[Gnso-newgtld-wg] Proposed agenda - New gTLD Subsequent Procedures PDP WG - 12 August 2019 at 15:00 UTC

[lists at christopherwilkinson.eu]

Dear Jeff :
During our most recent conference call, you asked me to quantify the scope of the Foreign edchange Transactions and the businesses supported by protected geographical indications.

As I said at the time, I do not have the time or resources to conduct a thorough study, but a few minutes’ Goodle Search gives rise to confirmation of the importance of these economic activities.
1.	Foreign exchange transactions (ISO 4217 currency codes.)
« According to the Bank for International Settlements, the preliminary global results from the 2016 Triennial Central Bank Survey of Foreign Exchange and OTC Derivatives Markets Activity show that trading in foreign exchange markets averaged $5.09 trillion per day in April 2016. »
https://www.statista.com/statistics/247328/activity-per-trading-day-on-the-global-currency-market/ <https://www.statista.com/statistics/247328/activity-per-trading-day-on-the-global-currency-market/>
As I understand these FOREX markets, (a) a significant proportion of these transactions are automatic outcomes of small shifts in the exchange rates and (b) the transactions involve the electronic identification of the buying and selling parties and currencies.

Subject to confirmation or contradiction I believe that the ISO 4217 alpha3 codes are widely used for that purpose. This is why I have argued in WT5 and in the PDP that these currency codes should be reserved by ICANN until there is a clear agreement with the international Central Banks (e.g. through IMF or BSI) as to whether these codes could be delegated and to which entities, not excluding themselves.
Geographical Indications (GIs)

The IPR rights in GIs are well established in many jurisdictions. Their economic significance is considerable in the regions most concerned. At short notice, I only have an EU source to quantify their economic importance. From an 2011 EU Court of Auditors report (There are others):

https://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_ECA-11-41_en.htm <https://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_ECA-11-41_en.htm>
“The geographical indications (GI) scheme aims to protect product names which are registered as Protected Designation of Origin or Protected Geographical Indication, whose overall wholesale value is estimated at € 15 billion (per year-cw). The scheme also provides a potential economic opportunity for farmers and producers of food and can have a positive impact on the rural economies of the EU’s regions, as well as offer an impetus for safeguarding local culture and tradition and provide consumers with the opportunity to be more aware of the origin of the products they consume.”


Granted that fifteen billion per year is less than five trillion per day. But I nevertheless consider that since the GIs are protected by applicable local law, ICANN should reserve all such names in the agreed languages. and regulate eventual delegation to authorised Registries.

I trust that this preliminary response to your question is helpful

Regards

Christopher Wilkinson


> On 9 Aug 2019, at 14:33, Julie Hedlund <julie.hedlund at icann.org <mailto:julie.hedlund at icann.org>> wrote:
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