On 30 March, 2015 the new controversial gTLD .SUCKS will launch. Vox Populi, the managing registry for .SUCKS, says that this TLD aims to create a space online where consumers can voice their opinions and provide criticism for business and organizations.
This gTLD could have major implications for trade mark owners as it could bring unwanted and unwarranted criticism to their brands.
We at Lexsynergy agree with you and the majority of the domain industry that this new gTLD sucks. However, the implications are too high to ignore. Lexsynergy considers .SUCKS to be high risk and recommends that all trade mark owners register matching .SUCKS domain names during the Sunrise phase. If trade marks are not protected and another party registers a domain name that matches your mark it could be difficult to recover if the site is being used as a place for consumers to review your brand.
If your brands do not have a trade mark, we recommend utilizing the block service which is available starting with the General Availability phase on 1 June, 2015.
More information, including details on each launch phase and costs, can be found at: http://www.lexsynergy.com/tlds/sucks
If you are interested in protecting your trade mark and registering a .SUCKS domain name, you can register it by logging into your account at www.lexsynergy.com or email us at [email protected] and one of our team members will be in touch.