ICANN has announced that on 26 March 2013 it will launch its trade mark clearing house, a centralised repository for authenticated trade mark data, which is being created in connection with ICANN's new generic top-level domains (gTLDs) (see Legal update, WIPO outlines ICANN's trade mark rights protection mechanisms for new gTLDs). From this date, trade mark owners will be able to submit their trade mark data which will be independently verified. Once verified, trade mark owners will be able to use the sunrise registration period to register domain names that correspond with their marks for each new gTLD. They will also have the benefit of the trade mark claims service, which will provide automated notice to a trade mark owner when a domain name is registered that matches the owner's mark in the clearing house. The clearing house is proposing to charge trade mark owners $150 to record a mark for one year. ICANN anticipates that it will play an important role in the launch of the new gTLDs and in helping to ensure the ongoing protection of trade mark rights.

Source: ICANN announcement, 25 February 2013.