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    • .hotels

    Generic top-level domainsIDNDNSSEC

    Overview

    • .hotels is a generic top-level domain (gTLD) string applied for under ICANN's New gTLD Program.
    • The applicant was Booking.com. The registry listed in the application context is Neustar.
    • The string targets the hotel/hospitality sector and was proposed for use by entities connected to hotels and lodging services.

    History

    • Application period: submitted during ICANN's New gTLD Program (application results revealed 13 June 2012).
    • Applicant: Booking.com.
    • Registry operator (as listed): Neustar.

    Key milestones:

    • GAC Early Warning: Australia (GAC Chair Heather Dryden) issued a GAC Early Warning citing concern that the applicant was seeking exclusive access to a common generic string, which could negatively affect competition.
    • String Similarity Panel (SSP): In February 2013 the SSP found .hotels and .hoteis too similar and placed them in a contention set.
    • Independent Review Proceeding (IRP): Booking.com filed an IRP in March 2014 challenging the SSP process/ICANN board actions. In early March 2015 the IRP panel ruled in favor of ICANN but found the SSP process flawed and ordered ICANN to pay half the panel's costs.
    • ICANN Auction: The contention set containing .hotels and .hoteis went to an ICANN auction on 18 November 2015. Booking.com won the auction with a winning bid of $2.2 million, securing exclusive rights to .hotels.

    Usage and Audience

    • Intended audience: businesses and organizations in the hotel and hospitality industry.
    • Stakeholders: large hotel chains and trade groups were highly engaged; many hotel operators opposed exclusive control over the generic string and supported alternative applicants.
    • Organized opposition: the Hotel Consumer Protection Coalition (representing over 25,000 hotels worldwide) filed complaints against the .hotels application and supported the .hotel application by HOTEL Top-Level-Domain S.a.r.l. HOTREC (Hotels, Restaurants & Cafés in Europe) also filed objections.

    SEO and Brand Impact

    • Competition and exclusivity concerns: a GAC Early Warning highlighted that granting exclusive rights to a common generic term like "hotels" could have unintended consequences and negatively impact competition and market access.
    • Brand positioning: control of a highly generic and industry-descriptive string like .hotels was a significant brand and commercial objective for the applicant (Booking.com), but it also attracted broad industry scrutiny and objections.

    Notable Cases or Examples

    • GAC Early Warning from Australia (Heather Dryden) flagging potential competitive harm.
    • String Similarity Panel decision placing .hotels and .hoteis in contention.
    • Booking.com's IRP (filed March 2014) challenging the SSP process; IRP outcome (March 2015) sided with ICANN on the merits but criticized the SSP process and ordered cost-sharing.
    • ICANN auction (18 November 2015): Booking.com won .hotels for $2.2 million.
    • Community objections: filed by the Hotel Consumer Protection Coalition and HOTREC against the .hotels application.

    Operator

    Booking.com B.V.

    Whois

    % IANA WHOIS server
% for more information on IANA, visit http://www.iana.org
% This query returned 1 object

domain:       HOTELS

organisation: Booking.com B.V.
address:      Herengracht 597
address:      Amsterdam Noord-Holland 1017 CE
address:      Netherlands (the)

contact:      administrative
name:         Christopher Niemi
organisation: Markmonitor Inc.
address:      1120 S. Rackham Way, Suite 300
address:      Meridian ID 83642
address:      United States of America (the)
phone:        +1 208-389-5740
e-mail:       dothotels@markmonitor.com

contact:      technical
name:         IANA Contact
organisation: GoDaddy Registry
address:      100 S. Mill Ave, Suite 1600
address:      Tempe AZ 85281
address:      United States of America (the)
phone:        +1 480 505 8800
fax-no:       +1 480 624 2546
e-mail:       iana@registry.godaddy

nserver:      A.NIC.HOTELS 2001:dcd:1:0:0:0:0:10 37.209.192.10
nserver:      B.NIC.HOTELS 2001:dcd:2:0:0:0:0:10 37.209.194.10
nserver:      C.NIC.HOTELS 2001:dcd:3:0:0:0:0:10 37.209.196.10
nserver:      NS1.DNS.NIC.HOTELS 156.154.169.3 2610:a1:1071:0:0:0:1:3
nserver:      NS2.DNS.NIC.HOTELS 156.154.170.3 2610:a1:1072:0:0:0:1:3
nserver:      NS3.DNS.NIC.HOTELS 156.154.171.3 2610:a1:1073:0:0:0:1:3
ds-rdata:     51700 8 2 844a568caab77e76130c1551ac820b3a41a3c39f6419ba2411f9e3d3a581765e

whois:        whois.nic.hotels

status:       ACTIVE
remarks:      Registration information: http://www.booking.com

created:      2016-09-16
changed:      2024-05-11
source:       IANA