Will political chaos in Montenegro threaten the .me TLD?

[Theo]

PODGORICA, Montenegro - Police fired tear gas at thousands of angry pro-Serb Montenegrins who pelted state buildings and fired flares Monday to protest their government's recognition of Kosovo's independence.

Chanting "Treason! Treason!" and "Kosovo is Serbia!" the protesters condemned last week's decision to recognize the former Serbian province which declared independence in February.

Full story.

 

[draggar]

Just look at similar situations. The USSR no longer exists but that ccTLD still exists (.su).

 

[Theo]

The .su is controlled by the Russian federation.

In the event of a war or other social unrest in Montenegro, how safe is the infrastructure of the nameservers? In the event of a revolt, the first thing that will go down is the Internet, including all things .me

 

[David G]

The CC should not be effected.

I only have one .me anyway

 

[Gerry]

I think Verisign as early as last week took control of .me if I am not mistaken.

 

[BostonDomainer]

It is not politics that threatens the future of .me

 

[Theo]

I think that the situation is getting worse. For a national TLD, .me poses a lot of risks that are linked to the political stability of this Balkan nation.

Violent clashes on Monday night between police and pro-Serbian demonstrators resulted in dozens of injuries and arrests. About 10,000 people joined the protest in the capital, Podgorica, denouncing the decision of Milo Djukanovic’s government as a “stab in the back” to Serbia.

 

[anatoly]

i hope they aren't rioting about domains, i mean lets face it we got most of them on this forum....

 

[Theo]

Any Montenegrans on DNForum?

 

[ZeRohiLL]

There seems to be too much money in .me for it to flop over politics.

I think Verisign as early as last week took control of .me if I am not mistaken.

If they haven't, I'm sure they will.

-Zh

 

[draggar]

Still, .me was set up for people to utilize the meaning of ME and not to promote Montenegro businesses, just look at .TV. it was campaigned as a "better alternative as .com since everyone knows what a TV is".

As long as there is a demand for the ccTLD and the registry is still operational, the ccTLD will exist.

 

[Theo]

I don't see how .tv relates to .me
.me is a national TLD promoted as a catchphrase. But it's still a country TLD and it's dependent on that country's stability & ability to maintain it. That's something a lot of people that poured money into .me might have failed to take into account before investing.

 

[Gerry]

Any Montenegrans on DNForum?

I know one domainer from there but I am not sure he is on this forum.

All he has talked about was how beautiful the place was and how happy his family is living there.

I'll see if I can contact him.

My bad. Verisign acquired .name, not .me

http://icannblog.org/2008/10/06/verisign-acquires-name/

 

[Theo]

The Balkans are occupied by multiple ethnicities and religions and it's probably the most unstable peninsula in Europe. The main stabilizing force is Greece.

 

[Gerry]

I will never be able to comprehend one group's sense of need for ethnic cleansing and genocide.

 

[Theo]

Most of these ethnicities co-existed for hundreds of years without major clashes until the 20th century. Once the Ottoman empire dissolved, each nation's independence caused clusters of its people to be entrapped in other regions. Later on, communism took under its umbrella a handful of nations, when Yugoslavia was formed. And again, its splitting has caused a lot of instability in the region. Kosovo is the latest thorn in the Balkans.

 

[Gerry]

Most of these ethnicities co-existed for hundreds of years without major clashes until the 20th century. Once the Ottoman empire dissolved, each nation's independence caused clusters of its people to be entrapped in other regions. Later on, communism took under its umbrella a handful of nations, when Yugoslavia was formed. And again, its splitting has caused a lot of instability in the region. Kosovo is the latest thorn in the Balkans.

It is not just that region...Africa, the middle east, Phol Pot, Idi Amin. All Tribal Warfare that has simply escalated over the centuries. With todays modern weapons, it makes the task that much simpler. For those countries unable to afford such conveniences, a machete will do.

It is pure raw hated. In many cases, you can not physically tell the differences in your enemy. It is based on Religion or where someone lives.

 

[Sonny Banks]

They have to think before reg'd some .me domains

 

[katherine]

Only 2 name servers for the zone are located in Montenegro
http://www.iana.org/domains/root/db/me.html

 

[draggar]

I don't see how .tv relates to .me
.me is a national TLD promoted as a catchphrase. But it's still a country TLD and it's dependent on that country's stability & ability to maintain it. That's something a lot of people that poured money into .me might have failed to take into account before investing.

It was an example. .tv was promoted in a similar way, not as a way to promote Tuvalu but as a way to distinguish your site from a .com (as in asseenon.tv etc..). .me was promoted in the same way, yes, we all knew where it was for, but IMO it's primarily a vanity tld (like many ccTLDs) and a very good one for the usage with the literal meaning (me).

As long as the reg fees and renewals keep coming in, ICANN will make sure .me is around.