The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has embarked on a programme of allowing new generic top-level domains on the internet (like .com), an initiative that has worried trademark holders and international organisations. Now the World Intellectual Property Organization Arbitration and Mediation Center is offering services for trademark holders who wish to challenge proposals for new gTLDs later this year.

WIPO “has been appointed by ICANN as the exclusive provider of dispute resolution services for trademark based ‘pre-delegation’ Legal Rights Objections under ICANN’s New gTLD Program,” it says in its webpage on the services.

This mechanism forms part of the Trademark Rights Protection Mechanisms for New gTLDs, accompanying the ICANN initiative.

Applications for new gTLDs are due at ICANN by 12 April, and will be made public soon after by ICANN, which will announce the objection filing period, expected to about seven months, according to WIPO.