Coalition for ICANN Transparency, Inc. v. VeriSign, Inc.
Opinion
Opinion
Schroeder, J.
This appeal is about whether the plaintiff, Coalition for ICANN Transparency, Inc., using antitrust statutes drafted in the late 19th century, has successfully stated claims in connection with the administration of the Internet domain name system, so essential to the operation of our sophisticated 21st century communications network. The district court ruled that the plaintiff failed. With the benefit of extensive briefing, collegial discussions and amicus participation on appeal from other players in the domain name system, we hold that the plaintiff has stated claims under both Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1-2 . We reverse and remand for further proceedings.
I. Overview
Plaintiff Coalition for ICANN Transparency (“CFIT”) is an organization composed of participants in the Internet domain name system (“DNS”), including website owners. The heart of the IT industry is located in the Silicon Valley, which lies within the Northern District of California. CFIT filed its complaint in 2005 in the Northern District against defendant VeriSign, the corporation that acts as the sole operator of the “.com” and “.net” domain name registries.