whether its business plan and any future expansion strategy. It is anticipated by Extra Space that changes to the domain name industry, and particularly the impact of .BRAND gTLDs, will take at least five years to be realized and assessed. Any decision to expand the gTLDs beyond corporate, qualified subsidiary and affiliate, and licensee use will take into account this experience as well as the technical analysis of potential expansion.

The potential use of the .EXTRASPACE gTLD by these or other business segments will also be driven by Extra Space’s future business strategies as identified in its annual report and investor filings.
gTLDFull Legal NameE-mail suffixDetail
.ASDAWal-Mart Stores, Inc.fairwindspartners.comView
18.1 Mission and Purpose of .ASDA

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (ʺWalmartʺ) serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week around the world. Walmartʹs mission and founding principle is ʺsaving people money to help them live better,ʺ and Walmart has been recognized as a leader in sustainability, philanthropy, and employment opportunity. In the U.S., Walmart operates more than 4,400 retail facilities, including Walmart Stores and Samʹs Club warehouses. Walmart International operates more than 5,200 retail units in 27 countries outside the U.S. Walmart.com has been known for bringing the convenience, quality merchandise, and low prices of Walmart to the Internet. Walmart content is accessible in multiple TLDs, including the .COM, .NET, and .ORG gTLDs, and the .CA, .CO.UK, and .US ccTLDs.

ASDA is a Walmart subsidiary, operating more than 500 ASDA stores across the UK. While the stores vary in terms of size, location and the range of products and facilities offered, all offer the same low prices and friendly approach. ASDA is significant to the Walmart International segment, with net sales of $31.8 billion in FY 2011.

In recent years, Walmart has invested heavily in global eCommerce in order to reach more customers. In 2010, Walmart consolidated its eCommerce activities around the world in a Global eCommerce Division with three goals: 1) Develop and execute a global eCommerce strategy; 2) Accelerate global online channel growth; and 3) Create technology platforms and applications for every Walmart market. Walmart understands the impact that changing technology has had on retail and has dedicated eCommerce platforms around the world; the investments made in these platforms are helping to accelerate Walmartʹs growth in other markets. Walmart offers eCommerce sales through ASDA.com, its U.K. grocery home shopping network and a meaningful business, serving 97 percent of all U.K. customers.

The intended future mission and purpose of the .ASDA gTLD is to serve as a trusted, hierarchical, and intuitive namespace for the benefit of ASDAʹs customers and Internet users in general. Walmart will be the entity to bring the .ASDA gTLD to market and is also applying for .WALMART, .SAMSCLUB, .GEORGE, and .一号店 (the Walmart family of gTLDs).

Although ICANN has not specifically recognized a .BRAND gTLD specification in the current version of the Applicant Guidebook, it is widely anticipated within the brand owner community that this will become a specialty subset of new gTLDs. The .ASDA gTLD was planned as a .BRAND gTLD, with the goal of protecting ASDAʹs online presence and identity, expanding its marketing and promotional efforts, providing a secure channel for products and information online, and offering a platform on which to consolidate many of its intellectual property activities.

Walmart intends to initially limit registration and use of domain names within the .ASDA gTLD to Walmart, ASDA, and Walmart’s qualified subsidiaries and affiliates. This initial use will allow Walmart to establish its operations and achieve full sustainability. This limited distribution, coupled with the other requirements set forth in Specification 9 of the template Registry Agreement, is intended to exempt Walmart from its annual Code of Conduct Compliance requirements.

Walmart has currently planned a four-stage rollout for the .ASDA gTLD:

1) Stage 1

The initial stage of implementation of the .ASDA gTLD will involve Walmart and ASDA registering a limited number of second-level domain names.

This initial use will provide Walmartʹs IT and security personnel with the time to run a number of tests to ensure seamless and secure access using .ASDA domain names, interoperability with various software and Web-based applications, and unbroken and secure use of all domain names. This initial allocation will also allow the appropriate Walmart staff to coordinate with the internal and external staff responsible for the delegation and setup phases of the .ASDA gTLD to ensure proper transition from delegation to full operation.

2) Stage 2

Once all testing has been successfully completed, Walmart will begin allocating domain names in .ASDA for more widespread internal use. During this same period of time, Walmart will begin evaluating strategies to potentially migrate traffic away from its current network of second-level domain names, which are registered in a variety of TLDs, to the new Walmart family of gTLDs.

It is during Stage 2 that Walmart will evaluate expanding the operations of the gTLD to permit registration by other registrants, including licensees and strategic partners. Should an assessment of its expansion strategy lead to a decision to extend registration rights to other parties, the expansion would take place during Stage 3. However, any expansion would be conditional upon a review of Specification 9 (Registry Code of Conduct), as set forth in the template Registry Agreement, to ensure compliance with Walmartʹs business model.

3) Stage 3

Depending upon the analysis of the evaluations undertaken in Stage 2, Walmart may begin to implement the permanent migration of Internet traffic away from the TLDs in which Walmartʹs domain names are currently registered, toward the Walmart family of gTLDs. It is during this stage that Walmart may also implement its decision to extend registration rights to a wider class of registrants, including licensees and strategic partners, depending upon compliance with Specification 9, as noted above. The dates of such an expansion are subject to change depending upon business, strategic, and industry factors at the time.

After consideration of the following factors: analysis of Walmartʹs existing domain name portfolio; internal analysis of marketing initiatives; and the fact that Walmart will have full control over the number of registrations in the .ASDA gTLD namespace, Walmart is confident that the number of domain name registrations will be less than 10,000 in the first five years of operation.

4) Stage 4

Based on its experience with any expansions implemented in Stage 3, Walmart will assess whether its business plan and expansion strategy should be augmented by extending registration rights to a wider class of registrants, including, potentially, ASDA customers. Walmart anticipates that changes to the domain name industry, particularly the impact of .BRAND gTLDs, will take at least five years to be realized and assessed. Any decision to expand the .ASDA gTLD beyond use by Walmart, ASDA and Walmart’s qualified subsidiaries and affiliates will take into account this experience as well as the technical analysis of potential expansion.

The potential use of the .ASDA gTLD by ASDA will also be driven by Walmartʹs future business strategies as identified in its annual report and investor filings, see http:⁄⁄investors.walmartstores.com⁄phoenix.zhtml?c=112761&p=irol-irhome.

Utilizing current projections based upon ASDAʹs existing businesses, future business plans, current domain name portfolio, and other strategic factors, Walmart estimates that second-level domain name registrations will be in line with the projections set forth in the financial template provided in response to Question 46 of this application.