.vivo New gTLD Application
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New gTLD Application Submitted to ICANN by: Telefonica Brasil S.A.
String: VIVO
Originally Posted: 13 June 2012
Application ID: 1-1849-63904
Applicant Information
- Full legal name
Telefonica Brasil S.A.
- Address of the principal place of business
Rua Martiniano de Carvalho, 851, Bela Vista
Sao Paulo SP 01321-001
BR
- Phone number
+55 11 7420 1223
- Fax number
+55 11 7420 2123
- If applicable, website or URL
http:⁄⁄www.telefonica.com.br
Primary Contact
6(a). Name
Mr. Winston Fuhriman
6(b). Title
Manager, Domain Services
6(c). Address
6(d). Phone Number
+1 208 389 5740
6(e). Fax Number
+1 208 389 5799
6(f). Email Address
Secondary Contact
7(a). Name
Ms. Dannielle Marjorie Vieira dos Santos Mattosinho
7(b). Title
Lawyer - Legal Counsel
7(c). Address
7(d). Phone Number
+55 11 7420 1223
7(e). Fax Number
+55 11 7420 2123
7(f). Email Address
Proof of Legal Establishment
8(a). Legal form of the Applicant
Joint stock company
8(b). State the specific national or other jursidiction that defines the type of entity identified in 8(a).
Brazil
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.
New_York_Stock_Exchange;VIV
9(b). If the applying entity is a subsidiary, provide the parent company.
Telefonica S.A., Spain
9(c). If the applying entity is a joint venture, list all joint venture partners.
N⁄A
Applicant Background
11(a). Name(s) and position(s) of all directors
Antonio Carlos Valente da Silva President of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer
Antonio Goncalves de Oliveira Member of the Board of Directors
Eduardo Navarro de Carvalho Member of the Board of Directors
Fernando Xavier Ferreira Member of the Board of Directors
Fernando Abril-Martorell Hernandez Member of the Board of Directors
Francisco Javier de Paz Mancho Member of the Board of Directors
Inaki Urdangarin Member of the Board of Directors
Jose Fernando de Almansa Moreno-Barreda Member of the Board of Directors
Jose Manuel Fernandez Norniella Member of the Board of Directors
Luciano Carvalho Ventura Member of the Board of Directors
Luis Javier Bastida Ibarguen Member of the Board of Directors
Luiz Fernando Furlan Member of the Board of Directors
Narcis Serra Serra Member of the Board of Directors
Paulo Cesar Pereira Teixeira Member of the Board of Directors
Roberto Oliveira de Lima Member of the Board of Directors
Santiago Fernandez Valbuena Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors
11(b). Name(s) and position(s) of all officers and partners
Antonio Carlos Valente da Silva Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer
Breno Rodrigo Pacheco de Oliveira General Secretary and Legal Officer
Cristiane Barretto Sales Chief Controllership Officer
Gilmar Roberto Pereira Camurra Chief Financial Officer and Investor Relations Officer
Paulo Cesar Pereira Teixeira General and Executive Officer
11(c). Name(s) and position(s) of all shareholders holding at least 15% of shares
SP Telecomunicacoes Participacoes Ltda Not Applicable
Telefonica Internacional S.A. Not Applicable
Telefonica S.A. Not Applicable
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.
VIVO
14(a). If an IDN, provide the A-label (beginning with "xn--").
14(b). 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.
14(c). If an IDN, provide the language of the label (in English).
14(c). If an IDN, provide the language of the label (as referenced by ISO-639-1).
14(d). If an IDN, provide the script of the label (in English).
14(d). If an IDN, provide the script of the label (as referenced by ISO 15924).
14(e). If an IDN, list all code points contained in the U-label according to Unicode form.
15(a). If an IDN, Attach IDN Tables for the proposed registry.
Attachments are not displayed on this form.
15(b). Describe the process used for development of the IDN tables submitted, including consultations and sources used.
15(c). List any variant strings 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.
To the Applicant’s best knowledge and belief, there are no operational or rendering problems concerning the applied-for gTLD string.
- (OPTIONAL) Provide a representation of the label according to the International Phonetic Alphabet (http://www.langsci.ucl.ac.uk/ipa/).
v’ivo
Mission/Purpose
18(a). Describe the mission/purpose of your proposed gTLD.
The Applicant, Telefonica Brasil S.A., is the largest private business conglomerate in operation in Brazil, and the largest provider of telecommunications services. Telefonica Brasil S.A. is a member of the Telefonica Group, which headquarters is located in Spain.
The Telefonica Group is one of the three largest telecommunications conglomerates in the world, by the criterion of customer numbers: more than 306 million accesses in the 25 countries where it operates. It directly employs over 286 thousand professionals.
According to the Applicant, the mission and purpose of the .VIVO gTLD are manifold, as will be further explained below:
first and foremost: improving the presence of the Applicant and its key brand (“VIVO”) online and improving the online relationship between the Applicant and its customers;
securing and protecting the VIVO brand as a gTLD;
reflecting the VIVO brand at the top level of the DNS’ hierarchy;
providing stakeholders of the Applicant with a recognizable and trusted identifier on the Internet. Such stakeholders include, but are not limited to:
its subsidiaries in various countries;
official dealers and retailers of VIVO’s products and services;
affiliate partners;
sponsors;
prospective and current customers (currently, Telefonica Brasil S.A. has more than 86 million customers); and
directors and officers of Telefonica Brasil S.A. and its subsidiaries, including close to 85,000 employees.
providing such stakeholders with a secure and safe Internet environment, under the control of the Applicant, in which they are able to obtain information from and communicate with the Applicant and where they are able to obtain genuine information provided by Telefonica Brasil S.A. and its approved stakeholders; and
providing a central point of access that is useful and secure where prospective and current customers might utilize services, such as recharge, bill pay, contracting, and phone purchase, etc., currently offered through http:⁄⁄www.vivo.com.br.
Telefonica Brasil S.A. holds various registered trademarks for VIVO. Telefonica Brasil S.A. also submits this application for the .VIVO gTLD because it wants to prevent third parties from securing the gTLD that is identical to Telefonica Brasil S.A.’s highly distinctive and reputable brand.
18(b). How do you expect that your proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others?
- VIVO is the Applicant’s distinctive and most recognized household brand. The goals of the applied-for gTLD are set forth in 18(a).
- From the Applicant’s perspective, .VIVO may bring a high degree of recognition and specialization to the currently existing name space. Where in most cases the specific connotation that has been initially given to gTLDs (or even ccTLDs) has disappeared, the .VIVO top-level domain is currently intended to be unambiguous as regards:
the identity of Telefonica Brasil S.A. as the Registry Operator;
the source of the content and services offered under the .VIVO gTLD;
the affiliation between the Registry Operator and the gTLD; and
in term, and at the discretion of Telefnica Brasil S.A., the affiliation between the Registry Operator and any third party that is authorized by Telefonica Brasil S.A. to register and⁄or use one or more domain name registrations in the .VIVO gTLD.
- As mentioned in18(a), key reasons why the Applicant is applying for .VIVO include, but are not limited to:
Improving the presence of the Applicant and the VIVO brand online and improving the online relationship between the Applicant and its customers;
Securing and protecting the VIVO brand as a generic top-level domain;
Reflecting the Applicant’s key brand VIVO at the top-level of the DNS’ hierarchy;
Providing stakeholders of the Applicant with a recognizable and trusted identifier on the Internet;
Providing safety and security for stakeholders; and
Providing a central point of access for users.
- The Applicant intends to implement the following policies and procedures with respect to the registration of domain names in the .VIVO top-level domain:
- Reservation and registration of domain names in the name of Telefonica BrasilS.A.. It is likely that this will be the scenario that Telefonica Brasil S.A. will put in place during the first months or even years of operation of the .VIVO gTLD. These names may include, but are not limited to:
descriptive names, referring to the actual day-to-day business activities of the Applicant or its Affiliates;
descriptive names, referring to the internal departments of the Applicant;
descriptive names, referring to the subsidiaries, affiliates and⁄or joint ventures of the Applicant; and
potentially also names relating to other stakeholders of Telefonica BrasilS.A., to be determined by Telefonica Brasil S.A. following ICANN’s award and delegation of he .VIVO gTLD to Telefonica Brasil S.A.
- Launch of the TLD. If and when implemented by the Registry Operator, this is likely going to be a gradual process, whereby selected third parties that meet certain criteria, which Telefonica Brasil S.A. will be entitled to set at its own discretion, may register domain names in the .VIVO gTLD. These processes may include the following:
- Sunrise: allow physical persons, organizations and entities that meet the eligibility requirements determined by Telefonica Brasil S.A. at that point in time to choose and, where allowed by Telefonica BrasilS.A., to register the domain names that are identical to their trademarks.
- Land rush and general availability: other available domain names may be registered by physical persons, organizations and entities that meet the eligibility requirements in force at that point in time to choose the domain names in accordance with the applicable terms and conditions.
- Depending on the terms and conditions in force at the time of launch of the gTLD, these domain names may or may not be registered in the name of the applicant for the domain name or in the name of the Registry Operator of the gTLD (i.e., Telefonica Brasil S.A.). In any case, Telefonica Brasil S.A. reserves the right to impose additional and other restrictions from time to time at its sole discretion.
- Given the fact that the Applicant is a company that is established in Brazil, it is subject to national privacy and data protection rules and practices. In particular, given the fact that the Brazilian data protection authorities have issued strict guidelines, Telefonica Brasil S.A. will at all times be obliged to carefully consider and, where applicable, implement these policies, and this prior to and during the operation of the .VIVO gTLD.
- At this stage, Telefonica Brasil S.A. has not developed concrete and tangible plans in order to move its online activities from vivo.com.br and many other active domain names used by Telefonica Brasil S.A. and its subsidiaries, affiliates and joint ventures. However, the Applicant has different ways to make existing and future customers, visitors and stakeholders aware of the (gradual) development of a new online environment under the .VIVO TLD, including but not limited to:
Direct and indirect marketing and branding initiatives;
Brochures and advertisements in newspapers, magazines, etc.;
Internet advertising campaigns, including paid search, pay-per-click advertising, etc.;
Having Internet traffic to the vivo.com.br or other domain names resolving into domain names registered in the .VIVO gTLD, which builds awareness with Internet users that the .VIVO gTLD exists; and
Email marketing campaigns.
18(c). What operating rules will you adopt to eliminate or minimize social costs?
- In line with Telefonica BrasilS.A.’s mission and purpose for the .VIVO gTLD, it is important for Telefonica Brasil S.A. to safeguard and protect its VIVO brand at the top level of the DNS’ hierarchy. Such protection does not only extend to the actual registration, delegation and use of the gTLD, but also to the domain names that are registered therein, and how these domain names are used.
Considering the fact that the actual award and delegation of the .VIVO gTLD to Telefonica Brasil S.A. is subject to the successful evaluation of the application, the Applicant has not yet defined in detail:
the types of domain names that will be registered;
who will be entitled to select which domain names will be registered;
who will be entitled to register such domain names;
who will be entitled to use such domain names; and
which types of use will be allowed or recommended.
As the Applicant believes that the development and implementation of one or more business cases could likely take a couple of months or even years, the Applicant has only focused on a number of high-level plans in relation to the operation of the .VIVO gTLD.
By all means, it is in Telefonica Brasil S⁄A’s vested interest to, on the one hand, make the most of this initiative, promote its own business interests, and mitigate risks for its brand and brand reputation, whilst also reducing the (social) costs for others.
In this context, the Applicant will devise policies that encompass and comprise the following features:
At least during the initial months or even years following the delegation of the .VIVO gTLD to Telefonica Brasil S.A., this extension is likely going to be a so-called “single registrant TLD” as contemplated by ICANN in Article 4.5 of the template Registry Operator Agreement (“Transition of Registry upon Termination of Agreement”). For the avoidance of doubt, a “single registrant TLD” is a TLD where “(i) all domain name registrations in the TLD are registered to, and maintained by, Registry Operator for its own exclusive use, and (ii) Registry Operator does not sell, distribute or transfer control or use of any registrations in the TLD to any third party that is not an Affiliate of Registry Operator.”
Therefore, parties who are not Telefonica Brasil S.A. or – insofar and to the extent Telefonica Brasil S.A. deems appropriate – an Affiliate will not be entitled to register domain names in the .VIVO gTLD.
Telefnica Brasil S.A. believes this to be in line with its vision and mission statement set forth in 18(a).
Consequently, it is unlikely that there will be multiple applications for a particular domain name.There will also likely be no (social) costs for non-eligible (third) parties, given the fact that they will be unable to register domain names in the .VIVO gTLD in the first place.
However, even if only Telefonica Brasil S.A. (and, as the case may be, Telefonica Brasil S.A.’s Affiliates) will be entitled to register domain names, this does not exclude the hypothesis that disputes may arise with one or more third parties as regards domain names that are registered in the .VIVO gTLD.
In order to avoid these risks, Telefonica Brasil S.A. intends to implement the following policies and processes:
First, the domain names to be registered by Telefonica Brasil S.A. and, as the case may be, its Affiliates, will likely relate to the following:
registered trademarks of Telefonica BrasilS.A.;
names of the Affiliates of Telefonica Brasil S.A.; and
names of departments within Telefonica Brasil S.A. and its Affiliates.
Furthermore, Telefonica Brasil S.A. envisages registering a fair number of generic words that are directly or indirectly related to the day-to-day business activities and operations of Telefonica Brasil S.A. and its Affiliates.
Prior to effectively registering such domain names in the .VIVO gTLD, Telefonica Brasil S.A. will require its legal and intellectual property department to review the list of these domain names on a regular basis in order to satisfy itself that they will not infringe the rights of third parties.
In any case, Telefonica Brasil S.A. will claim to have a legitimate interest in these domain names, as they are merely descriptive of the activities, products or services of Telefonica Brasil S.A. and⁄or its Affiliates. So even if one or more of these domain names would be protected by a registered trademark, held by a third party, it is likely that a claim under the Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy or Uniform Rapid Suspension policy will fail.
As regards the names referred to in Specification 5 to the template Registry Operator Agreement, Telefonica Brasil S.A. will follow the processes and procedures established by ICANN and the Governmental Advisory Committee.
If Telefonica Brasil S.A. would determine, at its sole discretion, that it will gradually allow certain categories of stakeholders to register domain names in the .VIVO gTLD in their own name, Telefonica Brasil S.A. will devise policies to that effect.
However, Telefonica Brasil S.A. will at all times be entitled to restrict, limit or expand:
the category or categories of stakeholders who will be entitled to register one or more domain names in the .VIVO gTLD, including their criteria for qualification;
the choice of domain name(s) registered in the .VIVO gTLD by and per such eligible stakeholder (category);
the use made by a stakeholder of a domain name registered in the .VIVO gTLD; and
the transfer of domain names registered in .VIVO.
Telefonica Brasil S.A. shall reserve the right to subject the registration or use of a domain name to internal approval processes and procedures, at each and every step of the domain name life cycle.
Given the fact that Telefonica Brasil S.A. may release such available domain names post launch in a highly controlled manner, this also reduces the likelihood that two or more applicants qualify for the registration of the same domain name in the .VIVO top-level domain;
As a method of last resort, and subject to the actual domain name registration policy adopted by the Registry Operator and in force at the time of registration, domain names will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
In any event, Telefonica Brasil S.A. reserves the right to change or restrict any policies, procedures and practices at any point in time if it is of the opinion that there would be a risk that the reputation of the VIVO brand would be damaged.
- The Applicant intends to make the .VIVO top-level domain available to qualifying domain name registrants at no cost to them. If the Applicant ⁄ Registry Operator would be required to charge a fee for the registration of domain names under the .VIVO gTLD, the fee will be set at a cost-recovery or arm’s length basis, to be determined at that time by the Registry.
- If Telefonica Brasil S.A. will be required to or would decide to increase the fees for the registration of domain names, such increases will keep pace with the cost-recovery or arm’s length character referred to above.