.AIG New gTLD Application
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New gTLD Application Submitted to ICANN by: American International Group, Inc.
String: AIG
Originally Posted: 13 June 2012
Application ID: 1-1700-54316
Applicant Information
- Full legal name
American International Group, Inc.
- Address of the principal place of business
80 Pine Street
30th Floor
New York New York 10005
US
- Phone number
+1 212 770 7000
- Fax number
+1 212 770 9987
- If applicable, website or URL
http:⁄⁄www.aig.com
Primary Contact
6(a). Name
Joshua Bourne
6(b). Title
Managing Partner
6(c). Address
6(d). Phone Number
+1 202 223 9252
6(e). Fax Number
6(f). Email Address
Secondary Contact
7(a). Name
Mark Clowes
7(b). Title
Director, Global Branding
7(c). Address
7(d). Phone Number
+1 212 770 3148
7(e). Fax Number
+1 212 770 9988
7(f). Email Address
Proof of Legal Establishment
8(a). Legal form of the Applicant
Corporation
8(b). State the specific national or other jursidiction that defines the type of entity identified in 8(a).
United States of America, Incorporation in Delaware
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;AIG
9(b). If the applying entity is a subsidiary, provide the parent company.
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
Arthur Caulfield Martinez Director
Christopher Shawn Lynch Director
Douglas Mark Steenland Director
George Leroy Miles, Jr. Director
Henry Stephen Miller Director
John Henry Fitzpatrick Director
Morris Wolf Offit Director
Robert Herman Benmosche Director
Robert Stevens Miller Chairman
Ronald Allen Rittenmeyer Director
Suzanne Michael Nora Johnson Director
Wyllie Don Cornwell Director
11(b). Name(s) and position(s) of all officers and partners
Brian T. Schreiber Executive Vice President and Treasurer
Charles S. Shamieh Senior Vice President and Chief Corporate Actuary
David L. Herzog Executive Vice President
Jay Steven Wintrob Executive Vice President
Jeffrey J. Hurd Senior Vice President
Michael Richard Cowan Senior Vice President
Peter D. Hancock Executive Vice President
Robert Herman Benmosche President and Chief Executive Officer
Sid Sankaran Executive Vice President and Chief Risk Officer
Thomas A. Russo Executive Vice President
William N. Dooley Executive Vice President
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.
AIG
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.
American International Group, Inc. (“AIG”) foresees no known rendering issues in connection with the proposed .AIG gTLD for which it is applying. This answer is based upon consultation with AIG’s selected back-end registry services provider, Neustar, Inc. (“Neustar”), which has successfully launched a number of new gTLDs over the last decade. In reaching this determination, Neustar analyzed the following data:
-ICANN’s Security Stability Advisory Committee (SSAC) entitled Alternative TLD Name Systems and Roots: Conflict, Control and Consequences (SAC009);
-IAB - RFC3696 “Application Techniques for Checking and Transformation of Names”
-Known software issues which Neustar has encountered during the last decade launching new gTLDs;
-Character type and length;
-ICANN supplemental notes to Question 16; and
-ICANN’s presentation during its Costa Rica regional meeting on TLD Universal Acceptance.
- (OPTIONAL) Provide a representation of the label according to the International Phonetic Alphabet (http://www.langsci.ucl.ac.uk/ipa/).
Mission/Purpose
18(a). Describe the mission/purpose of your proposed gTLD.
18.1 Mission and Purpose of .AIG
American International Group, Inc. (“AIG”) is a leading international insurance and financial organization with approximately 63,000 employees serving customers in more than 130 countries. AIG content is accessible in the .COM gTLD, as well as a multitude of ccTLDs.
AIG companies serve commercial, institutional, and individual customers through one of the most extensive worldwide property casualty networks of any insurer. In addition, AIG companies are leading providers of life insurance and retirement services in the United States. The preservation of this brand is of paramount importance to AIG in all aspects of its operations, including and especially on the Internet. Operating the brand as a gTLD will likely be an important part of its digital strategy in the future.
Through a unified corporate approach, AIG intends to submit three gTLD applications for the .AIG, .CHARTIS, and .TRAVELGUARD strings.
AIG will be analyzing and evaluating other .BRAND gTLD applications as well as general market adoption to determine short- and long-term potential best-in-class use case options to most effectively serve and enhance AIG’s online strategy as a leading international insurance and financial organization. AIG currently has operations in the following segments: Chartis, Inc.; SunAmerica Financial Group; International Lease Finance Corporation; and United Guaranty Corporation.
The intended future mission and purpose of the .AIG gTLD is to serve as a trusted, hierarchical, and intuitive namespace provided by AIG and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates, for AIG customers and interested parties.
Although ICANN has not specifically recognized a .BRAND gTLD specification in the current version of the Applicant Guidebook, it is widely anticipated within the brand-owner community that this will become a specialty subset of gTLDs. The .AIG gTLD is intended to be one of those .BRAND gTLDs, with the goal of protecting AIG’s online presence and identity; expanding its marketing and promotion efforts; providing a secure channel for online products and services; and offering a platform through which to consolidate many of the intellectual property activities of AIG.
AIG intends to initially limit registration and use of domain names within the .AIG gTLD to AIG and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates. This initial limited use will allow AIG to establish its operations and achieve full sustainability. This limited distribution, coupled with the other requirements set forth in Specification 9 of the template Registry Agreement, is intended to exempt AIG from its annual Code of Conduct Compliance requirements.
After Stage 3 (see below), AIG will evaluate whether opportunities exist to carry out the business strategy for the .AIG gTLD through expansion that continues the sustainable operations of the registry through fee-based registrations to parties other than AIG and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates.
AIG currently plans a four-stage rollout for .AIG:
- Stage 1
The initial stage of implementation of the gTLD will involve AIG registering a limited number of .AIG second-level domain names.
This initial use will provide AIG’s IT and security personnel the time to run a number of tests to ensure seamless and secure access using the .AIG gTLD domain names, interoperability with various software and Web-based applications, and unbroken and secure use of all names. This initial allocation will also allow the appropriate AIG staff to coordinate with the internal and external staff responsible for the delegation and setup phases of the .AIG gTLD to ensure a proper transition from delegation to full operation.
- Stage 2
Once all testing has been successfully completed, AIG will begin allocating domain names in .AIG for more widespread internal corporate use. During this same period of time, AIG will begin evaluating strategies to potentially migrate traffic away from its current patchwork network of second-level domain names, which are registered in a variety of TLDs, to AIG’s new gTLDs, .AIG, .CHARTIS, and .TRAVELGUARD.
It is in Stage 2 that AIG will evaluate expanding the operations of the gTLD to permit registration by other registrants such as licensees or other strategic partners. Should an assessment of its expansion strategy lead to a decision to extend registration rights to other parties, this expansion is currently planned to take place during Stage 3. However, any expansion would be conditioned upon a review of Specification 9 (Registry Code of Conduct) set forth in the template Registry Agreement to ensure compliance with AIG’s business model.
- Stage 3
Depending upon the analysis of the evaluations undertaken in Stage 2, AIG may begin to implement the migration of Internet traffic away from the TLDs in which AIG’s domain names are currently registered, and toward the .AIG, .CHARTIS, and .TRAVELGUARD gTLDs. It is in this stage that AIG also may implement its decision to extend registration rights to licensees or strategic partners, depending upon compliance with Specification 9 as noted above. The dates of such expansion are subject to change depending upon business, strategic, and industry factors at the time.
After consideration of the following factors: analysis of AIG’s existing domain name portfolio; internal analysis of marketing initiatives; and the fact that AIG will have full control over the number of registrations in the .AIG gTLD namespace, AIG is confident that the number of domain name registrations will be less than 10,000 in the first five years of operation.
- Stage 4
Based on its experience with any expansion implemented in Stage 3, AIG will assess whether its business plan and expansion strategy should be augmented by extending registration rights to a broader class of registrants, including potential employees and customers of AIG. It is anticipated by AIG that changes to the domain name industry, and particularly the impact of .BRAND gTLDs, will take at least five years to be realized and assessed. Any decision to expand the gTLDs beyond corporate, qualified subsidiary and affiliate, and licensee and partner use will take into account this experience as well as the technical analysis of potential expansion.
The potential use of the .AIG gTLD by these or other business segments will also be driven by AIG’s future business strategies as identified in its annual report and investor filings, see http:⁄⁄www.aigcorporate.com⁄investors⁄annualreports_proxy.html.
Utilizing current projections based upon AIG’s existing businesses, future business plans, current domain name portfolio, and other strategic factors, AIG estimates second-level domain name registrations to be in line with the projections set forth in the financial template provided in the answer to Question 46 of this application.
18(b). How do you expect that your proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others?
18.2 How do you expect that your proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others?
AIG believes that a proposed .AIG gTLD has the potential to offer the following benefits to Internet users and consumers:
Establish a trusted source of information and an online marketplace for the millions of consumers who purchase insurance and financial products through AIG’s online sites, for investors and third parties seeking information, and for the general Internet user population;
Provide AIG and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates with short and memorable Internet addresses; provide increased navigation to products, services, advertising campaigns, public interest content, public awareness initiatives, etc.;
Through the adoption of new gTLDs by the wider Internet user community, consumers may benefit from a lower incidence of phishing and malware often associated with mistypes of domain names in the .COM space that are owned by cybersquatters, since consumers will be navigating to domain names in the .AIG gTLD;
Minimize the cost and need for defensive registrations because domain names will only be allocated within the .AIG gTLD to AIG and qualified subsidiaries and affiliates; and
Develop a potential platform for the secure access to, and purchase and distribution of, AIG products and information to consumers, in order to minimize the potential for counterfeit or infringing goods and services.
Currently, AIG operates a number of corporate websites using a combination of second-level and top-level domain names. A representative sampling of AIG websites that incorporate geographical identifiers into the domain name include:
AIG.de
AIG.am
AIG.ac
AIG.cg
AIG.hm
AIG.lv
AIG.ch
AIG.co.je
AIG.com.lv
AIG.com.do
AIGEurope.de
AIGSlovakia.com
AIG believes that a .AIG gTLD has the potential to provide an online single-source identifying function for its global customers. This is in contrast to the present approach AIG has used as it expands into different markets around the world, which consists of registering the domain names that are available, rather than those that may be the most intuitive.
18.2.1 What is the goal of your proposed gTLD in terms of areas of specialty, service levels, or reputation?
The primary mission and purpose of the .AIG gTLD is to provide a trusted, hierarchical, and intuitive online marketplace to deliver AIG insurance and financial products, as well as information about the company’s businesses and focus, and other goods and services. As AIG continues to expand, the company will continue to pursue and develop opportunities to market and distribute its online content and products to consumers, in the U.S. and internationally, and on various platforms, including the Internet and mobile devices. Given that customers increasingly request access to AIG products and information through a variety of channels, which include domain names, AIG believes that a .AIG gTLD has the potential to provide an innovative, virtual avenue to AIG’s companies and products that will deepen and broaden its relationship with consumers and the general Internet population.
Most importantly, AIG will be able to provide access to its products and online content in a namespace devoid of piracy, cybersquatting, and other malicious activities. Providing consumers with a trusted experience is paramount to AIG, and a .AIG gTLD will be used to further that goal.
While insurance and financial companies such as AIG must constantly fight to protect their valuable intellectual property from piracy on the Internet, a .AIG gTLD potentially offers consumers a safe and intuitive means of accessing authorized content from AIG and its affiliates.
18.2.2 What do you anticipate your proposed gTLD will add to the current space, in terms of competition, differentiation, or innovation?
As a branded gTLD, the primary driving factors of the .AIG gTLD are differentiation and innovation. The success of the gTLD will be measured not by the number of domain names registered, but rather by the level of consumer recognition and trust that is placed in the .AIG gTLD. Using this benchmark, AIG will strive to build consumer recognition and trust through usage of the .AIG gTLD that rise to the level found in the .EDU and .GOV gTLDs.
As noted above, AIG is a leading international insurance and financial organization that leverages numerous distribution channels and emerging technologies to deliver its online content and insurance and financial products to customers internationally. The .AIG gTLD has the potential to serve as a cornerstone of this online strategy.
18.2.3 What goals does your proposed gTLD have in terms of user experience?
AIG believes that the .AIG gTLD will provide a single, trusted ecosystem experience for the millions of consumers worldwide who purchase the company’s products, as well as those who seek information about AIG, including investors and members of the press. Consumers will know that domains and content on .AIG are owned and controlled by AIG and are thus more likely to be protected from infringing, pirated, or harmful content.
The initial use of the .AIG gTLD will involve a limited number of second-level domain names. This initial use will provide AIG the ability to ensure seamless and secure access to the AIG websites and interoperability with various software and Web-⁄mobile-based applications. Once appropriate security and stability issues have been satisfactorily addressed, AIG will likely begin allocating domain names for internal corporate use and may redirect new .AIG domain names to pre-existing content. This phased rollout will likely take place over a multi-year period, subject to change depending upon a range of external factors.
At the same time, AIG will evaluate potential strategies to migrate traffic away from the current network of second-level domains registered in various TLDs, to the .AIG, .CHARTIS, and .TRAVELGUARD gTLDs, which offer the potential to provide customers with trusted online sources for AIG products and services.
After consideration of the following factors: analysis of AIG’s existing domain name portfolio; internal analysis of marketing initiatives; and the fact that AIG will have full control over the number of registrations in the .AIG gTLD namespace, AIG reasonably assumes that the number of domain name registrations will be less than 10,000 in the first five years of operation.
18.2.4 Provide a complete description of the applicant’s intended registration policies in support of the goals listed above.
AIG currently intends for the .AIG gTLD to be used exclusively by AIG and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates. Because of this condition, and because the AIG mark is a valuable brand, the protection of which is paramount to the company, AIG intends to address registration and use requirements in its qualified subsidiary and affiliate agreements, rather than in a domain name registration agreement.
Notwithstanding this, AIG will incorporate all required ICANN consensus policies and other legal⁄policy requirements imposed on new gTLD applicants into the terms and conditions of the domain name registration agreement that each qualified subsidiary⁄affiliate will execute.
18.2.5 Will your proposed gTLD impose any measures for protecting the privacy or confidential information of registrants or users? If so, please describe any such measures.
As a global insurance and financial organization, AIG respects the privacy of its customers and other consumers. The company employs a variety of physical, electronic, contractual, and managerial safeguards to protect personal and confidential information while serving its customers and on its websites. AIG will take similar precautions to protect registrant and user data associated with the .AIG gTLD. Furthermore, given that every domain name will be registered to AIG or a qualified subsidiary⁄affiliate, AIG has a vested interest in ensuring that accurate and current registrant information is readily available in connection with each .AIG domain name.
AIG will ensure that the operation of the .AIG gTLD will be consistent with AIG’s Privacy Statement, available on its website at http:⁄⁄www.aigcorporate.com⁄termsofuse⁄privacy.html.
In addition, AIG intends to incorporate contractual language in its Registry-Registrar Agreement (RRA) modeled after language that has been included in the template Registry Agreement and that has been successfully utilized by existing ICANN gTLD registry operators.
The template Registry Agreement states, “Registry Operator shall (i) notify each ICANN-accredited registrar that is a party to the registry-registrar agreement for the TLD of the purposes for which data about any identified or identifiable natural person (“Personal Data”) submitted to Registry Operator by such registrar is collected and used under this Agreement or otherwise and the intended recipients (or categories of recipients) of such Personal Data, and (ii) require such registrar to obtain the consent of each registrant in the TLD for such collection and use of Personal Data. Registry Operator shall take reasonable steps to protect Personal Data collected from such registrar from loss, misuse, unauthorized disclosure, alteration or destruction. Registry Operator shall not use or authorize the use of Personal Data in a way that is incompatible with the notice provided to registrars.”
18.2.6 Describe whether and in what ways outreach and communications will help to achieve your projected benefits.
AIG sees the potential for the .AIG gTLD to play a large role in the company’s future online strategy. While the extent of likely benefits is currently uncertain due to questions of consumer recognition, the adoption of new gTLDs, and the response from search engines in the marketplace, all of which will influence the communication and usage strategies for the gTLD, AIG anticipates a phased-in approach to using and promoting the .AIG gTLD.
As a first step, AIG plans to start using .AIG domains initially as redirects to existing .COM domains. Subsequently, AIG expects to initiate a targeted rollout using select gTLD domains as primary addresses and, after careful analysis and study of this rollout, AIG may engage in a broader initiative, should the results be satisfactory and in accordance with the company’s overall strategic goals. The actual usage of .AIG domain names will dictate what public communications and consumer outreach is conducted to encourage navigation to the .AIG gTLD, including advertising, media outreach, email campaigns, etc.
18(c). What operating rules will you adopt to eliminate or minimize social costs?
18.3.1 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)?
AIG’s proposed operating rules to limit registration to AIG and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates will provide a trusted online environment for consumers to access AIG’s online content, and by default will minimize social costs. This verified ecosystem provides consumers with a single trusted source for AIG-branded products and information with a substantially lower risk of fraud and⁄or scams. AIG does not anticipate consumer vulnerabilities. In addition, there is no need for other trademark and brand owners to defensively register second-level domains in the gTLD. In fact, AIG’s expectation is that the usage of the .AIG gTLD will eliminate some of the vulnerabilities that AIG customers face in the wider Internet today.
18.3.2 What other steps will you take to minimize negative consequences⁄costs imposed upon consumers?
AIG believes that the proposed operation of the .AIG gTLD as set forth in this application has no known negative consequences or cost implications to consumers. On the contrary, the proposed operation of this registry will likely lead to direct benefits to consumers.
18.3.3 How will multiple applications for a particular domain name be resolved, for example, by auction or on a first-come⁄first-serve basis?
AIG does not envision multiple applicants for the same domain name, as domain names will be initially allocated only to AIG and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates in accordance with AIG’s business strategy.
18.3.4 Explain any cost benefits for registrants you intend to implement (e.g., advantageous pricing, introductory discounts, bulk registration discounts).
AIG does not envision any advantageous pricing, introductory discounts, or bulk registration discounts because these marketing⁄commercial initiatives are inconsistent with the mission and purpose of the .AIG gTLD as a trusted online source identifier. Moreover, it is the current intention of AIG to provide domain name registrations to itself and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates at no cost, though the company reserves the right to reevaluate this decision and may choose to impose a nominal fee in the future. Any potential registrant fees imposed upon licensees and⁄or strategic partners will be made in the future if this class of registrants is permitted to register domain names in the .AIG gTLD.
18.3.5 Note that 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 ten 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? If so, please describe your plans.
AIG is committed to providing the domain name registration periods set forth in the Registry Agreement. However, as noted above, as a branded gTLD, the registration and use of a domain name by a third party is conditioned upon a separate qualified subsidiary or affiliate relationship with AIG. Therefore, providing contractual commitments in a domain name registrant agreement regarding the magnitude of price escalations does not seem relevant or appropriate. Additionally, as noted above, the current business model envisions AIG providing domain name registrations to itself and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates at no cost.
AIG acknowledges that the current template Registry Agreement requires that the Registry Operator “shall offer registrars the option to obtain registration periods for one to ten years at the discretion of the registrar.” However, AIG and its qualified subsidiaries and affiliates, as the sole registrants within the .AIG gTLD, will only be registering domain names on an annual basis. This is done to better account for costs on an annual basis as well as to provide for more concise financial statements as provided in the answer to Question 46 of this application, i.e., no multi-year registration or deferred revenue.