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Line 59: + + − − − − − − − + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + − In February, 2012, one of the first public [[Brand gTLD]] ventures, [[StarHub]] announced that it had partnered with MelbourneIT's Digital brand Services to help apply for and manage its proposed [[.starhub]] TLD.<ref>[http://www.circleid.com/posts/20120201_starhub_to_acquire_starhub_new_top_level_domain/ StarHub to Acquire New Top Level Domain, CircleID.com]</ref>+ + + + + + + + Line 84:
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→History
| logo = mit_logo.jpg
| logo = mit_logo.jpg
| type = Public
| type = Public
| industry = Registrar, Hosting, [[New gTLD Program|new gTLDs]]
| industry = Registrar, Hosting, [[New gTLD Program|New gTLDs]]
| founded = Australia, 1996
| founded = Australia, 1996
| founders =
| founders =
Headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, MelbourneIT has 18 offices in 10 countries and over 690 employees worldwide.<ref>[http://www.linkedin.com/companies/melbourne-it Linkedin ]</ref> As of October 25, 2010, MelbourneIT has about 4,291,483 domain names registered under its management.<ref>[http://www.webhosting.info/registrars/reports/total_domains/MELBOURNEIT.COM WebHosting.info]</ref>
Headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, MelbourneIT has 18 offices in 10 countries and over 690 employees worldwide.<ref>[http://www.linkedin.com/companies/melbourne-it Linkedin ]</ref> As of October 25, 2010, MelbourneIT has about 4,291,483 domain names registered under its management.<ref>[http://www.webhosting.info/registrars/reports/total_domains/MELBOURNEIT.COM WebHosting.info]</ref>
In March 2013, the company sold its Digital Brand Services division, which includes its backend registry contracts with 150 new gTLDs, to [[Corporation Service Company]] (CSC) for $157 million USD.<ref name ="157 CSC">[http://www.thedomains.com/2013/03/12/157-million-csc-buys-melborune-it-digital-brand-services-backend-for-150-new-gtlds/ 157 million CSC buys Melbourne IT Digital Brand Services Backend for 150 New gTLDs, TheDomains.com]</ref>
==The Beginning==
==The Beginning==
The name MelbourneIT came from "Melbourne Information Technology International Pty Ltd" which was a commercial subsidiary of The University of Melbourne. The initial objective of the company was not merely to register domains but to demonstrate the University’s strategic leadership in working with industry and government in selected areas of IT. [[Robert Elz]], senior system administrator in the University of Melbourne’s Computer Science Department was in charge of the registration process of the [[.au]] domain at that time.
The name MelbourneIT came from "Melbourne Information Technology International Pty Ltd" which was a commercial subsidiary of The University of Melbourne. The initial objective of the company was not merely to register domains but to demonstrate the University’s strategic leadership in working with industry and government in selected areas of IT. [[Robert Elz]], senior system administrator in the University of Melbourne’s Computer Science Department was in charge of the registration process of the [[.au]] domain at that time.
* 2010- May, MelbourneIT acquires search-engine marketing business [[Advantate]].<ref>[http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-business/melbourne-it-buys-rest-of-advantate-20100518-vblw.html The Sydney Morning Herald]</ref> Previously, Melbourne IT held 50% of [[Advantate]]'s shares.
* 2010- May, MelbourneIT acquires search-engine marketing business [[Advantate]].<ref>[http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-business/melbourne-it-buys-rest-of-advantate-20100518-vblw.html The Sydney Morning Herald]</ref> Previously, Melbourne IT held 50% of [[Advantate]]'s shares.
* 2013 - March, The company sold its Digital Brand Services division, which includes its backend registry contracts with 150 new gTLDs, to [[Corporation Service Company]] (CSC) for $157 million USD.
== Businesses ==
== Businesses ==
Currently, MelbourneIT has the following brands:<ref>[http://www.melbourneit.info/about-us/company-overview MelbourneIT.info].</ref>
Currently, MelbourneIT has the following brands:<ref>[http://www.melbourneit.info/about-us/company-overview MelbourneIT.info].</ref>
* [[Domainz]] - New Zealand's domain name registrar, which also provides internet services to small businesses to help them succeed online.
* [[Domainz]] - New Zealand's domain name registrar, which also provides internet services to small businesses to help them succeed online.
* [[For The Record]] (FTR) - global provider of digital recording and content management solutions for judicial and civic venues.
* [[For The Record]] (FTR) - global provider of digital recording and content management solutions for judicial and civic venues.
* Melbourne IT Digital Brand Services (DBS) - helps corporations manage, protect and optimise their brands online.
* Melbourne IT Digital Brand Services (DBS) - helps corporations manage, protect and optimise their brands online.
* Melbourne IT Enterprise Services - tracks record of delivering enterprise-grade internet and IT services to large organisations.
* Melbourne IT Enterprise Services - tracks record of delivering enterprise-grade internet and IT services to large organisations.
* Melbourne IT's Global Partner Solutions - supplies revenue-generating technical and support solutions for domain names and other value-added online SMB services.
* Melbourne IT's Global Partner Solutions - supplies revenue-generating technical and support solutions for domain names and other value-added online SMB services.
* [[WebCentral]] - provides web hosting and internet services for enterprises and small business customers.
* [[WebCentral]] - provides web hosting and internet services for enterprises and small business customers.
===New gTLDs===
===New gTLDs===
MebourneIT is also a new gTLD consultancy, and the week of the January, 2012, launch of [[ICANN]]'s [[New gTLD Program|new gTLD]] application period it announced that it had been working with over 100 applications on behalf of various clients. MelbourneIT also noted that many of their clients are Fortune 500 companies or associated with the [[Association of National Advertisers]]; the latter fact is particularly noteworthy given the fact that [[ANA]] had led a high-profile anti-gTLD expansion campaign following the approval of the program, the lobbying group was successful in achieving multiple [[New gTLD Program#New gTLD Senate and House of Representatives Hearings|hearings in the U.S. congress]] and other bad press.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/melbourne-it-involved-in-100-gtld-applications/ Melbourne IT involved in 100 gTLD Applications, DomainIncite.com]</ref>
MebourneIT is also a new gTLD consultancy, and the week of the January, 2012, which was the launch of [[ICANN]]'s [[New gTLD Program|new gTLD]] application period, it announced that it had been working with over 100 applications on behalf of various clients. MelbourneIT also noted that many of their clients are Fortune 500 companies or associated with the [[Association of National Advertisers]] (ANA). The latter fact is particularly noteworthy given the fact that [[ANA]] had led a high-profile anti-gTLD expansion campaign following the approval of the program, and was successful in achieving multiple [[New gTLD Program#New gTLD Senate and House of Representatives Hearings|hearings in the U.S. congress]] and other anti-TLD expansion forums and press.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/melbourne-it-involved-in-100-gtld-applications/ Melbourne IT involved in 100 gTLD Applications, DomainIncite.com]</ref>
In February, 2012, one of the first public [[Brand TLD]] ventures, [[StarHub]], announced that it had partnered with MelbourneIT's Digital Brand Services to help apply for and manage its proposed [[.starhub]] TLD.<ref>[http://www.circleid.com/posts/20120201_starhub_to_acquire_starhub_new_top_level_domain/ StarHub to Acquire New Top Level Domain, CircleID.com]</ref> Later that month, MelbourneIT revealed that they were currently working on 120 new gTLD applications, and that they expected to bring that number to 150 before the application window closed in just over a month.<ref>[http://domainnamewire.com/2012/02/21/melbourne-it-new-tld/ Melbourne IT New TLD, DomainNameWire.com]</ref> It was also announced that MelbourneIT was working as new gTLD consultants with the governments of the Australian states of Victoria and New South Wales, and with [[ARI Registry Services]], to prepare bids for [[.melbourne]], [[.sydney]], and [[.victoria]].<ref>[http://www.ariservices.com/news-ari_wins_tender_for_melbourne_and_sydney.php Wins Tender for Melboune and Sydney, ARIservices.com]</ref> The company ended up handling 148 applications, approximately a quarter of which came from Australian clients.<ref>[http://www.theage.com.au/business/australians-fall-behind-domain-rush-20120604-1zs3v.html Australians fall behind domain rush, theage.com.au]</ref>
===Earnings Drop===
It November, 2012, it was reported that MelbourneIT was reviewing the possibility of selling some of its business units off in response to a earnings decline in 2012. One of the noted reasons for the decline was the consistently delayed [[New gTLD program]] from ICANN, which it attributed with a 10% decline in pre-tax earnings. The business units in question, and the foreign buyers that had been identified, were not specified.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/11110-melbourne-it-may-sell-off-businesses-as-icann-delays-hit-bottom-line Melbourne IT May Sell of Businesses as ICANN delays Hit Bottom Line, DomainIncite.com] Retrieved 26 Nov 2012</ref> The sale of its new gTLD registry division was announced in March, 2013.<ref name= "157 CSC"></ref>
==Comments on Digital Archery==
Melbourne IT's CEO [[Theo Hnarakis]] criticized ICANN's [[Digital Archery|digital archery]] system for determining the batches of applications for the initial evaluation of [[New gTLD Program|new gTLDs]]. His was concerned about the possibility that the [[Batching|batching]] system would favor the applicants for desirable gTLDs such as [[.web]]. He emphasized that Melbourne IT would prefer a batching process that "favor[ed] uncontested and uncontroversial strings." In addition, he encouraged ICANN to delay the implementation of digital archery. He said, "There seems to be a broad sentiment that this isn’t this best method, but people don’t want to rock the boat because they don’t want to see any further delay." Moreover, he pointed out that he doesn't care about further delays, and that his primary concern is to ensure that all applicants, and particularly brand applicants, have a fair opportunity in the batching process. <ref>[http://domainincite.com/9151-melbourne-it-ceo-calls-for-digital-archery-delay Melbourne IT CEO calls for digital archery delay]</ref><ref>[http://domainincite.com/docs/melbourne-it-on-archery.pdf Melbourne IT Letter to ICANN Regarding Digital Archery]</ref>
==Anti-Cybersquatting Plan==
Melbourne IT has proposed an anti-cybersquatting plan, called Minimizing HARM (High At-Risk Marks), which was inspired by the abandoned [[Globally Protected Marks List]], [[ICM Registry]]’s Sunrise B policy, [[.CO Internet]]’s launch program, and recent proposals from the intellectual property community. The plan looks to protect trademarks from the outset, asking the [[Trademark Clearinghouse]] to flag a certain subset of trademarks meeting certain requirements as High At-Risk Marks, which would receive special protections. These protections include:
* Qualification for a “Once-off Registration Fee," which, like .xxx's Sunrise B, allows trademark holders to pay a one-time fee to block their exact-match domain names.
* Anyone attempting to register an exact-match domain name would have to have two sets of contact information verified before the domain name could go live.
* The Trademark Claims service, which alerts trademark holders when someone tries to register a domain containing one of their brands, would last indefinitely, instead of the standard 60 days after the gTLD goes into general availability.
* Rapid take down (within 48 hours) of a [[Uniform Rapid Suspension]] (URS) complaint, unless a Response Fee is paid, which would be equivalent to the URS fee paid by the complainant.
Trademarks must meet the following strict requirements in order to qualify for HARM:
* Proof that the company has trademark protection on the brand in three of ICANN's five geographic regions for at least five years.
* The company must demonstrate that their marks are particularly at risk for phishing and cybersquatting. One way to do so would be by having a minimum of five successful [[UDRP]] complaints or suspensions of infringing domains by a "top ten registrar."
* Marks will need to obtain a minimum total of 100 points, where one point is awarded for each legal protection in a jurisdiction, and for each successful UDRP, court action, or domain registrar suspension undertaken in relation to the mark.
Also blocked would be dictionary words from any of the UN’s six official languages.<ref>[http://www.thedomains.com/2012/08/20/melbourne-it-suggests-special-domain-protections-for-high-at-risk-marks-in-new-gtlds/ Melbourne IT Suggests Special Domain Protections For “High At-Risk Marks” In New gTLD’s, thedomains.com]</ref><ref>[http://domainincite.com/10176-whats-wrong-with-melbourne-its-new-anti-cybersquatting-plan What’s wrong with Melbourne IT’s new anti-cybersquatting plan?, domainincite]</ref>
Melbourne IT will be holding a half-day new gTLD trademark summit in Washington, D.C., on September 18. It will feature a panel, moderated by Melbourne IT Chief Strategy Officer and ICANN Vice-Chairman [[Bruce Tonkin]], made up of the following representatives:
* [[Andrew Abrams]], Trademark Counsel, [[Google]]
* [[James Bikoff]], Partner, [[Silverberg, Goldman & Bikoff]]
* [[Steve DelBianco]], Executive Director, [[NetChoice]] and Vice Chair Policy Coordination, ICANN [[GNSO]] [[Commercial and Business Users Constituency]]
* [[Dan Jaffe]], Group EVP Government Relations, [[Association of National Advertisers]]
* [[Jon Nevett]], Co-Founder, [[Donuts]]
* [[Russell Pangborn]], Associate General Counsel – Trademarks, [[Microsoft]]
* [[Craig Schwartz]], General Manager – Registry Programs, [[BITS]]/The Financial Services Roundtable
* [[Brian Winterfeldt]], Partner, [[Steptoe & Johnston]] and Counselor, ICANN GNSO [[Intellectual Property Constituency]]<ref>[http://domainincite.com/10272-melbourne-it-holding-new-gtld-trademarks-summit Melbourne IT holding new gTLD trademarks summit, domainincite.com]</ref>
==Awards==
==Awards==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}
[[Category: Registrars]]
[[Category: Registrars]]