The idea for geographic domain names has been around for a long time, according to Chris Disspain, CEO of the Australian domain name administrator, auDA. He told ZDNet Australia the original names panel believed there was a need for a geographic name system, so there is a place for communities to have Web sites.
"There is perceived to be a need for it now, and they've demonstrated community acceptance of the concept, so it was slightly fast-tracked," said Disspain. The proposal being recommended was put forward by the One City One Site working party (OCOS), and is based on the concept of using geographic place names to create community portals.
The proposed second level domain names (2LDs) would be act.au, nsw.au, nt.au, qld.au, sa.au, tas.au, vic.au, and wa.au. Their use would be restricted to community Web site portals that reflect community interests, according to auDA.
The proposed domain name structure would be placename.state/territory.au, eg bathurst.nsw.au, with the site acting as a portal for the community. For example, a library could have library.bathurst.nsw.au, and an op-shop could have opshop.bathurst.nsw.au. Local businesses could also list under the community portal.
"It's a seemingly sensible thing to be doing, and it provides a good structure for geographic-based names," said Larry Bloch, CEO of registrar NetRegistry. He said it would provide another avenue for businesses to register in their local state, and therefore not clash with the names of businesses in other states.
One of the problems with the Australian domain name space is you need to be a registered business to obtain a .com.au domain name, but businesses in different states can have the same name, creating problems when it comes to creating an online entity. Bloch said the only point of difference he has with the proposal is that businesses can't register directly under the second level domain name.
"I'm not a big fan of restrictions," said Bloch. "I would have liked to see it open directly under the applicable state."
Josh Rowe, editor of whatsinaname.com.au, also thinks the proposal is well thought out. "I think it will be fantastic for the community," he said. "To date there hasn't been a second level domain that has said 'we are this community as a whole'. I think it will be a winner."
According to Disspain, another benefit of the proposal is that currently prohibited domain names will become available. For the last five years geographic domain names have been prohibited, and the only ones that exist are those that were registered before the policy came in. Once the geographic 2LD system is in place, these prohibited domain names will become available.
Disspain added that the other proposals to the panel had not been subject to a decision yet, and the community would probably have to wait until the beginning of next year before a decision was made.
auDA has asked the panel to undertake a final public consultation before submitting its final recommendation, with a deadline for comments being Tuesday November 5 2002. The system will take around 12 months after that to implement.
Yeah Just what we need something else to make it even more confusing. Did the person who recommended this want to sell the names as well??