Talks Continue Over Allowable Dot-Names

By Ian Bush

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Talks continue over a new way to surf the web, with new options coming alongside dot-com, dot-org, and the like.

But this past week saw a major automaker pull its applications for its own dot names.

General Motors had applied for .chevy, .buick and three other generic top-level domains, but now says the program doesn't fit with its digital strategy.

That, and the $185,000 fee just to have a dot name considered, along with continuing costs after approval, may have played a role.

But other companies are sticking with it.

"There are 1900 applications; everything from .cloud, .music, .art, to brand names," says Politico Silicon Valley correspondent Michelle Quinn.

She says ICANN, the overseer of Internet naming, is taking public comment on the process.

A concern for some are so-called "closed generic names," like .book or .car, where the owner would refuse to sell them to other brands.

"Companies who are doing this are saying we just want to try different business models. But some people say this is anti-competitive," Quinn explains.

The first batch of approved dot names is expected to be announced in late April.