Jan, 2000 : Comment Concerning Trailing-Hyphen Domain Names
Since the implementation of the Internetdomain-name system in the 1980s, the specifications publishedand implemented by the Internet community have not permitted labelsmaking up domain names to have trailing hyphens (e.g., "example-.com").Througout this period, the specifications for the format of domainnames have been well-known throughout the Internet technical community.They have been set forth in several RFCs, including RFC1035 (published in 1987) and RFC1123 (published in 1989). The commonly accepted specificationsare reflected in the functionalspecification for the Shared Registry System, through whichcompetitive registrar services were introduced in the .com/.net/.orgtop-level domains last year, which requires that labels end withletters or digits, not hyphens.
In the past several weeks, however, over 800 domain names withlabels containing trailing hyphens were registered by mistakein the .com/.net/.org registry. These names do not conform tothe the functional specification under which the .com/.net/.orgregistry is operated. The registry software in use before January3, 2000, however, permitted registrars to enter these malformattednames into the registry, and some registrars' software similarlyfailed to screen out requests to register these names. Promptlyupon learning that these names had been registered, the registryoperator (NSI-Registry)revised the software to reject additional requests to registernames of this format.
ICANN supports these corrections to maintainthe stability of the Internet. At the ICANN annual meeting onNovember 4, 1999, the ICANN Board approveda package of agreements among NSI, ICANN, the United StatesDepartment of Commerce, and the ICANN-accredited registrars. Thoseagreements require any names that are registered to comply withthe format specified in the registry's functional specification.They also provide that those registering domain names must agreeto cancellation of the registration in the event of a registryor registrar mistake, and in the case of every one of the trailing-hyphennames the registering party did in fact have such an agreement.
The use of domain names in this noncompliantformat presents interoperability problems. The documented formatis well-known throughout the Internet technical community. Amongother things, domain names that violate this format have the potentialof causing software written in reliance on these formats to malfunction,and several instances of actual malfunctions have been identified.
The U.S. Government's Statement of Policy on the Management of Internet Names and Addresses, 63 Fed. Reg. 31741 (June 10, 1998) (commonly known as the "White Paper") specifies that preserving the stability of the Internet should be the first priority of any DNS management system. A second principle that the White Paper states should guide DNS-management activities is the promotion of competition in the provision of registration services.
After consultation among ICANN, NSI-Registry,and the registrars involved, notices have been given to the registeringparties that these names were accepted and registered by mistakeand will be cancelled. These cancellations reflect implementationof longstanding policy, rather than adoption of any new policy.ICANN commends NSI-Registry and the registrars involved for workingconstructively within the competitive framework adopted at theMarch and November 1999 ICANN meetings to effectively and promptlyaddress this challenge to Internet stability. This sort of commitmentto stability and competition will continue and expand the manypublic benefits the Internet has brought.
Reads: 2342 | Category: Domain Names | Source: ICANN : Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
URL source: http://www.icann.org/announcements/trailing-hyphens-07jan00.htm
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