ICANN Seeks Dismissal of Donuts Suit Over .web Auction
ICANN filed a motion to dismiss domain name registry Donuts' lawsuit against the organization over the auction of the .web generic top-level domain. Donuts' Ruby Glen subsidiary sued in July in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. The registry filed…
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an amended complaint in August seeking damages of $22.5 million -- plus interest (see 1608090036). Donuts claims ICANN intentionally failed to adequately investigate what the company believed ahead of the .web auction to be possible changes in the ownership or control of rival bidder Nu Dot Co (see 1607250051 and 1607270027). Nu Dot Co won the .web auction, then Verisign said it funded the purchase with the understanding that control of .web would pass to the .com domain registry (see 1608010008). ICANN claimed in Wednesday's motion to dismiss (in Pacer) that Donuts failed to “set forth a plausible ground” for its claims. Donuts' claims are barred by its “agreement to pursue its claims in ICANN's accountability mechanisms” via the anti-lawsuit covenant placed in all gTLD applications, ICANN said. Donuts also failed to join Nu Dot Co in the suit, “which serves as an independent basis for dismissal,” ICANN said. Donuts sought limited discovery Wednesday from Nu Dot Co and Verisign seeking information that will allow Donuts to facilitate “the full and transparent investigation that is a critical component of any legitimate gTLD delegation process.” Limited discovery also will help resolve questions about Nu Dot Co's “eligibility to participate in the .WEB string contention” and provide Donuts with “information necessary to support a motion for a preliminary injunction to enjoin any assignment of rights in the .WEB gTLD until the resolution of this matter,” Donuts said in its motion (in Pacer).