Nokia, the third-level domain, and new problems with domain delegation

Yesterday it became known that Nokia contacted the administration of the social network "VKontakte" regarding the seizure of the domain name from the ownersNokia.vkontakte.ru.At the time the domain claim was filed, the group was owned by its creators, who had no affiliation with Nokia. The group was called the "Nokia Owners Club" and had over 1 million members.

What's also interesting about this story is that, according to VKontakte's rules, the group's creators purchased a third-level domain from the social network's administration. This gave the group's address a different look.vkontakte.ru/ID, A name.vkontakte.ruThis is a paid service and cost customers approximately $1,000.

This morning it became known that the social network administration transferred the domain name to NokiaNokia.vkontakte.ruand now the official Nokia group is located at this address.

While online debates rage over the ethics of Nokia's actions and their impact on its relationships with fans of the company's products, we'll focus on the issue of third-level domain names, in this case, on the social network VKontakte. The rules for delegating domains on VKontakte pages are deeply hidden; we were unable to find them. It's possible that such rules don't exist at all. Even though users purchased a third-level domain from VKontakte, the domain owner is VKontakte's administration. Therefore, the fee for a third-level domain, which is several hundred times higher than for a regular second-level domain name, does not guarantee that the domain will be delegated to its owners.

With the growing popularity of social media, interest in third-level domains hosted on social networks or blog hosting services is growing. However, are there clear rules for delegating such domains and what rights do their owners have?

The precedent surrounding Nokia's group and claims could become quite dangerous – it could lead to any other company seeking control over a third-, fourth-, or fifth-level domain name that includes its name. Hypothetically, such demands could become tools of censorship.

A solution to this problem could be clear rules for delegating domain names located on popular social media pages, including stipulated conditions for transferring such domains in the event of claims from registered trademark owners.