News Item
ICANN plans to limit domain name tasting
4 November 2008
ICANN, the organisation responsible for managing and administrating the Internet's domain name system, has recently put forward a plan to restrict the practice known as domain name "tasting".
The practice of domain name tasting is based upon the five-day period offered by domain name registrars in which the owner of a domain name may cancel the domain name registration and receive a refund of the registration fee. This five-day period, known as the "Add Grace Period" or AGP, was introduced to allow for the correction of typographical and other errors by the owners of domain names. If a domain name is cancelled during the AGP, the domain name owner receives a full refund of the registration fee.
However, the AGP has been utilised by many businesses for the purpose of domain name tasting. This involves using the five day Add Grace Period to monitor the extent of Internet traffic received by a particular domain name; those domain names that do attract substantial traffic are retained, whilst those domain names attracting little traffic are cancelled within the AGP leading to a full refund of the registration fees relating to those cancelled domain names.
Domain name tasting has also been exploited by "typosquatters". Typosquatting is a form of cybersquatting which relies on typographical errors made by Internet users to direct users to websites other than the user's intended website. To do so, typosquatters register domain names similar to established brand names and generate revenue through placing advertisements on the alternative websites to which the users are directed. Using the AGP, typosquatters can determine which domain names attract the greatest traffic and are likely to be the most profitable, without incurring the costs of registering those domain names that attract less traffic. Furthermore, by continuously withdrawing and then re-registering a domain name within the five day AGP, it is possible for cybersquatters to keep a domain name without charge.
In order to combat domain name tasting without harming legitimate Internet users wishing to utilise the AGP for its intended purpose, ICANN has put forward a proposal to limit the refund of registration fees payable on domain names cancelled within the AGP. Essentially, ICANN intends to place a threshold on the number of domain name registration fees that will be refunded - ICANN intends to only refund the registration fees of 50 domain name registrations per month, or alternatively 10% of a registrant's new domain name registrations each month, whichever is the greater. The restriction will only be lifted if a registrant can show extraordinary circumstances which would justify a refund in excess of the proposed threshold.
The policy suggested by ICANN appears to be an effective way of restricting domain name tasting, although the threshold of 10% of domain names registered per month seems an arbitrary figure that is likely to attract comment by domain name registrants.
ICANN's proposal is currently open to public comment until 20 November 2008.