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GAC IGO List for Protection in gTLDs
The IGO list for protection in gTLDs was created by the GAC in consultation with the ICANN Board in 2013, to be maintained by the GAC to enable the protection of IGO identifiers at the second level in new gTLDs.
The protection of the names and acronyms of International Governmental Organizations (IGOs) against unauthorized use in the Domain Name System (DNS) emerged as an issue as part of the Second WIPO Internet Domain Name Process (2001). Over the following decade, several attempts were made to address WIPO’s recommendations to include IGO identifiers in the scope of the trademark-based Uniform Dispute Resolution Procedure (UDRP).
In the meantime, the GAC Principles regarding New gTLDs (28 March 2007) recognized that “the process for introducing new gTLDs must make proper allowance for prior third party rights, in particular [...] rights in the names and acronyms of [...] IGOs”.
During the development of the New gTLD Program, the issue was raised to ICANN by legal counsels of IGOs through an open letter (13 December 2011), followed by an IGO Common Position Paper (4 May 2012) and a letter on behalf of the United Nations Secretary General (11 July 2012) providing the legal basis and rationale for “targeted exclusion of third party registrations of the names and acronyms of IGOs both at the top and second level, at least during ICANN’s first application round and until further appropriate policy could be developed”.
As a result of the development of the ICANN New gTLD Program, and the divergence that subsequently emerged between GNSO policy recommendations and GAC Advice, IGO names and acronyms have become subject to a multifaceted regime of protections, pending outcomes of several ongoing ICANN processes.
The GAC submitted Advice to the ICANN Board pertaining to the Protection of IGOs identifiers in the DNS:
- Toronto Communiqué (October 2012);
- Beijing Communiqué April 2013);
- Durban Communiqué (July 2013); and
- Buenos Aires Communiqué (November 2013).
As per GAC Advice included in the ICANN45 Toronto GAC Communique (17 October 2012) relative to Protections of Intergovernmental Organizations (IGO), identifiers in the DNS, the GAC advised the ICANN Board that:
“In the public interest, implementation of such protection at the second level must be accomplished prior to the delegation of any new gTLDs, and in future rounds of gTLDs, at the second and top level.
The GAC believes that the current criteria for registration under the .int top level domain, which are cited in the Applicant Guidebook as a basis for an IGO to file a legal rights objection, provide a starting basis for protecting IGO names and acronyms in all new gTLDs.
Building on these criteria, the GAC and IGOs will collaborate to develop a list of the names and acronyms of IGOs that should be protected. Pending further work with ICANN on specific implementation measures for this initiative the GAC believes this list of IGOs should be approved for interim protection through a moratorium against third-party registration prior to the delegation of any new gTLDs.”
In March 2013, the GAC Chair, following consultations between the IGO Coalition and the GAC, submitted a letter to the ICANN Board including the agreed criteria and corresponding final list for protection of IGO names and acronyms at the second level for the 2012 round of new gTLDs.
As a result of the ICANN53 Buenos Aires GAC Advice, the ICANN Board resolved that acronyms of IGOs listed on the GAC List are temporarily protected by virtue of an ICANN Board resolution (9 January 2014).
This moratorium is pending the resolution of inconsistencies between existing GNSO policy recommendations and GAC Advice, including consideration of the contested Final Report of the IGO/INGO Access to Curative Rights Mechanism PDP WG (17 July 2018) adopted in part by the GNSO Council (18 April 2019).
Description of the List for Protections in new gTLDs
The IGO list for protection in gTLDs was created in consultation with the ICANN Board, to be maintained by the GAC to enable the protection of IGO identifiers:
At the top level of the DNS (IGO identifiers as Top-Level Domain Names)
- Under the rules of the 2012 New gTLD Applicant Guidebook, IGOs were eligible to file objections on New gTLD Applications (see Legal Rights Objections, Section 3.2 of the New gTLD Applicant Guidebook)
- Per ICANN Board resolution (30 April 2014) adopting GNSO Policy recommendations not inconsistent with GAC Advice, Full Names of IGOs on the GAC List are now permanently reserved at the Top Level.
At the second level of the DNS (IGO identifiers as Second Level Domain Names)
- Full Names of IGOs listed on the GAC List are permanently protected in two languages by virtue of the Protection of IGO and INGO Identifiers in All gTLDs Policy (an ICANN Consensus Policy effective since 1 August 2018)
Acronyms of IGOs listed on the GAC List are temporarily protected by virtue of an ICANN Board resolution (9 January 2014) consistent with GAC Advice in the GAC Buenos Aires Communiqué (20 November 2013), and pending the resolution of inconsistencies between existing GNSO policy recommendations and GAC Advice.
Please refer to the "Documentation" section at the bottom of the page for the following documents:
- GAC Mechanism to Update the IGO List
- GAC IGO List for Protection in new gTLDs "add form"
- GAC IGO List for Protection in new gTLDs "remove form"
- IGO Criteria for Protection