David Weslow Comments on Potential Fraud Related to Top-Level Domain Applications

David Weslow, a partner in Wiley Rein's Intellectual Property Practice, was interviewed by Al Jazeera English for a news report about allegations concerning Donuts Inc.’s $57 million expenditure to apply for 307 top-level domains. There are claims that Donuts Inc. has ties to Demand Media, a company said to have links to spammers, cybersquatters and online fraud schemes. Mr. Weslow cautioned, “There’s a real concern here that if these allegations are true then that may inform how these 300 registries would be operated and whether they would become havens for online scams.”

Representatives from both Donuts Inc. and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) addressed the allegations in the Al Jazeera English report. ICANN, which will begin to approve release of new top-level domains by the middle of next year, noted that a large portion of the $185,000 fee for top-level domain name applications pays for background checks on all top-level domain applicants. ICANN is also continuing to accept “public comments” in support or opposition of any application and a formal opposition procedure is available through March 13, 2013.