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2017-11-08

New gTLD .WEB Appeal by Ruby Glen (Donuts), ICANN's Answering Brief

New gTLD .WEB Litigation Ruby Glen, LLC v. ICANNICANN's Answering Brief filed Oct 30, 2017, in the Ninth Circuit. The appeal was brought by Ruby Glen LLC (Donuts affiliate) from the Final Judgment (pdf) and Order (pdf) dismissing Ruby Glen's First Amended Complaint (FAC) with prejudice, entered by the U.S. District Court at Los Angeles.

Answering Brief excerpt (page 23 of 75):

ICANN's Answering Brief's Conclusion:

ICANN's Answering Brief [pdf, 393 KB] 30 October 2017, full embed below:

See also:
Also note: "How long does it take from the time of the notice of appeal until oral argument? For civil, agency, or bankruptcy appeals, cases are typically scheduled for oral argument 12- 20 months from the notice of appeal date. If briefing isn’t delayed, this is typically approximately 9-12 months from completion of briefing."--The Appellate Lawyer Representatives’ Guide To Practice in the United States Court of Appeals for The Ninth Circuit (June 2017 ed.) (pdf), p. 16 (emphasis added).

Opinion and Analysis by the Editor of Domain Mondo
Donuts (Ruby Glen) has an extremely weak case, which it should have never filed. By appealing, Donuts is setting itself up--and all other registry operators and new gTLD applicants, now, and in the future (under the common law principle of stare decisis)--for a Ninth Circuit decision that will (but for a few narrow exceptions) "close the courthouse door" to all future wannabe gTLD litigants.

Verisign $VRSN is in no hurry to launch .WEB, as there is a pending CID from the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, and ICANN also has a pending CEP (pdf) with Donuts and Ruby Glen. In the meantime, most other new gTLDs are "dying on the vinein the global market for domain names as "essentially, an unwanted and defective product."  The further away from the stench of the failing new gTLDs that Verisign is able to position .WEB, the more successful .WEB will be once launched. Once launched (and properly marketed), few doubt that Verisign will quickly recoup all of its upfront investment in .WEB  ($135Million+) and will thereafter enjoy years of a recurring cash flow stream well in excess of a hundred million dollars annually. As others have also noted, .WEB is, potentially, the only "must have" new gTLD for developers, investors, speculators, and trademark registrants, alike.

For further background, see on DomainMondo.comNews Review: ICANN Webinars ...  2) Other ICANN news a. New gTLD .WEB Litigation Sep 10, 2017, excerpt:

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