Senator Thinks “.sucks” Domain Name Sucks

Senate Commerce Committee chairman Jay Rockefeller (D., W.V.) said Wednesday that companies shouldn’t be allowed to register website names that end in “.sucks” because it will allow third parties to conduct a “predatory shakedown scheme” of companies and nonprofits.

Rockefeller outlined his concerns in a letter to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which approves top-level domain names.

“It is clear that the companies competing to operate this [generic top-level domain] view it primarily as an opportunity to generate income through ‘defensive registrations,’” Rockefeller wrote, adding that he didn’t think approving the .sucks domain was in the public interest.

Three companies, Donuts Inc., Momentous Corp. and Top Level Spectrum Inc., have applied for approval for the .sucks domain. Rockefeller joined other parties which have previously raised concerns about ICANN approving the .sucks domain.

An ICANN spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

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