As a member of ICANN’s Business Constituency I have heard first-hand the perfectly appropriate criticisms from trademark holders of ICANN’s roll-out of new generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs). But while it may be OK for branded companies to wish they didn’t have to deal with the matter, the dust that has been kicked up has obscured real value in the program.

The new gTLDs give us the chance to create global marketplaces based on communities of interest. Think about it. For a city promoting tourism, visitors no longer will need to troll thatcityhotel.com or thatcityrestaurant.net or thatcitytransit.ca. It can all be assembled at .thatcity. The metaphor is even more powerful for active, global communities that could rally around domains like .golf or .art or .music (yes, I know there is a group working on that one!).

There are plenty of mechanisms in place to deal with those who would seek to lever a brand they do not own. The community can agree to more if it chooses; the structure is in place for that, too.

But to paint the launch of a host of new gTLDs with a tar brush of trademark criticism is to ignore the chance to create new global markets based on communities of interest.

I am a believer in brands and community.

Please Note: This post was originally published on Feb 12, 2009 on CircleID.