Leahy Introduces First Legislation To Chart Future System For Registering Internet Domain Names

March 10, 1998

Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) has introduced Congress’s first legislation on Internet domain names: a bill that charters a study, suggested in the Commerce Department’s recent Green Paper, to explore ways to improve the Internet’s domain naming system.

The Leahy bill, S.1727, introduced in the Senate March 6, directs the National Research Council to perform a comprehensive study of the implications, for trademark and intellectual property rights holders, of the addition of generic top-level domain names and related dispute resolution procedures.

"From its origins as U.S.-based research tool, the Internet has matured into a democratic, international medium for communication, commerce, education and entertainment," said Leahy. "As the Internet evolves, the traditional means of organizing its technical functions need to evolve, too. All of us, whether we are regular Internet users or not, have a stake in ensuring that the evolution of the domain name system makes sense now and for the future. Both users and the firms doing business on the Internet have a direct stake in ensuring that the domain name system develops in a way that protects their rights and promotes their shared interests. We need to plan now for the Internet’s continued growth as a global network. I know that is the feeling among the many Vermont firms that are pioneers in cyber selling, and that is the general feeling among users everywhere."

Domain names are the addresses on today’s Internet, enabling messages and information to be routed to the correct recipient. Top-level domain names are those at the end of an Internet address and can be either a two-letter country code such as ".us" or ".uk", or a generic top- level domain name, such as ".gov," ".net," ".com," ".edu," and ".org". Before each top-level domain name is a second-level domain name. For the past five years Network Solutions Inc., of Herndon, Va., has maintained the exclusive registry of all second-level domain names for the most popular generic top-level domains. The Network Solutions contract will end on Sept. 30, 1998.

"Despite the controversies associated with certain aspects of Network Solutions’ management of the generic top-level domain names, many of us have been concerned about what would happen at the end of the company’s contract," Leahy said. "Simply put, how will we avoid chaos on the Internet and the potential risk of multiple registrations of the same domain name for different Web sites?"

The Commerce Department’s January "Green Paper" discussion draft offers recommendations to improve the management of the domain name system, including adding five new generic top-level domain names and proposing a study on the effects on intellectual property and trademark rights holders. The Leahy bill authorizes that study.

"The addition of new generic top-level domain names would allow more competition and more individuals and businesses to secure addresses that more closely reflect their names and functions," said Leahy. "But many firms understandably are concerned that the proliferation of generic top-level domain names may make the job of protecting their trademarks from infringement or dilution more difficult."

"Although some of the recommendations in the Green Paper have proved to be controversial," he said, "I believe that the added scrutiny authorized by this bill has widespread support among domain name system stakeholders of diverse backgrounds and interests, including those businesses that are concerned that the increase in generic top-level domain names may make the job of protecting their trademarks from infringement or dilution more difficult. This legislation should find bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate.