.fidelity New gTLD Application
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New gTLD Application Submitted to ICANN by: Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC
String: fidelity
Originally Posted: 13 June 2012
Application ID: 1-1845-19586
Applicant Information
- Full legal name
Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC
- Address of the principal place of business
82 Devonshire Street
Boston MA 02109
US
- Phone number
+1 617 563 7000
- Fax number
+1 617 692 1699
- If applicable, website or URL
https:⁄⁄www.fidelity.com⁄
Primary Contact
6(a). Name
Tanya Sharko Courcey
6(b). Title
Director Product Management
6(c). Address
6(d). Phone Number
+1 617 563 2628
6(e). Fax Number
6(f). Email Address
Secondary Contact
7(a). Name
Mr. Mark John Laffey
7(b). Title
Senior Legal Counsel
7(c). Address
7(d). Phone Number
+1 617 563 7755
7(e). Fax Number
7(f). Email Address
Proof of Legal Establishment
8(a). Legal form of the Applicant
Limited Liability Company
8(b). State the specific national or other jursidiction that defines the type of entity identified in 8(a).
Delaware Limited Liability Company Act (6 Del. C. Sec.18-101, et seq.)
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.
FMR LLC
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
James C. Burton Director, President & Chief Executive Officer
Jeffrey Lagarce Director
Kathleen Murphy Director
Michael Durbin Director
11(b). Name(s) and position(s) of all officers and partners
Charles M. Morgan Assistant Treasurer
David A. Forman Secretary & Chief Legal Officer
Donald St. Peter Vice President, Real Estate
James C. Burton Director, President & Chief Executive Officer
James L. Smith Senior Vice President, Real Estate
Norman L. Ashkenas Chief Compliance Officer
Peter D. Stahl Assistant Secretary
Richard Lyons Chief Financial Officer & Senior Vice President
Susan Sturdy Assistant Secretary
Tami R. Rash Treasurer
11(c). Name(s) and position(s) of all shareholders holding at least 15% of shares
Fidelity Global Brokerage Group, Inc. 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.
fidelity
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.
The .fidelity string and A-Label were developed in line with and checked against the eligibility, stability and policy criteria as stated in the ICANN Applicant Guidebook - version 2012-01-11. The results of those checks are as follows:
- The string has less than 63 characters;
- The string in ASCII is composed of three or more visually distinct characters;
- The ASCII label consists entirely of letters;
- The string is not a reserved name as shown in section 2.2.1.2.1 - Reserved Names of the ICANN Applicant Guidebook - version 2012-01-11; and
- .fidelity is not identical or similar to any of the top 10 invalid TLD’s responsible for the majority of DNS pollution, as referenced in the Security and Stability Advisory Committee (SSAC)’s report on this topic at http:⁄⁄www.icann.org⁄en⁄committees⁄security⁄sac045.pdf. It is likely that the .fidelity has not already been queried with meaningful frequency at the root. Therefore, it is unlikely that .fidelity will inherit significant invalid query traffic.
Due to the positive results of these checks, Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC does not believe that the .fidelity gTLD will be subject to any operational or rendering problems.
- (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.
THE MISSION AND PURPOSE OF THE NEW RESTRICTED .FIDELITY GTLD IS TO BENEFIT INTERNET USERS BY ENSURING INCREASED TRUST AND CONFIDENCE THROUGH THE ELIMINATION OF USER CONFUSION AND ASSURANCE OF BRAND AUTHENTICITY. The new .fidelity gTLD will operate as a restricted registry, in which Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC (Fidelity) can create and control domain spaces that promote its brand identity and authenticity. In this regard, the .fidelity gTLD will be used by Fidelity, its affiliates and partners to provide authoritative information, services and resources regarding its financial and investment management products and services to consumers in a way that promotes trust, confidence and reliability. Second and third level domains can then be utilised for specific pages for Fidelity’s financial products and services, as well as for education and marketing purposes, with internet users assured of brand authenticity. Fidelity is a subsidiary of FMR LLC, the parent company of the affiliated group of businesses collectively known as “Fidelity Investments”. Fidelity Investments is one of the world’s largest providers of financial products and services including investment management, retirement planning, portfolio guidance, securities brokerage, and benefits outsourcing. Fidelity Investments is a leader in the US in the retirement, mutual funds and Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) fields. Founded in 1946, Fidelity Investments provides financial products and services to more than 20 million individuals and institutions, as well as through 5,000 financial intermediary firms. As of February 29, 2012, Fidelity Investments had assets under administration of USD 3.6 trillion, including managed assets of USD 1.6 trillion. Fidelity Investments employs over 39,000 people and services retail customers through 168 Investor Centers across the US. Fidelity Investments managed more than 67 million customer accounts and its websites handled an average of more than 3.1 million visits per day during the fourth quarter of 2011. In this regard, consumer trust and continuous innovation are paramount considerations in all its activities. The .fidelity gTLD will provide a secure and reliable location where current and potential customers and other internet users can interact with Fidelity and learn about financial topics, industry trends and Fidelity’s range of financial products and services. Since the inception of the current domain name system, business activities conducted on the internet are constantly changing and evolving with increased complexity. The volume of commercial transactions over the internet is constantly growing and bringing benefits of simplicity and lowered transaction costs to businesses and consumers. However, at the same time, criminal activities over the internet including data breach, hacking and phishing activities have also become more sophisticated resulting in loss of consumer confidence beyond mere monetary harm. The .fidelity gTLD will facilitate greater trust and assurance from internet users connecting with Fidelity online, while still allowing convenient and efficient interaction. Fidelity’s mission and purpose of the gTLD share ICANN’s initiatives to promote public interest. Fidelity is committed to contribute towards achieving such initiatives in line with ICANN’s Affirmation of Commitments, which includes: - consumer trust: the .fidelity gTLD will be operated in a centralized manner with a restrictive registration policy. Registration of domain names will only be available to Fidelity, its affiliates and partners, at this stage, which will provide added consumer trust that .fidelity domain names are trustworthy. As domain names are subject to registration standards, policies and procedures under Fidelity’s control, this eliminates the possibility of malicious conduct within the .fidelity gTLD; competition: the .fidelity gTLD is not intended to instigate competition and consumer choice at the level of registration of domain names among prospective registrants. Instead it is anticipated to contribute to ICANN’s initiatives to promote public interest through its operation being focused on promoting consumer trust. Increased trust in the .fidelity gTLD will drive existing and new top level domain (TLD) registry operators to make improvements in mechanisms to improve consumer trust of their TLDs; and consumer choice: the .fidelity gTLD will enable user-driven improvements and innovations assisting Fidelity’s marketing efforts through its ability to create new second and third level domain names on demand. These names will provide the consumers with more choices for interacting with Fidelity. As Fidelity has effective control over the registration and use of domain names under the .fidelity gTLD, this will also contribute towards general service innovations on the internet. Given the restricted nature of the .fidelity gTLD, the projected number of registrations is likely to be limited, with about 5 to 100 domain names to be registered in the first three years. The number of registrations is likely to increase as Fidelity implements innovative new financial and investment products, services and marketing campaigns. As the new .fidelity gTLD expands, Fidelity will continue to comply with all operational, technical and policy requirements, and will maintain consumer trust and the stability of the internet. Fidelity will keep ICANN reasonably informed of any material developments relating to the .fidelity gTLD including compliance with the continued operations instrument obligations as set out in Specification 8 of the Registry Agreement. Fidelity intends to create relevant domain names including some corresponding to its financial products and services, its business unit or affiliated entity names, or geographic names at the second or third level. In accordance with registration policy and the proposed measures for protection of geographic names and two-character country code labels as outlined in response to Question 22, Fidelity may use geographic names to localise its websites in countries in which it, an affiliate or partner operates. The use of geographic names is intended to: connect internet users with relevant information as applicable to the territory; and comply with required rules and regulations in the national territory. Fidelity is a well-recognized global brand and FMR LLC, the ultimate parent company of Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, owns registration for the FIDELITY trademark in multiple countries, including the United States, Canada and Mexico, in several international classes including: Financial services including investment management, mutual fund and retirement fund investment, financial planning and securities brokerage (Cl 36); Printed matter including newsletters relating to investments and financial services (Cl 16); and Education services including seminars relating to investments (Cl 41). Additionally, Fidelity Investments has the licensed right to use the FIDELITY trademark in connection with various financial services in numerous other countries. Fidelity Investments has existing domain names with an exact match to the “Fidelity” trademark and the applied-for .fidelity string in the following spaces: gTLDs: .biz, .com, .jobs, .mobi, .net, .org and .tel; ccTLDs: .as, .fm, .com.pr, .us and .co.vi. Fidelity was successful in securing sunrise application protection for Fidelity in the .xxx domain space based on its existing trademark rights. Fidelity is a leading global brand with a strong reputation around the world, particularly in the US and Canada. Fidelity has used the term Fidelity in conjunction with its financial services businesses for over 65 years. As such, the Fidelity brand is well known for providing high quality financial and investment management services and Fidelity believes that the .fidelity gTLD is unlikely to cause confusion with either a generic term or any existing TLDs.
18(b). How do you expect that your proposed gTLD will benefit registrants, Internet users, and others?
18(b)i. WHAT IS THE GOAL OF YOUR PROPOSED GTLD IN TERMS OF AREAS OF SPECIALTY, SERVICE LEVELS OR REPUTATION?
The key goals of the proposed new .fidelity gTLD are in line with ICANN’s Affirmation of Commitments: to promote consumer trust, competition and consumer choice. Fidelity also seeks to foster its online reputation and provide an authoritative internet space through which Fidelity is able to communicate with its customers directly and effectively. The .fidelity gTLD will allow Fidelity to provide personalised reporting to, and the secure exchange of information with, individual customers, and to provide specific financial product and services websites. The ability to create domain names on demand relating to specialty service, product development and specific marketing supports these key goals. Strengthened security measures, service levels and more effective functionality will provide a trusted and positive user experience.
18(b)ii. WHAT DO YOU ANTICIPATE YOUR PROPOSED GTLD WILL ADD TO THE CURRENT SPACE, IN TERMS OF COMPETITION, DIFFERENTIATION OR INNOVATION?
It is anticipated that the proposed .fidelity gTLD will make positive contributions to the wider internet community by providing:
COMPETITION:
The differentiation of .fidelity gTLD as a trusted site for Fidelity will drive existing and new TLD registry operators to make improvements in mechanisms to improve consumer trust of their TLDs. Customers and Internet users will be encouraged to interact with domain names under the .fidelity domain space. As a result, .fidelity will effectively enable increased competition within the market place. Therefore, the benefits of the proposed .fidelity gTLD will be distributed not only to its direct customers, but to the internet community at large forcing improved services and competitive pricing in the market place.
DIFFERENTIATION (INCREASED TRUST):
The .fidelity gTLD will ultimately simplify how internet users interact with Fidelity by providing a distinctive domain space. Current and future customers, consumers and internet users will be able to directly navigate to the .fidelity gTLD site, saving time and resources searching for an official site. The current domain name system has shown that it is vulnerable to malicious abuses due to registration of domain names which seek to exploit consumer confusion. Fidelity can address some of these vulnerabilities by maintaining complete control over the domain names registered under the .fidelity domain space. The new .fidelity gTLD will provide an authentic, secure and reliable central location for current and potential customers and other consumers to interact with Fidelity online. Together with consumer trust, internet users will be able to rely on the authoritativeness of the domain names and information under the .fidelity domain space, which will differentiate interaction between internet users and Fidelity.
INNOVATION:
With the expansion of the internet community to all corners of the world, the existing TLD structure presents limitations, not only in the availability of domain names for registrants, but also to businesses and organizations establishing a coherent global online brand presence to meet their evolving business needs. It is often difficult to register a domain name in existing domain space due to unavailability of the desired name, particularly domain names relating to Fidelity’s business, products and services. Even when the desired domain name is available, it may come with a high price tag associated with a purchase of such desired name from a third party. Online brand coherence is particularly important for financial services providers such as Fidelity where consumer trust and protection is critical, especially in this era of new web-based and mobile technologies which Fidelity has embraced to provide information, products and services to customers. The new .fidelity gTLD will allow Fidelity to provide (i) customized information, communication and reporting services to individual customers and (ii) innovative opportunities for potential customers and users to interact with Fidelity and each other about financial topics. Fidelity has the ability to create second or third level domain names on demand, including the use of customized locations for services and communications, financial products and services, and geographic names relevant to its customer base. Fidelity will be able to combine its use of the domain space with innovative user focused marketing and services to address the currently unmet needs in the existing domain name system, therefore providing greater consumer choice.
18(b)iii. WHAT GOALS DOES YOUR PROPOSED GTLD HAVE IN TERMS OF USER EXPERIENCE?
The proposed .fidelity gTLD will provide a positive user experience, which meets the changing and growing needs of the global internet community. Fidelity will maintain control in the registration and use of domain names and will ensure that the new gTLD are used only for purposes authorized by Fidelity. Therefore, the .fidelity gTLD will:
- provide an accessible, secure, intuitive and reliable central location for customers to interact with Fidelity online;
- provide customized locations for communications, reporting and services to individual customers;
- create second level domains for Fidelity’s businesses and financial and investment products and services;
- provide an easy and intuitive reference and access point for internet users;
- represent authenticity thus promoting user confidence;
- strengthen brand reputation and user confidence by eliminating user confusion;
- direct internet users to relevant information in a timely manner by creating domain names on demand;
- use geographic names to localize its websites to connect with internet users in the relevant regions and to comply with local laws;
- enhance security and minimize security risks by implementing necessary technical and policy measures; and
- prevent potential abuses in the registration process reducing overall costs to businesses and users.
At this stage, Fidelity does not intend to utilize Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) at the second level. However, as the use of the .fidelity gTLD evolves, Fidelity may wish to utilise IDNs to allow internet users to engage with .fidelity in their native language, creating a more positive user experience and encouraging diversity.
The .fidelity gTLD should address the concerns that the current domain name system is open to potential malicious abuse and user confusion in the registration processes. Although the current system allows an eligible party to lodge a claim through existing Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) or other dispute resolution processes, the .fidelity gTLD will reduce potential abuses in the registration processes and overall costs to internet users. User confidence in the domain name system will be strengthened, which will ultimately contribute towards promoting ICANN’s core values in benefiting the public interest.
18(b)iv. PROVIDE A COMPLETE DESCRIPTION OF THE APPLICANTʹS INTENDED REGISTRATION POLICIES IN SUPPORT OF THE GOALS LISTED ABOVE
The proposed registration policy is included in response to Question 28.
Only Fidelity, its affiliates and partners will be eligible to register domain names in the .fidelity gTLD at this stage. The domain name registration processes and policies will address the requirements mandated by ICANN, including rights abuse prevention measures.
18(b)v. 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.
Fidelity is committed to protection of privacy and confidential information in accordance with its objective of increasing consumer trust and providing a safe and legitimate internet space for internet users. Privacy and confidential information will be protected in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations relating to internet security, privacy and user’s confidential information, including all applicable data privacy and legislations applicable in the US and ISO 2000 and ISO 27001 certification in relation to security programs. For example, Fidelity maintains processes and measures to comply as applicable with the privacy components of the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999 (also known as the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act), Related Rule S-P of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Trade Commission Standards for Safeguarding Customer Information, the privacy rule and the security rule of the U.S. Health and Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, and the Massachusetts Standards for the Protection of Personal Information of Residents of the Commonwealth.
Fidelity also has implemented its own privacy policy (Privacy Policy) to demonstrate its commitment to the protection of user privacy and confidential information. Fidelity is committed to maintaining the confidentiality, integrity and security of personal information about its current and prospective customers. Fidelity takes great care to protect the personal information of its customers and Fidelity uses such information with complete respect for customers’ privacy. Fidelity’s Privacy Policy provides that Fidelity will not provide customers’ information to unaffiliated third parties for marketing purposes and will only use customers’ personal information to:
- service and maintain customers’ accounts;
- process transactions in connection with customers’ accounts;
- respond to inquiries from customers or their representatives;
- develop, offer and deliver products and services to customers;
- fulfill legal and regulatory requirements;
- disclose necessary information to Fidelity’s contracted unaffiliated service providers, such as printing and mailing companies;
- disclose information to government agencies, regulatory bodies and law enforcement officials, including for tax purposes; and
- disclose information to other financial organizations, only with customers consent or as directed by the customers’ representatives, for credit assessments, or as permitted or required by law, for example to prevent fraudulent transactions.
As registering domain names within the .fidelity gTLD will be available only to Fidelity, its affiliates and partners, the amount of personal data that will be collected for the purposes of operating the .fidelity gTLD and made publicly available in the WHOIS database will be very limited. Fidelity will provide a publicly available and searchable WHOIS look up facility, where information about the domain name status, registrant information including administrative and technical contact details can be found in accordance with Specification 4 of the Registry Agreement. In order to prevent misuse of the WHOIS look up facility, Fidelity will utilise measures including a requirement where any person submitting a WHOIS database query is required to read and agree to the terms and conditions in accordance with the registration policy. This will include the terms of use that the WHOIS database is provided for information purposes only and that the user agrees not to use the information for any other purposes such as allowing or enabling the transmission of unsolicited commercial advertising or other communication.
Fidelity will deploy Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC) which is intended to benefit both Fidelity and its users interacting with Fidelity online. DNSSEC provides additional security by validating information in the transmission. Therefore it is intended to benefit those who publish information in the domain name system (DNS) and the users who retrieve information from the new .fidelity gTLD. Fidelity already implements measures to protect privacy or confidential information of its users against misuse, loss, alteration and unauthorised access. Such measures include the use of:
- Firewalls using multiple layers of firewalls and diverse technologies under a “defense in depth” network protection strategy;
- Denial of Service (DOS) protection at carrier, service provider and infrastructure tiers;
- Intrusion Detection and Prevention to identify and block malicious behaviour and content;
- Network Encryption including Secure Sockets Layer for general web traffic and VPNs for client and specific partner connections;
- Security Monitoring to continuously monitor for unauthorized activity at system, network and application layers;
- Secure development including regular penetration testing and code inspection to detect and remediate security issues proactively;
- Security policy, training and awareness;
- Rigorous Access Management ensuring only approved and authorized access to systems and data;
- Data Management including systems and programs to ensure that data is classified to protect customer’s personal information as well as corporate proprietary and confidential data;
- Oversight including an independent audit function to test and verify security control and processes;
- Certification including ISO20000 and ISO27001 standards to validate its security programs; and
- Fraud detection and management.
Fidelity will continue to apply all security measures currently implemented and will comply with all other policies and practices required by ICANN in the Registry Agreement and any relevant Consensus Policy for protecting the privacy and confidential information of registrants and users in the new .fidelity domain space.
18(b)vi. DESCRIBE WHETHER AND IN WHAT WAYS OUTREACH AND COMMUNICATIONS WILL HELP TO ACHIEVE YOUR PROJECTED BENEFITS
The proposed new .fidelity gTLD will be publicized by a media plan to promote recognition of the new gTLD within the internet community to be a trusted site and as a sign of authenticity. Fidelity intends to utilise a variety of marketing channels, both traditional and online, to educate its customers and internet users about the new .fidelity gTLD and the information, services and resources that will be available under the .fidelity domain space.
During the initial stage of the operation of the proposed new gTLD, it is anticipated that internet users will be re-directed to current websites. However, over time, it is foreseen that communication to the internet community of the existence of the proposed new gTLD and encouragement to use the trusted site will contribute towards minimizing malicious abuses and protecting internet users.
18(c). What operating rules will you adopt to eliminate or minimize social costs?
As a restricted gTLD, registration will be open only to Fidelity, its affiliates and partners, and no other parties will be able to register domain names under .fidelity domain space. Therefore, it is not anticipated that third party trademark owners will incur costs in relation to the .fidelity gTLD. The entities wishing to register domain names must ensure that all the policy requirements for registration are satisfied. Fidelity will utilize the services of the proposed Trademark Clearinghouse to ensure that domain names registered and the use of those domain names, do not infringe any registered third party intellectual property rights.
Because no parties other than Fidelity, its affiliates or partnerswill be able to register domain names in the .fidelity gTLD, it is estimated that time and money spent by consumers who have been targeted by malicious abuse in utilizing services on the internet will decrease over time as a result of the new, trusted .fidelity gTLD.
18(c)i. HOW WILL MULTIPLE APPLICATIONS FOR A PARTICULAR DOMAIN NAME BE RESOLVED, FOR EXAMPLE, BY AUCTION OR ON A FIRST-COME ⁄ FIRST-SERVE BASIS?
The initial use of the proposed new gTLD will be restricted to Fidelity, its affiliates and partners, any of which may be registrants under the .fidelity gTLD. Therefore conflicts between multiple applications are not anticipated to occur.
18(c)ii. EXPLAIN ANY COST BENEFITS FOR REGISTRANTS YOU INTEND TO IMPLEMENT (E.G. ADVANTAGEOUS PRICING, INTRODUCTORY DISCOUNTS, BULK REGISTRATION DISCOUNTS)
This gTLD will be used by Fidelity, its affiliates or partners only, at this stage, so pricing incentives are not applicable or relevant.
18(c)iii. 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 PLAN.
This gTLD will be used by Fidelity, its affiliates or partners only, at this stage, so pricing incentives or pricing increases are not applicable or relevant as no additional fees are to be charged.