.name Grandfathered

The announcement reports that Verisign has withdrawn its plan to terminate 22,000 .name domain names and email redirects, ending a prolonged and costly fight. Verisign will stop accepting new registrations for third-level .name domains, but all existing domains and redirects will be preserved indefinitely. That includes the author’s own website. The outcome therefore protects current users while closing off future registrations in this part of the .name system; it does not restore the ability to register new third-level names.

The result came through a broad campaign involving people who initiated the effort, presented arguments to ICANN in person, filed formal reconsideration requests, pursued legal challenges, and submitted letters of support. One participant traveled to Bali to make the case directly to ICANN, while the author’s lawyers mounted a formal challenge to the organization’s actions. The author credits dozens of supporters and also thanks ICANN staff who opposed the termination plan from within. The account presents the reversal as a collective achievement, made possible by sustained advocacy and legal pressure against an institutional decision that would have erased established domains and redirects.