.itv New gTLD Application
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New gTLD Application Submitted to ICANN by: ITV Services Limited
Application Downloaded On: 20 Feb 2014
String: ITV
Application ID: 1-978-21016
Applicant Information
- Full legal name
ITV Services Limited
- Address of the principal place of business
THE LONDON TELEVISION CENTRE UPPER GROUND London - SE1 9LT GB
- Phone number
02071573000
- Fax number
0207849 9344
- If applicable, website or URL
Primary Contact
6(a). Name
Lorna Gradden
6(b). Title
Operations Director
6(c). Address
6(d). Phone Number
+442074218250
6(e). Fax Number
+448700118187
6(f). Email Address
Secondary Contact
7(a). Name
Eleanor Irving
7(b). Title
Assistant Company Secretary
7(c). Address
7(d). Phone Number
+442071576563
7(e). Fax Number
7(f). Email Address
Proof of Legal Establishment
8(a). Legal form of the Applicant
Corporation
8(b). State the specific national or other jurisdiction that defines the type of entity identified in 8(a).
UK
8(c). Attach evidence of the applicant's establishment.
Attachments are not displayed on this form.
9(a). If applying company is publicly traded, provide the exchange and symbol.
9(b). If the applying entity is a subsidiary, provide the parent company.
ITV Services Ltd is a 100%-owned subsidiary of ITV Holdings Ltd (Co No 4159210), which is a 100%-owned subsidiary of Carlton Communications Ltd (Co No348312), itself a 100%-owned subsidiary of ITV plc (Co No4967001, listed on London Stock Exch‘ ITV’)
9(c). If the applying entity is a joint venture, list all joint venture partners.
Applicant Background
11(a). Name(s) and position(s) of all directors
Name
Position
Adam Alexander Crozier Chief Executive Officer, ITV plc
Andrew James Doyle Group HR Director, ITV plc
Andrew Sheldon Garard Group Legal Director and Company Secretary, ITV plc
Ian Ward Griffiths Group Finance Director, ITV plc
Kevin Anthony Lygo Managing Director, ITV Studios
Mary Fagan Group Communications & Corporate Affairs Director, ITV plc
Paul Dale Chief Technology Officer, ITV plc
Peter Fincham Director of Television, ITV plc
Simon Jeremy Pitts Director of Strategy and Transformation
11(b). Name(s) and position(s) of all officers and partners
Name
Position
Adam Alexander Crozier Chief Executive Officer, ITV plc
Andrew James Doyle Group HR Director, ITV plc
Andrew Sheldon Garard Group Legal Director and Company Secretary, ITV plc
Ian Ward Griffiths Group Finance Director, ITV plc
Kevin Anthony Lygo Managing Director, ITV Studios
Mary Fagan Group Communications & Corporate Affairs Director, ITV plc
Paul Dale Chief Technology Officer, ITV plc
Peter Fincham Director of Television, ITV plc
Simon Jeremy Pitts Director of Strategy and Transformation
11(c). Name(s) and position(s) of all shareholders holding at least 15% of shares
11(d). For an applying entity that does not have directors, officers, partners, or shareholders: Name(s) and position(s) of all individuals having legal or executive responsibility
Applied-for gTLD string
- Provide the applied-for gTLD string. If an IDN, provide the U-label.
ITV
14A. If applying for an IDN, provide the A-label (beginning with "xn--").
14B. If an IDN, provide the meaning, or restatement of the string in English, that is, a description of the literal meaning of the string in the opinion of the applicant.
14C1. If an IDN, provide the language of the label (in English).
14C2. If an IDN, provide the language of the label (as referenced by ISO-639-1).
14D1. If an IDN, provide the script of the label (in English).
14D2. If an IDN, provide the script of the label (as referenced by ISO 15924).
14E. If an IDN, list all code points contained in the U-label according to Unicode form.
15A. If an IDN, upload IDN tables for the proposed registry. An IDN table must include:
the applied-for gTLD string relevant to the tables,
the script or language designator (as defined in BCP 47),
table version number,
effective date (DD Month YYYY), and
contact name, email address, and phone number.
Submission of IDN tables in a standards-based format is encouraged.
15B. Describe the process used for development of the IDN tables submitted, including consultations and sources used.
15C. List any variants to the applied-for gTLD string according to the relevant IDN tables.
- Describe the applicant's efforts to ensure that there are no known operational or rendering problems concerning the applied-for gTLD string. If such issues are known, describe steps that will be taken to mitigate these issues in software and other applications.
ITV Services Limited anticipates the introduction of this TLD without operational or rendering problems. Based on a decade of experience launching and operating new TLDs, Afilias, the back-end provider of registry services for this TLD, is confident the launch and operation of this TLD presents no known challenges. The rationale for this opinion includes:
- The string is not complex and is represented in standard ASCII characters and follows relevant technical, operational and policy standards;
- The string length is within lengths currently supported in the root and by ubiquitous Internet programs such as web browsers and mail applications;
- There are no new standards required for the introduction of this TLD;
- No onerous requirements are being made on registrars, registrants or Internet users, and;
- The existing secure, stable and reliable Afilias SRS, DNS, WHOIS and supporting systems and staff are amply provisioned and prepared to meet the needs of this TLD.
- OPTIONAL.
Provide a representation of the label according to the International Phonetic Alphabet (http://www.langsci.ucl.ac.uk/ipa/).
18A. Describe the mission/purpose of your proposed gTLD.
ITV plc (ITV) is a FTSE100 media company based in the UK,that operates as a broadcaster and producer of television programming. ITV plc’s external revenues in 2011 were £2,140m, with EBITA before exceptionals of £462m (2010: £2,064m with EBITA £408m).
ITV is the largest commercial television network in the UK and operates a family of four channels delivering content across multiple platforms including via itv.com and ITV Player. ITV Studios produces and sells programmes and formats in the UK and worldwide.
The applicant for dot.ITV, ITV Services Limited, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ITV that provides services for ITV and other companies within the ITV Group.
ITV has three main business areas:
- ITV Broadcasting
The ITV channel was set up in 1958 as a public service commercial television service in competition with the BBC. There is an exceptionally strong reputation in the brand ʺITVʺ for television services in the UK dating back some decades.
In its capacity as a broadcaster ITV operates the largest commercial television network in the UK. It controls 45.3% of the UK television advertising market – the greatest share of any UK commercial network. In 2011 the ITV family of four channels delivered 23.1% share of the total viewing audience as a proportion of total television viewing in the UK.
- ITV Online
ITV delivers its programmes across multiple online platforms including itv.com (its website), ITV Player (its video on demand service), video on demand on cable television and other ‘closed’ platforms, mobile devices and games consoles. In 2011 the total number of long form video views – a measure of the number of ITV programmes viewed across non-television channels such as itv.com , games consoles, smartphones and tablets – was 376m. This was an increase of 44% on 2010 figures, showing the rising popularity of these mediums.
The total broadcast and online revenue in 2011 was £1,882m (2010: £1,771m). ITV content, including that distributed online, is funded by advertising and sponsorship revenues as well as viewer competitions and voting.
- ITV Studios
ITV Studios is ITV’s production arm. It produces and sells programmes and formats in the UK and worldwide and has a growing portfolio of international production offices in the US, Germany, Australia, Sweden and France. In addition it operates an international distribution, home entertainment, publishing, merchandising and licensing business that distributes programmes and formats to broadcasters in 240 territories worldwide. ITV’s production revenue in 2011 was £612m (2010: £554m).
In 2010 ITV announced that it was embarking on a five-year transformation plan focussed on improving its core television broadcast and international content businesses, whilst growing revenue from multi-platform distribution through online and pay television - recognised as engines for growth both in the UK and internationally. ITV recognises that it operates in a highly evolving and competitive digital market in which advances in technology are changing the way people consume media. It is focussed on responding to the challenges of new technology, changing patterns of user behaviour and new market entrants, by ensuring it is in a position to take advantage of opportunities the digital environment offers. As a result ITV has invested heavily in technology-based projects across the business, notably in its online infrastructure in order to drive online viewing and revenues.
Of particular note -
- Online revenues rose 21% in 2011 at £34m and ITV remains committed to future investment to further build on this.
- The ITV Player is now available on more platforms including PS3, Android, iOS and Freesat which in 2011 drove 44% growth in long form video views across all platforms to 376 million (2010: 261 million). A key performance indicator as ITV seeks to monetise online traffic.
- ITV continually looks at ways it can develop closer engagement with its viewer in order to provide greater value to its advertisers. This is being achieved via 15.4 million Facebook fans across all of its pages (2010: 7.4 million) which is another indication of the power of the ITV brand.
- Mobile viewing has risen dramatically in 2011, and represented 9% of all video on demand viewing of ITV content in December 2011. This enables ITV to engage ever more closely with consumers. Following its launch in 2011, the ITV Player app had more than 3 million downloads.
This all evidences ITV’s commitment to investment in its online presence as a key feature of the transformation plan and ITV’s strategy for the future. The successful acquisition of the gTLD, .ITV, is seen as an important element of this process.
The .ITV registry will be a standard not community-based registry. The current intention for use of the gTLD is:
- To protect ITV’s intellectual property by securing the character string ITV in the new gTLD system
- To provide a platform for the delivery of secure digital material
- To support ITV’s ambitions to keep pace with internet technology developments in line with strategy and other leading media companies: investment in a new gTLD is investment in the internet real estate of the future
ITV has invested heavily in its brand and has registered trademarks in the UK and internationally as represented in the table below.
ITV has c. 100 current trademark registrations in a portfolio that was started in the mid-1990s and extends around the world. These registrations, which include national and international registrations exactly match or contain the character string ITV.
As a brand ITV is both recognised and trusted in the UK and it is expected that the gTLD will enable ITV to further protect popular programme brands, driving the viewers association of the programme with ITV as a channel and a production company.
One of ITV’s key strategies is build a strong international content business. For businesses and consumers outside of the UK (except for ex-pat consumers), the ʺITVʺ brand is relatively new and not well known. Part of our strategy to drive recognition. The strength of the ITV brand in terms of differentiating itself from other brands (and the ability for ITV to secure an effective monopoly over ʺITVʺ) is dependent upon how well known the ITV brand is by consumers.
The ITV registry will be judged a success if the character string is secured and protected. Enhancing ITV’s brand equity worldwide, security and innovation in terms of communications will also constitute key success factors for us. ITV is excited to be involved in the process.
18B. How do you expect that your proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others?
Although the ITV registry will be stringently controlled and used only by authorised ITV personnel, it is predicted that it will benefit the following stakeholders:
- External (ITV viewers and users of our online services): we hope they will recognise and trust the authenticity of an .ITV domain and the information it contains.
- Internal (ITV’s employees): a new gTLD will be perceived as reinforcing ITV’s brand and providing a more secure communication channel while also demonstrating that ITV is at the forefront of internet development.
(i) What is the goal of your proposed gTLD in terms of areas of speciality, service levels reputation?
ITV prides itself on the integrity of its brand and this will extend to its new gTLD, the goals for which will be to protect the character string, enhance ITV’s brand and reputation and in terms of service levels, to run the .ITV registry to the highest-levels of professionalism. ITV wants its registry to be a model of good practice.
(ii) What do you anticipate your proposed gTLD will add to the current space in terms of competition, differentiation or innovation?
Being one of the first brand owners – and certainly one of the first media organisations to apply - has made this means of signposting authenticity particularly attractive to us. We want our viewers and advertisers to place their trust in our registry.
(iii) What goals does your proposed gTLD have in terms of user experience?
ITV hopes that, wherever they may be located and whichever device they may be using, once viewers and users arrive at the new gTLD they know they are in a trusted and authentic destination where they will receive accurate information and where their details are protected.
(iv) Provide a complete description of the applicant’s intended registration policies in support of the goals above
ITV will be the operator of the .ITV registry. The ITV Domain Name Management Team will be responsible for the development, maintenance and enforcement of the .ITV Domain Management Policy. This policy defines the rules associated with eligibility and domain name allocation, sets out the license terms governing the use of a .ITV domain name and describes the dispute resolution policies for the .ITV gTLD. This policy is intended to be updated and revised regularly to reflect ITV’s commercial and strategic interests and, where appropriate, ICANN consensus policies.
Registration of a .ITV domain name will be undertaken in four steps: Eligibility Confirmation, Naming Convention Check, Acceptable Use Review, and finally Registration. All domains in the .ITV registry will remain the property of ITV.
Each applied for character string must conform to the .ITV rules of eligibility. Each .ITV name must:
- Be at least 1 characters and no more than 63 characters long
- Not contain a hyphen on the 3rd and 4th position (tagged domains)
- Contain only letters (a-z), numbers (0-9) and hyphens or a combination of these
- Start and end with an alphanumeric character, not a hyphen
- Not match any character strings reserved by ICANN
- Not match any protected country names or geographical terms
Internationalised domain names (IDN) will be supported in the .ITV registry at the second level.
.ITV names must be used solely for purposes that enhance ITV’s strategic or commercial interests. .ITV domains may not be used in a way which knowingly infringes any third party intellectual property rights or gives rise to moral or public order questions.
.ITV names may not be delegated or assigned to external organisations, institutions, or individuals.
All .ITV domains will carry accurate and up to date registration records.
The ITV Domain Name Management Team may revoke a .ITV domain name at any time in line with ITV’s corporate and strategic interests.
The ITV registry will be ICANN compliant: the registry will interface with the Trademark Clearinghouse, operate a Sunrise and IP Claims and all registrants must comply with the UDRP and the URS.
(v) Will your proposed gTLD impose any measures for protecting the privacy of confidential information of registrants or users?
The .ITV registry will be incorporated within the UK, so all data will be processed in conformity with the Data Protection Act 1998 and European Union’s Data Protection Directive together with any other applicable data protection requirements. ITV will comply with the Personal Data obligations of the ICANN Registry Agreement. As required, approved personnel will be registered as data handlers and trained to ensure compliance with ICANN’s requirements.
We will:
- Document policies and procedures including an escalation process
- Use appropriate levels of encryption and physical security
- Train key staff and ensuring responsibilities are understood and documented in rules of conduct
- Limit access to records only to those employees or service providers who need access for the performance of their job duties
- Test procedures
- Monitor best practice and ICANN’s mandated and recommended policies
- Audit the work of providers including the Escrow provider and checking data.
(vi) Describe whether and in what ways outreach and communications will help to achieve your projected benefits?
Guidelines will be produced and published internally within ITV providing clarity on how eligible ITV representatives can apply for a .ITV domain and defining acceptable use. As a standard registry closed to third parties, this should ensure that .ITV domains are used in accordance with ITV’s objectives by authorised ITV personnel. Appropriate communication might include creating a home page for the registry using simple and clear messaging for the benefit of internal users so that they understand our policy. We will also participate in the ICANN Registry Operators Constituency.
18C. What operating rules will you adopt to eliminate or minimize social costs (e.g., time or financial resource costs, as well as various types of consumer vulnerabilities)? What other steps will you take to minimize negative consequences/costs imposed upon consumers?
We believe we will minimize, and possibly eliminate, social costs and negative consequences on users and consumers by restricting requests for the registration of names within the .ITV registry to authorised personnel. All domains will be owned by ITV.
(i) How will multiple applications for a particular domain be resolved, for example, by auction or on a first come first served basis?
We do not anticipate receiving multiple applications for a particular domain as there will be no market for .ITV domains so obviating the need for any resolution.
(ii) Explain any cost benefits for registrants you intend to implement (e.g. advantageous pricing, introductory discounts, bulk registration discounts).
Domains in the .ITV registry are intended to support the business goals of ITV. Our registry is not being designed as a profit centre therefore the question of cost benefits does not arise. There will be no third party registrants. The only registrant will be ITV.
(iii) The Registry Agreement requires that registrars be offered the option to obtain initial domain name registrations for periods of one to ten years at the discretion of the registrar, but no greater than 10 years.
Additionally the Registry Agreement requires advance written notice of price increases. Do you intend to make contractual commitments to registrants regarding the magnitude of price escalation?
Domains in the .ITV registry will be registered only to ITV so there will be no revenue generation from the sale of domains. There are no plans to make commitments in regard to price because there will be no market for domains in the .ITV registry though we will comply with the provisions of Section 2.10 of the Registry Agreement. Domains in the .ITV registry will be allocated for variable time periods in line with policy set by the ITV Domain Name Management Team.
Before launching this gTLD, ITV will develop and publish its policies and guidelines, setting out full details of how the registry will implement its vision and purpose as set out in this answer. ITV may adapt its policies and proposed use of the gTLD, in a manner consistent with the purpose, to reflect changes in its business and the adoption of new gTLDs by the community.