Ever since ICANN announced its intention to expand the number of Internet top level domains it met noisy opposition from brand and trademark holders egged on by their intellectual property lawyers.  They were concerned about the possibility of online fraud and cybersquatting.

Their totally appropriate demands for safeguards and the apparent lack of interest in the new gTLDs by brand marketers combined to slow the program’s progress to a snail’s pace.  But in recent months, the marketers have begun to warm to the possibility.  A report commissioned by the French domain name registrar, Gandi, called “Liberalisation of the Internet,” found that only one-third of companies surveyed even knew about the program.  But of those that did were “excited about the opportunities in the areas of global branding.”

This prospective value has now been matched by retrospective advantage to gTLDs that already exist but reflect the likely approach of those to come.  Like .travel which was approved in 2005.

In recent days, the organization which manages the .travel registry has reported increased consumer familiarity with the address.  And industry partners and others who report on them are noting that the new names are drawing increased attention by search engines, like Google. Even earlier, ICANN’s Implementation Recommendation Team offered a view of additional safeguards that seem to be getting some traction.   What is certain is the program will adopt stronger brand and trademark protections than have heretofore been seen.

A reasonable person would think that these moves would cause the intellectual property lawyers to take a step back and review.  But that reasonable person would be wrong.  Despite the evidence of what good has happened, even those most closely a part of ICANN continue to focus on the darket clouds they can imagine.

In a recent news report, “Steven Metalitz, president of Icann’s Intellectual Property Constituency, has warned that firms failing to register new domain names with generic extensions could become victims of cybersquatting.”   At a time when the gTLD program is gaining ground among the clients for whom they work, the lawyers constructive criticism has become just criticism.

As ICANN gets closer to issuing the RFP for new gTLDs, the original black-and-white argument against the plan is fading away but not the opposition.  Now, as smart marketers are coming around to the real-world value of owning a branded domain name extension, the nay-sayers are turning to other, equally unsubtle criticisms.

The new gTLDs will create “ghettos.” But then couldn’t that criticism be leveled at every sponsored top level domain, like .cat, .jobs and .travel?  And what about the country code top level domains?

The current case in point is everyone’s favorite new gTLD, .eco.  A commitment to the environment, a plan to finance green businesses and an application team including former Vice President Al Gore.  A idea good enough to draw other, equally green groups intending to offer a competing .eco application with their own international man of green, Mikail Gorbachev and his Green Cross.

This should all make for a lively stew of an agenda at ICANN’s meeting in Seoul in late October.  We got a taste (pun intended) of gTLD value in Sydney when chef and restauranteur Wolfgang Puck flew in to promote his interest in .food and a view of the fight over those with real value when two .music groups attended the meeting in Mexico City.

What is clear is that the program will launch, the process will winnow the applicants the market will pick the winners.  As of now, to quote Shaw, all we are doing is “haggling over price.”