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.com.au
domain name policy
Contents
Historical Background
Introduction
Types of Commercial Entities
Allocation Rules
Licence Rules
Dispute Resolution
Acknowledgment and Warranties
1.0 Historical Background to com.au Naming
Policy
On 8 October 1996 the administrator of the .au domain space, Mr.
Robert Elz, formally granted Melbourne IT Ltd a licence for the
administration of the com.au domain. One of the licence conditions
is to not vary Mr Elz's pre-October 1996 policy for the acceptance
or rejection of com.au domain name applications without gaining
endorsement for the changes from an appropriate Internet community
body.
Since
November 96 Melbourne IT Ltd has three times received endorsement
for the fine tuning of the original policy:
In
February 1997 from the INTIAA DNS forum, to substitute the general
rejection of all common words by rejection of more specific classes
of words, such as gazetted place names and generic products (goods
or services);
In January 1998 from the ADNA Board, to use the Yellow Pages Index
as its guide when interpreting the com.au policy to reject "generic
words describing products (goods or services)"
In May 2000 from the auDA Board to confirm that Australian Business
Numbers "(ABN)" are an acceptable criterion for a domain
name applicant to meet the commercial eligibility requirement;.
1.1 Introduction
The com.au domain exists to enable eligible commercial entities
in Australia to have an Internet address (domain name) that is closely
aligned with their commercial name.
The
com.au domain is a listing service. It provides a distinct 1:1 correlation
between a domain name and an applicant's registered commercial name.
The com.au domain is a policy-driven domain. Some names, such as
place names or names of goods or services, will not be licensed
for use as com.au domain names.
This
document is the current policy for administering the com.au domain,
and replaces previous versions of the General (Naming) Policy. This
document contains the rules for the administration of the com.au
domain, and in particular those that determine the acceptance or
rejection of a com.au domain name application.
2.
Types of Eligible Commercial Entities
Only commercial entities registered and trading in Australia will
be allocated a com.au domain name. Applicants registering company
and business names to obtain particular domain names should be aware
of:
- Existing
State and federal legislation that governs the registration of
company and business names,
- The
requirements of this policy for an actual trading entity, and
- Section
4.3 Revoking a domain name licence.
The
following table lists types of eligible commercial entities. To
register a domain name for a type of entity not listed in the table,
you will need to demonstrate:
That
you have the rights to the commercial name, or
That the commercial entity is registered with a recognized Government
or industry authority.
An
eligible entity may be identifiable in one or more categories
| Type
of Eligible Entity |
Identified by |
Authority
|
| Trading
Name and Legal Names |
ABN
|
Australian
Business Registry |
| Companies
(including foreign companies registered to trade in Australia) |
ACN
(or ARBN for foreign companies) |
Australian
Securities and Investment Commission |
| Registered
Business Names |
Registered
Business Number |
State
Government Registries |
| Incorporated
Associations |
Association
Number |
State
Government Registries |
| Commercial
Statutory Bodies |
Act
of Parliament |
Federal
or State Parliament |
| Financial
Institutions |
Financial
Institution Code |
Relevant
Regulatory Authority |
| Registered
Superannuation Funds |
Fund
Number |
Relevant
Regulatory Authority |
3.
Allocation Rules
Complete and Correct Details
Single Domain Name per Eligible Entity
Composition of a com.au Domain Name
Uniqueness and Similarity
Allocation of Domain Names
Direct Derivation
Australian Place Names
'Generic' Words
Offensive or Obscene Domain Names
These
rules govern the licensing of com.au domain names. As these rules
are applied, com.au domain name applications that do not meet the
requirements here will be declined.
3.1
Complete and Correct Details
Complete and correct details must be provided with each and every
application. Agents (for example, Internet Service Providers) who
apply for domain names on behalf of their clients must not place
themselves as the administrative contact.
3.2
Single Domain Name per Commercial Entity
Only one domain name is licensed per eligible commercial entity.
Organizations with more than one eligible commercial entity (for
example, a company with several registered trading names) can apply
for one com.au domain name for each registered trading name.
3.3
Composition of a Domain Name
A com.au domain name must:
Be
at least two characters long
Contain only letters (a-z), numbers (0-9)and hyphens or a combination
of these
Start and end with an alphanumeric character, not a hyphen.
3.4 Uniqueness and Similarity
No two com.au domain names can be exactly the same (e.g. there can
be only one xyz.com.au). No test is made to ensure:
- That
the same or a similar domain name already exists in another domain
(e.g. net.au, .com)
- That
the domain name is not too similar to an existing registered com.au
(or other domain) domain name, such as
-
the plural or singular form of a word or phrase.
3.5 Allocation of Domain Names
com.au domain names are licensed to applicants on a 'first-come,
first-served' basis. There is no provision for queuing of applications.
If a domain name is already licensed, or if an application is pending
for that name, no further applications will be accepted for that
name until the name is either revoked or the pending application
declined.
If
an application is declined (or a domain name removed), the pending
entry is removed from the AUNIC registry and the domain name is
immediately available.
3.6
Direct Derivation
Applicants can use the complete name of their eligible commercial
entity, or an abbreviation. When an abbreviation is requested:
- The
domain name can only be derived from the characters contained
in the commercial entity name,
- Characters
can be removed from the commercial entity name to create the domain
name, but the sequence of the characters cannot be altered, and
- New
characters (that do not appear in the commercial entity name)
cannot be introduced to the domain name.
3.7 Australian Place Names
Australian place names and their common abbreviations are overly
representative (i.e. representing all commerce for a particular
community or in a geographic region) and will not be licensed for
use as com.au domain names. Some examples are in the table below.
| Place |
Example
Names |
Common
abbreviation |
| This
country |
Australia |
au,
aus, oz |
| States
and Territories |
Queensland,
Victoria |
qld,
vic, act, nsw |
| Regions |
Gippsland
|
|
| Local
Government Areas |
Stonnington |
|
| Suburbs |
Paddington
|
|
3.8
Generic Words
Words that represent commercial categories or sectors are overly
representative and will not be licensed for use as com.au domain
names. Some examples are in the table below.
| Commercial
|
Description |
Examples
|
| Products,
services and professions |
Any
generic word that is defined and used to represent products,
services or professions. Typically, these are words that appear
in an Australian word list (e.g. The Macquarie Dictionary) and
also in a commercial category listing (e.g. The Yellow Pages
Index®). |
cars,
accounting, solicitor, weddings, manager, hifi, winery |
| Industries,
industry sectors and organisation types |
Any
word that represents an industry, industry sector or organisation
type. |
mining, finance, company, bank |
| N.B.
multiple-word phrases such as 'pressrelease' or 'wedding-car-hire'
are allowed. |
3.9
Offensive or Obscene Domain Names
It has been the policy of Melbourne IT Ltd to reject domain names,
which by themselves or as part of a name or word, by normally accepted
standards are unacceptable because they are obscene, offensive or
contrary to public policy. Until such time as a new regulatory body
of the .au domain space has been able to determine policy in this
area, Melbourne IT Ltd intends to continue to adopt a conservative
policy with regard to registration of such names.
4.
Licence Rules
4.1 Licence Period and Renewal
The initial licence period for a com.au domain name is two years.
The licence to use the com.au domain name can be renewed at the
end of each licence period, subject to current terms and conditions.
The administrator will attempt to contact licensees (or their agents)
when the domain name licence requires renewal, but licensees are
responsible to ensure renewal
4.2
Domain Name Licence Transfer
The licence to use the com.au domain name cannot be transferred
or sold to another party.
4.3
Revoking a domain name licence
The licence to use the com.au domain name can be terminated for
reasons outlined in the table below.
| Reason |
Description |
| Fee
not paid |
Where
the prescribed fee is not paid within the required time |
| Breach
of warranty |
Where
the warranty supplied by the applicant or their agent is breached |
| Incorrect
info |
Where
misleading, incomplete or incorrect information is supplied
in the application |
| Court
decision |
Where
a court of competent authority determines that the domain name
should not be licensed to the current licensee, be removed from
the registry, or be licensed to another party |
| Name
Change |
Where
the commercial name used by the licensee to obtain the domain
name is changed, or if the licence to use the registered commercial
name ceases. |
| Instruction |
Where
instructed by the current licensee of the domain name |
| Error |
Where
a domain name which could not otherwise be registered under
this policy is registered through mistake, oversight or otherwise
(within thirty days of registering the domain name):
The administrator may send notice (of not less than thirty
days) stating the intention to cancel the registration, and
stating the reasons for the proposed cancellation
The administrator may remit the fee payable for the new domain
name in place of the cancelled domain name
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5.
Dispute Resolution
Disputes over com.au domain names are resolved via the procedure
outlined below. This procedure applies to both declined com.au domain
name applications, and disputes over already-licensed com.au domain
names.
| Stage |
Description |
| Notice |
The
originator of the dispute sends notice of the dispute in writing
to the administrator |
| Negotiation
and conciliation |
The
originator, the administrator and any third parties must attempt
to settle the dispute by negotiations and conciliation. |
| Arbitration |
If the above attempts fail to settle the dispute, the parties
agree to refer the dispute to a commercial disputes centre.
All parties must agree to be bound by the ruling of the arbiter.
The costs of the dispute are borne by the originator. |
6.
Acknowledgment and Warranties
For the administration of the com.au domain, reliance is placed
upon the information and warranties supplied by applicants or their
agents. By applying for a com.au domain name, applicants:
- Warrant
that the information provided in the application is complete,
true and correct.
- Warrant
that the registration and/or use of the com.au domain name does
not breach any third party's rights (such as those of a registered
trademark holder).
- Warrant
that they have read and understood this policy and proceed on
the basis that this policy is legally binding.
- Indemnify
the administrator to the full extent legally permitted against
all claims and demands from third parties regarding registration
and use of the com.au domain name.
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