Service Online's official position regarding the introduction of IDNs in Ukraine
IDN registrations have begun in the .com.ua and .kiev.ua zones.it was plannedon July 22, 2010. However, a few days after the launch announcement, a number of problems arose, primarily related to the technical unpreparedness of individual registrars and the lack of developed rules for priority registration of new domains. Therefore, after receiving a number of complaints, Hostmasterheld a meeting of market participantswith the aim of defining a joint policy for registering IDNs and developing a common decision on the commencement of registration of such domains.
Unfortunately, at this meeting, some registrars attempted to establish rules that favored their clients. In particular, Oleksandr Olshansky, head of one of the largest registrars, Internet Invest LLC (Imena.ua), proposed his own priority registration procedure. He believed that Cyrillic domains should be first received by owners of already registered domains in the .com.ua and .kiev.ua domain zones.
Furthermore, registering new domain names linked to existing domains is contrary to Ukrainian and international law. A domain is not an object of intellectual property. Therefore, ownership of one domain name cannot grant priority rights over the registration of another.
Furthermore, various Latin domains are transliterated into identical Cyrillic ones. For example, "mashina.com.ua" and "mashyna.com.ua" both correspond to the Cyrillic "маша.com.ua." Therefore, transferring registration priority to Latin domain owners will lead to new disputes and disagreements.
It's no secret that NIC.UA and Imena.uaare the leaders in registrationsin the .com.ua and .kiev.ua zones. However, NIC.UA's position is not motivated by a desire to oppose its competitor. We would like to clarify Service Online's position in this situation.
Service Online is prepared to accommodate any reasonable decisions made by the .UA domain administrator, but only on the condition that such decisions have been proven in international domain name registration practices. We are opposed to "reinventing the wheel" in domain registration in Ukraine. It is well known that, in international practice, when introducing IDNs, priority in registration is not granted to owners of existing domains.
The start of delegating names in a new domain usually goes through the following stages:
- Sunrise – a period during which only trademark owners have the right to register.
- Landrush – a period during which higher registration prices are possible, or the setting of an inflated price with a gradual reduction, or the organization of domain auctions.
- Free registration – registration without restrictions at the standard price, on a first-come, first-served basis.
Service Online believes that Ukraine should also adhere to international registration standards. However, Sunrise and Landrush periods should not be lengthy, and we consider increased domain prices at the beginning of open registration unnecessary.
Service Online will participate in the Working Group formed by Hostmaster to develop a document regulating the principles of IDN delegation by registrars and will advocate for the implementation of global domain registration standards in Ukraine.
We would like to emphasize once again that Service Online does not issue ultimatums. The company is willing to compromise to develop transparent and fair rules for registering new domains, which can be used to resolve similar issues in the future.
