[governance] ccTLDs - potential source of income for developing countries?

[Phil Regnauld]

kwasi boakye-akyeampong (kboakye1) writes:
> Folks,
> 
> I hope I'll be able to ask my question clear enough to get the right answers.
> 
> Are there any direct benefits of ccTLDs to:
> 
>    countries, and
>    businesses 
> 
> since a business in say, Ghana can buy a domain name with a .co.uk extension?
> 
> I'd appreciate any response.

	
	It all depends on the policy of the ccTLD (or any TLD for that matter)
	that you are trying to buy into.  If co.uk has a policy that says that
	you must be a registered business in the UK, then that's the limitation.

	Otherwise, I'm not sure I understand the question "are there any
	direct benefits of ccTLDs to countries and businesses".  If you're
	asking if there's some kind of advantage to registering a ccTLD
	in the domain in which your business is incorporated or has its
	offices, then that depends again on that ccTLD's policy.  In some
	cases national law will provide you better protection with regards
	to trademark claims (when defending or litigating), as compared
	to say a .COM, but then again there are trends to attempt to get
	ccTLDs to subscribe to UDRP-style policies.

	If you're asking "can the ccTLD be a source of income", well yes,
	that all depends on your pricing scheme, how easy it is to register
	and qualify, etc...

	Some countries use part or most of the registration fee (if the Registry
	is already being funded by some other organization), for example to
	contribute to a digital divide fund, or to finance network development/
	access.

	It's a tradeoff of "protecting the national TLD" (for example
	restricting registration within a given ccTLD to individuals or businesses
	that are residents or nationals of that country alone vs. "Free for all
	and make loads of cash" (like .NU, .TV, ...).  What the money ends
	up being used for is another question.

	The general idea is: don't let a third party, foreign company manage
	your ccTLD for you.  Do it yourself!

	Phil
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