HK Issues Consultation Paper on Domain Names ManagementThe Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government Monday published a consultation paper on the proposed arrangements for the administration and assignment of Internet domain names and Internet protocol (IP) addresses in Hong Kong.The paper was produced by a task force set up under the Information Infrastructure Advisory Committee (IIAC) in October 1999 to review the administration and assignment of Internet domain names and IP addresses. Chairman of the task force, Charles Kao, told a press conference, "In reviewing the subject, we have carefully studied the existing arrangements in Hong Kong and also the practices in other economies." The major recommendations of the task force include setting up a new policy-making and administrative body, comprising members from different sectors, to assume the overall responsibility for Internet domain names administration in Hong Kong. The task force believed that more flexibility should be provided in the registration of .hk domain names and companies and organizations should be allowed to register more than one domain name. Domain names ending with .hk should in principle be transferable on valid grounds and registration by individuals in Hong Kong should be allowed, it said. The task force also suggested that an alternative dispute resolution mechanism should be established to strengthen the administrative measures on domain names dispute resolution. As of April 2000, the number of domain names in Hong Kong ending with .hk is around 37,000 whereas that of monthly new applications exceeds 2,000. |
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