Global music community prevails in winning the rights to the .MUSIC domain extension

Press Release

DotMusic Limited (www.music.us) announces that their global music community application for the .MUSIC registry prevailed.   ICANN will award DotMusic the rights to the .MUSIC top-level domain name extension and move to contracting soon.

Other applicants for .MUSIC included global companies, Google and Amazon, leading domain registries, Donuts, Radix and MMX, and other interested groups.

.MUSIC will be the first domain extension launched with music-tailored policies to protect creators’ rights and ensure that legitimate music artists, industry professionals and companies can claim their name without fear of cybersquatting or piracy.

“This is a new digital era for the global music community,” said DotMusic founder and CEO Constantine Roussos. “For the first time in Internet history, music community members will be able to register their own exclusive, verified, and trusted .MUSIC domain name.”

“IFPI congratulates DotMusic on the success of its application to manage the .MUSIC domain.  As the online marketplace around the world continues to evolve, so too do the challenges the music community faces in preventing music from being made available illegally and ensuring fans have access to licensed services. We welcome DotMusic’s commitments to safeguard .MUSIC domains against unlawful uses and we look forward to working closely with the DotMusic team in implementing those commitments,” said Frances Moore, Chief Executive of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), representing the recording industry worldwide.

“As the world’s largest global network for creators, with member societies in over 120 countries, CISAC welcomes the .MUSIC domain and the opportunities it can create to develop a stronger and more responsible environment for licensed music,” said Gadi Oron, Director General of the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC).

“A vetted .MUSIC domain is fully in line with our Federation’s goal to protect and further the economic, social and artistic interests of musicians globally,” said Benoît Machuel, the General Secretary of the International Federation of Musicians.

“IFACCA congratulates DotMusic on the success of its campaign to launch a trusted community-based domain for artists, and we particularly welcome its international community approach to tackle this complex issue. IFACCA’s vision is a world in which arts and culture thrive and are recognised by governments and peoples for their contribution to society; this initiative promises to help realise this vision, by supporting artists to thrive – not least by protecting their welfare and intellectual property rights –  and providing a trusted space for global audiences to engage with and support artists,” said Magdalena Moreno Mujica, Executive Director, International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (IFACCA).

“We congratulate the DotMusic team on their successful application. Since the beginning, our hope was that this process would yield a .MUSIC domain where proper and effective safeguards would protect the rights of music creators globally and allow them control over their work. We look forward to working with DotMusic on implementing this vision to ensure that the internet ecosystem is a safe, vibrant, and innovative place where legitimate music creation, access, and distribution can thrive,” said Brad Buckles, Chief Content Protection Officer, Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

“The NMPA applauds DotMusic for establishing a critical domain that is tailored for the music creator community. This was a hard-fought and competitive process and we look forward to the great potential of the .MUSIC domain for songwriters and music publishers alike who will greatly benefit from its piracy and copyright protections,” said David Israelite, President and CEO, National Music Publisher Association (NMPA).

“As an organization of performers, songwriters, and studio professionals, the Recording Academy is pleased to see the community-focus for the new .MUSIC domain. We look forward to working with the team at DotMusic to ensure creators and intellectual property are respected on all .MUSIC sites,” said Daryl P. Friedman, Chief Industry, Government and Relations Officer, The Recording Academy / GRAMMYs.

“Our mission at IMPALA is to grow the independent music sector in Europe. In our digital action plan, our aims included effectively tackling infringing websites and giving music consumers the best digital infrastructure in the world based on trust and security,” said Helen Smith, Executive Chair, Independent Music Companies Association (IMPALA). “It is good news that an application abiding by community commitments prevailed and we look forward to working with the DotMusic team to achieve our mutual objectives and create a safe and innovative ecosystem for global music consumption.”

“WIN welcomes the announcement that DotMusic has succeeded in its application to manage the .MUSIC top-level-domain. We look forward to working together to ensure this opportunity will benefit the music community by further developing the licensed online music market, and creating another line of defense against piracy,” said Charlie Phillips, COO, Worldwide Independent Network (WIN).

“A2IM’s mission to promote growth, awareness and equality of opportunity for independent music through advocacy, education and community, is aligned with .MUSIC’s principles. We welcome the launch of the .MUSIC domain that addresses the concerns and needs of the music community,” said Dr. Richard James Burgess, President and CEO, American Association of Independent Music (A2IM).

“Congratulations to DotMusic for being chosen as the winning applicant for the .MUSIC Internet domain registry.   It is very important to have a domain where music can be commerced with built-in safeguards, such as protections against piracy, infringement and cybersquatting,” said Bart Herbison, Executive Director, NSAI.  “Our industry has waited a long time for this to materialize and we look forward to working together to build an unparalleled global music domain.”

“We welcome the establishment of the first domain dedicated to the vast ecosystem of music makers and look forward to this next-level of community development in the digital space,” said Joe Lamond, NAMM President and CEO.

“IMPF is really pleased for all the team at DotMusic for having prevailed.  We are delighted that the .MUSIC domain name extension will afford all of us – music publishers, composers, songwriters and our associations – the opportunity to ensure that we can claim and protect our names against cybersquatters. It has been a long journey but it is great to see the international music community validated,” said Pierre Mossiat, President, Independent Music Publishers International Forum (IMPF).

The .MUSIC registry team will work closely with the global music community and the .MUSIC Governance Board to prepare for the safe, responsible and prudent launch of .MUSIC. The expected launch for .MUSIC is 2020.

For more information on .MUSIC, visit https://www.music.us

For media inquiries, contact media@music.us

To apply to become an MCMO .MUSIC Reseller, visit https://www.music.us/reseller

To pre-register, visit https://music.us/pre-registration