Domain Industry Call to Action

Good Morning,

Grab a cup of coffee. This will take about 10 minutes of your time.

Please read the very important call to action letter below that Michael Castello penned in behalf of domain investors and the domain industry. It is well thought out, passionate and much-needed. Howard and I support it 100% and ask for your support as well. The effort is about protecting all domain owners.  Whether they have 1 for their family business or 1000 as an investment.



Michael Castello

CEO/President

Castello Cities Internet Network, Inc.

http://www.ccin.com

michael@ccin.com
> Forgive me if I am long-winded here. I have some ideas that I want to share with you. Rick, Howard and I think alike and agree in how we see the Internet and domain names.

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> I've been involved with the ICANN Business Constituency for many years and, like you, was against the new gTLDs when first proposed. I could go on with reasons why I felt they were not needed and how ICANN has proceeded in approving them, but we now need to take a fresh look for our industry at large.

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> The new gTLDs are here, and I have resigned myself to them while seeing a silver-lining, which I believe is going to be very helpful to our industry.

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> In my opinion, domain names are the key to individual freedom and survival for the future Internet. For a small entry fee, domain name ownership gives an individual the ability to own his or her place in the virtual world.

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> When I was a recording artist, the one thing that would make or break my musical success was distribution. The ability to move music to the consumer was controlled by just a few companies. The Internet is likewise a global distribution network that everyone now has access to. Anyone can move an idea or product to any and all parts of the world. It is incredibly powerful and it allows single individuals to compete on a grand scale previously dominated by large telcos and corporations. It is my opinion that powerful Internet companies like Google, Facebook, Apple, and other "umbrella" corporations, have slowly shifted the perceptions of regular Internet users in regards to direct navigation in order to make domain names less crucial.

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> The URL(Address Bar) is something we all own but is also held captive by those that produce browsers. In 1994, the natural impulse for me was to use the Address Bar to navigate wherever I wanted to. I found colleges were online, and I could simply type Columbia.edu in the Address Bar and their website would pop up in front of me. What power, what freedom, to steer my magic carpet ride wherever I wanted. It was still barren land and it needed individuals with a vision to help build it.

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> Knowing that replicating the real word into the virtual world would take time, I saw the impatience of the public and businesses which resulted in the Dot Com Bubble. Since then, search engines have become very powerful because a user could always find a web page result while a web address did not always resolve to a working website.

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> After twenty years, almost every brand or keyword now has a viable, trusted website. The problem is that Google and Facebook have become the main way people navigate to these brands. The people of the virtual world bought into services provided by these walled gardens, giving Google, Facebook, and now the U.S. government, much more control of our navigation and information. I see a monopoly that in the past would have been regulated or broken up. I see what appears to be an alliance between the government and these companies that is benefiting them and in turn, controlling the web community. I believe this upends the scales of democracy.

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> What I've noticed:

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> For many years, Apple's Safari browser directly defaulted to the dot com when someone typed a keyword into its address bar. Now, after Steve Jobs has passed on, Apple no longer directs keywords to dot com, and those same keywords redirect to search results and advertisers. Steve Jobs understood the opportunity that domain names offered everyone. At one point in the past few years, Google nearly removed the address bar entirely in their Chrome browser in favor of their search bar. They even asked ICANN to consider resolving DNS to just "keywords" (which would have rendered gTLDs unnecessary!). Thankfully, ICANN turned them down, saying it would break the DNS(Domain Name System). Instead, Google moved its search bar right next to the address bar, and ultimately took control of the Address Bar. Google was changing the way people used the Internet. Much like CompuServe and Prodigy in the 80s, the Internet is reverting to a series of "intranets" that are owned by large corporations. Individual freedoms and inherent rights are being trampled on. Where are the leaders "for the people" in the virtual world to bring balance? What now are WE to do?

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> Domain names empower people. We could say domain names ARE people; they are that important. Everyone should have the opportunity to own a domain name and be unfettered in how they use it. Peer-to-peer (P2P) is liberty, but domain names now need protection from those entities which are diminishing their influence. The domain industry and the ICA(Internet Commerce Association) have a unique opportunity to take this plight and forge a positive result.

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> Along with all of the ccTLDs, the new gTLDs make the domain name pyramid much bigger, which gives the domain industry a greater virtual signature. Everyone who promotes the domain industry is an "asset. The new gTLD registries will likely spend millions of dollars to make the public aware of the importance of domain names. They will be doing the heavy lifting, and the more the public talks about domain names, the better the balance between individual users and powerful corporations. We can coalesce to work together.

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> I've suggested to the board of ICA an agreement to the "Understanding of Personal Empowerment" that I believe companies like Apple, Google and Facebook could agree with. It is in their best interests to show that they are helping domain names (i.e. individuals) and not trying to reduce their influence. Power from domain names IS power to the people. The timing is right for the domain industry and the ICA to work together to preserve direct navigation.

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> If we can't agree on this protection, then I believe ICA should lobby Congress to put in place regulations that will protect domain name owners. We need numbers; those numbers are also voters. In the future, everyone will need a domain name or virtual place of residence. What we do now will help the future users of the Internet find greater mobility and advancement.

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> Best wishes,

> Michael Castello
Rick Schwartz

Howard Neu


We are hoping all factions of the industry join to support this effort. It is bigger than any personal or past animus between any parties in the industry. It is not perfect but we continue to improve it and I will post the updated version in the days ahead. But being STUCK is really no longer an option.


We plan to spearhead this effort at T.R.A.F.F.I.C. in Las Vegas next month with an event for the ICA that will fund a very narrowly defined agenda as we will describe. We already have a 2nd and 3rd generation of Michael's letter as we strive to improve and clarify. But I think the original above needs to be posted too.


Michael Castello, Howard Neu and I with your help want to start a process that is long overdue, sorely needed and can no longer wait. I ask that you circulate as you see fit. This is all open to discussion and improvement.


I always look to history to find answers. We did not make the rules. We simply abide by them and exploit them. That is what the system is designed to do. We are actually doing what the system requires for success and for the system to work.

Many domain investors are ashamed of what they do. Many should be ashamed of what they do. There are a lot of bad domainers doing a lot of bad things and it is being compounded as we speak. Their abuses have nothing to do with us. It is up to us to draw a line and distinguish ourselves. Show some indignation when we see abuses and wrong doing. However, If you abide by the rules and guidelines, there is no shame to be had so hold your head high. I feel bad for those domainers that are not proud of what they do.




What we do has a lot of similarities to Homesteading. Maybe there are some answers there. I certainly use the history of how the USA was settled as a guideline from Day 1. Why cites sprang up where they did and why hundreds of years later there is still land that has never been developed or occupied. Ever. Are these landowners doing something wrong? Should they be ashamed? Looked down upon? Absolutely not! The average person does not look down at us.  I have never heard anything negative from the man on the street when I explain what I do. Never! They all say the same thing. "Wish I would have thought of that."


Here is the history of that important act and see if you can pull out things. It will cut both ways, but time to focus on the things that we have in common with history and build a foundation from there.







Thank you and look forward to hearing back from you with a YES and your CONSTRUCTIVE comments!


Thanks for your time, consideration and ultimately your support.


Rick Schwartz