The Intellectual Property Constituency (IPC) is a component of the Generic Names Supporting Organization (gNSO), which itself is a branch of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). On March 9, 2021, the IPC formally requested ICANN to suspend the procedure that should give rise to a new system of access and disclosure of Whois data, known as “Standardized System of Access and Disclosure” or “SSAD.”
The IPC believes that the proposed system does not meet consumer protection requirements and, more broadly, is not in the public interest. Representatives of intellectual property rights (IPR) holders refer, inter alia, to the proposed directive on cybersecurity (NIS 2 directive), which could rebalance the interests at stake through the exercise of the principle of proportionality. Indeed, for IPR holders confronted with the consequences of the General Data Protection Regulation (eur-lex.europa.eu) on Whois data, the prospect of this coming directive arouses a legitimate hope. Therefore, it would be prudent to wait.
Source: icann.org, 2021-03-09.
