.bw

ccTLD
Type	ccTLD
Status	Active
Country	Botswana
Implemented	Mar. 19, 1993
Registry	Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority (BOCRA)
Website	nic.net.bw

.bw is the ccTLD for Botswana. It is managed by the Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority (BOCRA).

Delegation History

Until 2013, the designated manager for the .bw domain was the University of Botswana, as declared to IANA. However, since 1996, the de-facto manager of the domain has been the Botswana Telecommunications Corporation (BTC).

In 2006, a stakeholder workshop was held in the country's capital, Gaborone. Among other issues, it was discussed selecting a new manager for .bw.

On June 3, 2009, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Communications, Science and Technology (which has since become the Ministry of Transport and Communications) sent a letter to the Botswana Telecommunications Authority (BTA) approving the transfer of the .bw management from BTC to BTA.

In summer 2011, a memorandum of agreement for the "interim management and administration of the .BW domain" between BTA and BTC was signed. A transitional period of two years was arranged for BTC to continue being responsible for the technical operations of .bw while BTA's personnel was getting an appropriate training so they could take over operations of the domain in the future.

On 13 June 2012, the BTA commenced a request to ICANN for the redelegation of .bw.

In December 2012, BTA established registry operations and informally transitioned operation of the .bw registry.

On April 1, 2013, the BTA was transformed into a new organization, the Botswana Communications Regulatory Authority (BOCRA). All of BTA's assets and liabilities were then transferred to BOCRA.

In order to reflect a new entity as the proposed new sponsoring organization for .bw, a new request was lodged on April, 16 2013. The redelegation was later accepted.

Rules and Restrictions

Anyone can register a .bw domain name providing the necessary documents (certified copy of a legally recognized Identification Card (Omang) for citizens, or passport for non-citizens.

If the Registrant is an organization, association, Limited Liability Company, Proprietary Limited Company, or other legally recognized entity, the contact person must be a person authorized under the applicable law in the applicable territory to legally bind the entity. Also, the registrant should provide a registration certificate from the Registrar of Companies of Botswana.

Acceptable Use Policy

The creation, transmission, distribution, storage of, or linking to any material in violation of applicable law or regulation or the Acceptable Use Policy provided by BOCRA. This includes the following:

• communication, publication, or distribution of material (including through links or framing) that infringes upon the intellectual and/or industrial property rights of another person. Intellectual and/or industrial property rights include copyrights (including future copyright), design rights, patents, patent applications, trademarks, rights of personality and trade secret information;
• the .bw Domain Name is identical or confusingly like a personal name, company, business or other legal or registered trading name, or a trade or service mark in which a third-party complainant has uncontested rights, including without limitation in circumstances in which:
  • the use deceives or confuses others in relation to goods or services for which a trademark is registered, or in respect of similar goods or closely related services, against the wishes of the registered proprietor of the trademark; or
  • the use deceives or confuses others in relation to goods or services in respect of which an unregistered trademark or service mark has become distinctive of the goods or services of a third-party complainant, and in which the third-party complainant has established a sufficient reputation in Botswana, against the wishes of the third-party complainant; or
  • the use trades on or passes-off a .bw Domain Name or a website or other content or services accessed through resolution of a .bw Domain as being the same as or endorsed, authorized, associated, or affiliated with the established business, name, or reputation of another; or
  • the use constitutes intentionally misleading or deceptive conduct in breach of ccTLD policy, or the laws of Botswana;
• publication of web content which:
  • that is capable of disruption of systems in use by other Internet users or service providers (e.g., viruses or malware);
  • seeks or apparently seeks authentication or login details used by operators of other Internet sites (e.g., phishing); or
  • may mislead or deceive visitors to the site that the site has an affiliation with the operator of another Internet site (e.g., phishing).
• communication, publication or distribution, either directly or by way of embedded links, of images or materials (including pornographic material and images or materials that a reasonable person as a member of the community of Botswana would consider to be obscene or indecent, like real or manipulated images depicting child pornography; bestiality, excessively violent or sexually violent material; sexual activity; material containing detailed instructions regarding how to commit a crime; an act of violence, or how to prepare and/or use illegal drugs) where such communication, publication or distribution is prohibited by or constitutes an offense under the laws of Botswana, whether incorporated directly into or linked from a web site, email, posting to a news group, Internet forum, instant messaging notice which makes use of Domain Name resolution services in the .bw ccTLD;
• communication, publication or distribution of:
  • defamatory material or material that constitutes racial vilification;
  • material that constitutes an illegal threat or encourages conduct that may constitute a criminal offense;
  • material that is in contempt of the orders of a court or another authoritative government actor within Botswana;
• use, communication, publication or distribution of:
  • software, technical information or other data that violates Botswana export control laws;
  • confidential or personal information or data including confidential or personal information about persons that is collected without their knowledge or consent.

Country code top-level domain, as determined by "ISO 3166: Country Codes".

Internet Assigned Numbers Authority