Editing ICANN (section)

===.sucks domain===
ICANN has received more than $60&nbsp;million from gTLD auctions,<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 17, 2015 |title=ICANN banked $60m from dot-word auctions. Just what exactly is it going to spend it all on? |url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/04/17/icann_gltd_auction_money/ |website=The Register}}</ref> and has accepted the controversial domain name ".sucks" (referring to the primarily US slang for being inferior or objectionable).<ref name="reg1">{{Cite web |date=April 10, 2015 |title=ICANN urges US, Canada: Help us stop the 'predatory' monster we created ... dot-sucks! |url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/04/10/icann_ftc_dot_sucks/ |website=The Register}}</ref> sucks domains are owned and controlled by the Vox Populi Registry which won the rights for .sucks gTLD in November 2014.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dot Sucks Web Address |url=http://fortune.com/2015/05/20/dot-sucks-web-address |access-date=2018-11-01}}</ref>

The [[.sucks (registry)|.sucks domain registrar]] has been described as "predatory, exploitive and coercive" by the Intellectual Property Constituency that advises the ICANN board.<ref name=reg1/> When the .sucks registry announced their pricing model, "most brand owners were upset and felt like they were being penalized by having to pay more to protect their brands."<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 25, 2015 |title=Is .SUCKS Pricing Model Gaining Traction With Other Registries? |url=http://www.circleid.com/posts/20150625_is_sucks_pricing_model_gaining_traction_with_other_registries/ |website=CircleID}}</ref> Because of the low utility of the ".sucks" domain, most fees come from "Brand Protection" customers registering their trademarks to prevent domains being registered.<ref>{{Cite news |author=Guardian Staff |date=2015-03-23 |title=Why You Should Buy Your Dot Sucks Domain Name |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/shortcuts/2015/mar/23/why-you-should-buy-your-dot-sucks-domain-name |access-date=2018-11-01}}</ref>

Canadian brands had complained that they were being charged "exorbitant" prices to register their trademarks as premium names. FTC chair Edith Ramirez has written to ICANN to say the agency will take action against the .sucks owner if  "we have reason to believe an entity has engaged in deceptive or unfair practices in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act".<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 19, 2015 |title=Canada weighs in on .sucks debate |url=http://www.ipprotheinternet.com/ipprotheinternetnews/article.php?article_id=4446 |website=IP Pro |access-date=June 26, 2015 |archive-date=June 26, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626201116/http://www.ipprotheinternet.com/ipprotheinternetnews/article.php?article_id=4446 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The Register reported that intellectual property lawyers are infuriated that "the dot-sucks registry was charging trademark holders $2,500 for .sucks domains and everyone else $10."<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 15, 2015 |title=Canada to ICANN in dot-sucks dot-rumble: Take off, you hoser! |url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/06/15/canada_to_icann_take_off_you_hoser/ |website=The Register}}</ref>

U.S. Representative [[Bob Goodlatte]] has said that trademark holders are "being shaken down" by the registry's fees.<ref>{{Cite web |date=May 19, 2015 |title=A Debate Over the Domain '.sucks' |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2015/05/19/new-domain-sparks-icann-debate/ |website=Wall Street Journal}}</ref> [[Jay Rockefeller]] says that .sucks is "a predatory shakedown scheme" and "Approving '.sucks', a gTLD with little or no public interest value, will have the effect of undermining the credibility ICANN has slowly been building with skeptical stakeholders."<ref name=reg1/>