.lego New gTLD Application
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New gTLD Application Submitted to ICANN by: LEGO Juris A⁄S
String: lego
Originally Posted: 13 June 2012
Application ID: 1-1795-41858
Applicant Information
- Full legal name
LEGO Juris A⁄S
- Address of the principal place of business
Koldingvej 2
Billund DK-7190
DK
- Phone number
+45 79505370
- Fax number
+45 75338853
- If applicable, website or URL
http:⁄⁄www.LEGO.com
Primary Contact
6(a). Name
Ms. Mette Merete Andersen
6(b). Title
Corporate Counsel
6(c). Address
6(d). Phone Number
+45 7950 5206
6(e). Fax Number
+45 7533 8853
6(f). Email Address
Secondary Contact
7(a). Name
Mr. Peter Thorslund Kjær
7(b). Title
Vice-President
7(c). Address
7(d). Phone Number
+45 7950 5202
7(e). Fax Number
+45 7533 8853
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).
Denmark
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.
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
Jørgen Vig Knudstorp Member of the Board
Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen Chairman of the Board
Søren Thorup Sørensen Member of the Board
11(b). Name(s) and position(s) of all officers and partners
Henriette Aalbæk Lund Vice President
Peter Thorslund Kjær Vice President
Poul Hartvig Nielsen President
11(c). Name(s) and position(s) of all shareholders holding at least 15% of shares
KIRKBI Invest A⁄S 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.
lego
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 .lego 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
- .lego 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 .lego has not already been queried with meaningful frequency at the root. Therefore, it is unlikely that .lego will inherit significant invalid query traffic.
Due to the positive results of these checks, LEGO JURIS A⁄S does not believe that the .lego 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 .LEGO 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 .lego gTLD will operate as a restricted registry, in which LEGO JURIS A⁄S (LEGO) can create and control domain spaces to support an authentic and unified LEGO brand online. In this regard, the .lego gTLD will be used by LEGO to provide information, services and resources to consumers in a way that promotes trust, convenience and utility. It will provide an authoritative internet space for LEGO, its affiliates and partners that are associated with the brand. Second and third level domain names can then be utilised to promote LEGO products, with internet users assured of brand authenticity. Geographic names and Internationalized Domain Names (“IDNs”) may also be utilised by LEGO to provide relevant information to its customers, as well as present information in their native language.
LEGO is a subsidiary of KIRKBI A⁄S, and was created to own and administer the industrial property rights of all LEGO entities (the LEGO Group). LEGO A⁄S is the owner of the LEGO Group and LEGO A⁄S is in turn owned by the ultimate parent entity KIRKBI A⁄S. The LEGO Group is the world’s fourth largest manufacturer of toys, with its products on sale in over 130 countries. The LEGO Group seeks to develop innovative new products and expand electronic activities. In this regard, innovation and consumer trust are paramount considerations in all of its activities.
Commercial activities are increasingly conducted over the internet, allowing for greater levels of interaction with customers and businesses. As a result, both businesses and the end users benefit from ease of interaction and a wider range of choices with lower transaction costs. However the increase in such activity in the current domain system has left business and consumers vulnerable to increased criminal activity over the internet, including data breach, hacking and phishing. These sophisticated criminal activities cause reputational damage to businesses as internet users lose consumer confidence and trust with the businesses targeted by such criminal activities. The .lego gTLD will facilitate greater trust and assurance from users connecting with LEGO online, whilst still allowing convenient and efficient interaction.
LEGO’s mission and purpose of the proposed new gTLD share ICANN’s initiatives to promote public interest. LEGO is committed to contribute towards achieving such initiatives in line with ICANN’s Affirmation of Commitments, which includes:
- consumer trust: the .lego gTLD registry will be operated in a centralised manner with restrictive registration policy. Registration of domain names will only be available to LEGO and its affiliate entities, which will provide added consumer trust that .lego domain names are trustworthy. As .lego domain names are subject to registration standards, policies and procedures under LEGO’s control, this eliminates the possibility of malicious conduct within the .lego domain space;
- competition: the proposed new gTLD is not intended to instigate competition and consumer choice among prospective registrants. Instead it is anticipated to contribute to ICANN’s initiatives to promote public interest through its operation focused on strengthening consumer trust. Increased trust in .lego 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 proposed new gTLD will enable user-driven improvements and innovations assisting LEGO’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 LEGO. As LEGO has effective control over the registration and use of domain names under the .lego domain space, this will also contribute towards general service innovations on the internet.
Given the restricted nature of the .lego gTLD, the projected number of registration is likely to be limited. It is anticipated that a more limited number (5-200) of domain names will be registered in the first year. However, over the next few years, the number of registrations is likely to increase up to about 800 domain names as new services, products and marketing campaigns for the LEGO brand are developed and implemented. As the new .lego gTLD expands and evolves, LEGO will continue to comply with all operational, technical and policy requirements, as well as maintaining consumer trust and the stability on the internet. LEGO will keep ICANN reasonably informed of any material developments relating to the .lego gTLD including compliance with the continued operations instrument obligations as set out in Specification 8 of the Registry Agreement.
LEGO will be able to create relevant domain names on demand for use, including for product and service names in the second or third level domains. LEGO may also use Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) at the second level, including the use of 32 languages from countries in which they operate: Spanish, Russian, German, Arabic, Indian, French, Portuguese, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Chinese, Croatian, Greek, Czech, Danish, Estonian, Finnish, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Malaysian, Norwegian, Polish, Swedish, Taiwanese, Turkish and Vietnamese. The use of IDNs will allow internet users to engage with .lego in their native language, creating a more positive user experience and encouraging diversity. As the use of the .lego gTLD evolves, it is anticipated that the use of IDNs, including additional languages, will increase within the .lego domain space.
LEGO may also use geographic names at the second level. In accordance with registration policies and the proposed measures for the protection of geographic names as outlined in response to Question 22, LEGO will use geographic names and IDNs in countries and regions in which LEGO currently operates. The use of geographic names intends to:
- connect internet users with relevant information as applicable to the territory; and
- comply with required rules and regulations in the territory.
LEGO is a well-recognised global brand with its trademarks registered in 180 countries and territories for amongst others the following category: construction toys, clothing, bags, electronic goods, video games, board games, educational and teaching materials, educational service, entertainment services, books, paper goods. LEGO has extensive domain name registrations containing the “LEGO” trademark in more than 700 country-code TLDs (ccTLDs) and 300 gTLDs. Furthermore, there are almost 100 domain names which are exact matches to the “LEGO” trademark. Some of these domain spaces include:
- gTLDs: .com, .mobi
- ccTLDS: .nl, .eu, .cn, .dk
Recently, LEGO was successful in securing sunrise application for the following domain spaces based on existing trademark registration: .eu, .me, .tel, .qa, .mobi.
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 .lego gTLD are in line with ICANN’s Affirmation of Commitments: to promote consumer trust, competition and consumer choice. LEGO also seeks to foster its online reputation and provide an authoritative internet space through which LEGO is able to communicate with its customers directly and effectively. The ability to create domain names on demand related to specific marketing, specialty service and product development supports these 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 .lego gTLD will make positive contributions to the wider internet community by providing:
DIFFERENTIATION (INCREASED TRUST):
The .lego gTLD will simplify how internet users interact with LEGO by providing a distinctive domain space. Internet users will be able to directly navigate to the .lego 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. LEGO can address some of these vulnerabilities by maintaining complete control over the domain names registered under the .lego domain space. The .lego domain space will:
- “look safe” through the creation of a trusted site for commercial activities;
- “feel safe” through improved safety and security; and
- “talk safe” through an ability to communicate to consumers that .lego is the authentic LEGO site.
Together with consumer trust, internet users will be able to rely on the authoritativeness of the domain names under .lego domain space, which will differentiate interaction between internet users and LEGO.
COMPETITION:
The differentiation of the .lego gTLD as a trusted site for LEGO will drive existing and new TLD registry operators to make improvements in mechanisms to improve consumer trust of their TLDs. Internet users will be encouraged to interact with domain names under .lego domain space. As a result, .lego will have a flow on effect to enable increased competition. Therefore, the benefits of the proposed .lego will be distributed not only to its direct customers, but to the internet community at large with improved services and competitive pricing in the market place.
INNOVATION:
With the expansion of the internet community, the existing TLD structure presents limitations, not only in the availability of domain names for registrants, but also to businesses 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. This problem is amplified for organisations such as LEGO who work across many different jurisdictions and geographical markets. 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. LEGO has the ability to create second or third level domain names including the use of geographic names and IDNs on demand which are relevant to its customer base and services⁄products. LEGO 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 providing greater consumer choice.
18(B)III. WHAT GOALS DOES YOUR PROPOSED gTLD HAVE IN TERMS OF USER EXPERIENCE?
The proposed .lego will provide a positive user experience, which meets the changing and growing needs of the global internet community. LEGO will maintain control in the registration and use of domain names and will ensure that the new gTLD will only be used for purposes authorised by LEGO. Therefore, the .lego gTLD will:
- provide an easy and intuitive reference and access point for internet users;
- represent authenticity thus promoting user confidence;
- direct internet users to relevant information in a timely manner by creating domain names on demand;
- use of IDNs to enable customers to interact directly in their native language;
- use of geographic names to localise its websites to connect with internet users in the relevant regions and to comply with local laws;
- enhance security and minimise security risks by implementing necessary technical and policy measures;
- strengthen brand reputation and user confidence by eliminating user confusion; and
- prevent potential abuses in the registration process reducing overall costs to businesses and users.
.lego 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 .lego 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 attached in response to Question 28.
Only affiliate entities of LEGO will be eligible to register domain names in .lego. The domain name registration processes 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.
LEGO 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. LEGO also complies with all relevant legislation, rules and standards industry around the world including the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (US) and The Data Protection Directive 95⁄46⁄EC (EC).
LEGO has also implemented its own privacy policy to demonstrate its commitment to the protection of user privacy and confidential information. LEGO’s privacy policy covers any kind of processing of personally identifiable information about natural persons, which are either consumers of LEGO products or services, or representatives of LEGO’s cooperation partners. In accordance with its privacy policy, LEGO will:
- only collect personal data for specific and specified purposes;
- not collect personal data beyond what is necessary to accomplish those purposes;
- not use personal data for purposes other than that for which the data was collected (except as stated otherwise in the privacy policy or with prior consent);
- not transfer personal data to third parties or across borders (except as stated otherwise in the privacy policy or with prior consent);
- seek to verify and⁄or update personal data periodically and will apply high technical standards to make its processing of personal data secure;
- not store personal data in identifiable form longer than is necessary to accomplish its purpose.
As the .lego gTLD will only be available to affiliate entities of LEGO, the amount of personal data that will be collected for the purposes of operating the gTLD and made publicly available in the WHOIS database will be very limited. LEGO 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 LEGO 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.
LEGO will deploy Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC) which is intended to benefit both LEGO and its users interacting with LEGO 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 .lego gTLD. LEGO already implements measures to protect privacy or confidential information of its users against misuse, loss, alteration and unauthorised access. Such measures are governed by the Corporate Information Security Policies within LEGO, which conform to international standards including, the ISO 17799 Information Technology – Security Techniques Code of Practice and the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).
LEGO 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 .lego domain space.
18(b)vi. DESCRIBE WHETHER AND IN WHAT WAYS OUTREACH AND COMMUNICATIONS WILL HELP TO ACHIEVE YOUR PROJECTED BENEFITS.
The .lego gTLD will be publicised 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. During the initial stage of the operation of the .lego 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 utilise the trusted site will contribute towards minimising 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 only be open to internal users (affiliate entities) at this stage and no third parties will be able to register domain names under .lego domain space. Therefore, it is not anticipated that third party trademark owners will incur costs in relation to the .lego gTLD. The affiliate entities wishing to register domain names must ensure that all the policy requirements for registration are satisfied. LEGO will utilise 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.
No unaffiliated third party will be permitted to register domain names. It is estimated that time and money spent by consumers who have been targeted by malicious abuse in utilising payment services on the internet will reduce over time as a result of the new, trusted .lego 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 use of the proposed new gTLD will be restricted to internal business use and LEGO and affiliate entities are intended to be the registrants under the .lego 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 for internal purposes only, 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 for internal purposes only, so pricing incentives or pricing increases are not applicable or relevant as no additional fees are to be charged.