|
|
|
||||
|
||||||
|
Electronic Frontier Foundation Media ReleaseNetwork Solutions Inc. Screwed Up Sex.com Domain DisputeEFF Says NSI Must Protect PublicFor Immediate Release: Wednesday, January 23, 2002San Francisco - The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) today asked an appeals court to hold Network Solutions, Inc., (NSI) responsible for mismanagement of the Sex.com domain name. The case arises from NSI's actions in taking the Sex.com domain name from appellant Gary Kremen and giving it to another Internet user who presented NSI with fraudulent information. In 2000, a lower court ruled that NSI, a private company which is the sole domain name registry for dot-com domain names, is immune from civil suit in cases where it negligently handled a domain name. Sex.com then appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and EFF filed an amicus brief in the case. "A court has ruled that NSI can screw up its monopoly on dot-com domain name management and face no consequence for its actions," said EFF Intellectual Property Attorney Robin Gross. "We hope the appellate court will recognize the danger in eliminating all accountability for this key component of Internet governance." "I'm pleased that EFF, which has always been a clear voice on cutting-edge Internet governance issues, supports the position that domain registrars are custodians of valuable business properties and have clear responsibilities to their customers," said San Francisco businessman Gary Kremen, plaintiff in the suit. "Everyone reasonably assumes the registrar will prevent poaching of domain names. It's time the law backed that up." VeriSign Inc. acquired NSI after the legal case was filed. Links:
Documents related to Sex.com case: About EFF:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading civil liberties
organization working to protect rights in the digital world. Founded in
1990, EFF actively encourages and challenges industry and government to
support free expression, privacy, and openness in the information
society. EFF is a member-supported organization and maintains one of the
most linked-to Web sites in the world: Contact:
Robin Gross, EFF Intellectual Property Attorney
James M. Wagstaffe, Kerr & Wagstaffe LLP, Attorney for Sex.com - end -
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
||||||
|
|
Please send any questions or comments to webmaster@eff.org. |
|||||