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Vol. 39, Nº 71 (2021), 751-766
IEPDP-Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Políticas - LUZ
Recibido el 14/08/2021 Aceptado el 14/11/2021
Current state and role of domain names
as an object of legal relations
DOI: https://doi.org/10.46398/cuestpol.3971.46
Vladimir Lvovich Slesarev *
Alena Nikolaevna Vakulenko **
María Alexandrovna Volkova ***
Alla Andreevna Neznamova ****
Abstract
The article is dedicated to the legal study of domain names.
The authors of the article analyzed the scientic literature on
the formation of the concept of “domain names”. Theoretical
and practical proposals have been formed to improve legislation
in the eld of the provision of domain names on the Internet
information and communication network. General and special
scientic methods were used. In addition, the subjects of the legal
relationships under study were identied, analyzed exhaustively
and, as a contribution to the research, a draft contract for the provision of
paid Internet services was proposed, considering the details of the domain
names and at the same time identifying the rights and obligations of the
parties. In short, judicial practice materials relating to the attribution of
domain names, the means of individualization and the Russian domain
name market have been studied. Conclusions have been drawn on the need
to improve Russian legislation in the eld of paid provision of Internet
services, namely the provision of domain name services, by amending and
adding to existing regulatory legal acts.
Keywords: domain name; Internet services; russian domain name
market; means of individualization; legal relations.
* Private Law Research Centre under the President of the Russian Federation named after S.S. Alexeev,
Moscow, Russia. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1058-5183
** Russian State Social University, Moscow, Russia. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2700-
6694
*** Moscow University for Industry and Finance «Synergy», Moscow, Russia; Institute of International
Law and Economics named after A.S. Griboedov, Moscow, Russia. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-
0001-5928-6929
**** Institute of International Law and Economics named after A.S. Griboedov, Moscow, Russia. ORCID ID:
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7534-6327
752
Vladimir Lvovich Slesarev, Alena Nikolaevna Vakulenko, María Alexandrovna Volkova y Alla
Andreevna Neznamova
Current state and role of domain names as an object of legal relations
Estado actual y función de los nombres de dominio
como objeto de relaciones jurídicas
Resumen
El artículo está dedicado al estudio jurídico de los nombres de dominio.
Los autores del artículo analizaron la literatura cientíca sobre la formación
del concepto de “nombres de dominio”. Se han formado propuestas
teóricas y prácticas para mejorar la legislación en el ámbito del suministro
de nombres de dominio en la red de información y comunicación de
Internet. Se utilizaron métodos cientícos generales y especiales. Además,
se identicaron los sujetos de las relaciones jurídicas objeto de estudio, se
analizaron exhaustivamente y, como aporte de la investigación, se propuso
un proyecto de contrato para la prestación de servicios de Internet de pago,
considerando los detalles de los nombres de dominio y al mismo tiempo
identicando los derechos y obligaciones de las partes. En denitiva, se han
estudiado los materiales de la práctica judicial relativos a la atribución de
nombres de dominio, a los medios de individualización y al mercado ruso
de nombres de dominio. Se han extraído conclusiones sobre la necesidad de
mejorar la legislación rusa en el ámbito de la prestación pagada de servicios
de Internet, a saber, la prestación de servicios de nombres de dominio,
modicando y añadiendo a los actos jurídicos reglamentarios existentes.
Palabras clave: nombre de dominio; servicios de Internet; mercado ruso
de nombres de dominio; medios de individualización;
relaciones jurídicas.
Introduction
Domain names as a means of addressing on the Internet have become an
integral part of human life. Every day we use sites that are hosted on second,
third-level domain names. High-quality Internet projects contribute to
improving the quality of life, and websites simplify people’s lives. At the
same time, these sites are the face of the organization, create the image of
the company. The domain name is the key to opening the site.
Many studies of this phenomenon had been conducted even before the
accession of the Russian Federation to the World Trade Society, where
signicant changes in domestic legislation had been made even at the
stage of preparation for joining the above-mentioned society. There was
a need to bring the national legislative array following the provisions of
the Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization and multilateral
trade agreements. In particular, Draft No. 323423-4 of the Civil Code of
the Russian Federation (2006) contained repeated references to domain
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CUESTIONES POLÍTICAS
Vol. 39 Nº 71 (2021): 751-766
names. They were included in the list of results of intellectual activity
and equated means of individualization of legal entities, goods, services,
information resources that are provided with legal protection. The draft
contained the same chapter 76, which included section 5 “The right to a
domain name”, containing 9 articles, however, these articles did not appear
in the latest edition.
The sphere of services on the Internet is quite diverse, new types of
services are appearing every day. In this regard, the legislative array
regulating these legal relations is diverse, the application of a particular
regulatory legal act depends on the service oered.
To date, such a phenomenon as a domain name has been investigated
fragmentarily, scientic works of the following authors should be noted:
S.Yu. Revinova, who reviewed the Russian domain name market, prospects,
and development of a domain name (Revinova, 2016); E.I. Gladkaya
and S.V. Petrovsky, who studied the legal nature of domain names in the
context of legal regulation of Internet services (Gladkaya, 2014; Petrovsky,
2003); E.S. Pakhomova, whose research was devoted to the contract for
the provision of domain names (Pakhomova, 2016); N.K. Naroznikov,
who considered the contract for the paid provision of Internet services
(Naroznikov, 2010).
Also, special attention should be paid to the works of L.B. Sitdikova,
who studied the theoretical and practical problems of legal regulation of
information and consulting services, the contract for the provision of
paid information services (Sitdikova, 2008); I.M. Rassolov, who studied
the theoretical problems of providing services on the Internet (Rassolov,
2009); S.A. Sudarikov considered the right of intellectual property in the
network (Surikov, 2010).
1. Methods
We were guided by general scientic methods of cognition (analysis and
synthesis, generalization, and analogy); special methods of cognition: legal
modeling, critical analysis, etc. in the course of the research.
A comparative legal method in the analysis of Russian and foreign
legislation was used. In particular, the logical and legal method of legal
cognition was used when analyzing and systematizing the available scientic
knowledge about the legal regulation of the provision of a domain name in
the Russian Federation and abroad. The system-structural method made it
possible to identify the legal nature of domain names.
The use of all the above methods allowed analyzing the area under
study, identifying existing shortcomings in legal regulation. The method of
754
Vladimir Lvovich Slesarev, Alena Nikolaevna Vakulenko, María Alexandrovna Volkova y Alla
Andreevna Neznamova
Current state and role of domain names as an object of legal relations
legal modeling allowed formulating of theoretical and practical proposals
for improving legislation.
2. Results
We believe that a national domain name system should be created that
duplicates the list of domains and numbers of autonomous systems that are
delegated to Russian users. It is assumed that the above measures will help
to protect the Russian segment of the Internet from external threats.
It is advisable to recognize the domain registration as a condition for the
emergence of the exclusive right to a domain name, as well as to provide for
two types of agreements: on alienation of the exclusive right to a domain
name and a license agreement on granting the right to use a domain name.
Domain names should be recognized as a means of individualization in
the information and communication network of the Internet to improve the
legislation.
The registration of a domain name is recognized as “the conclusion of an
urgent consensual civil contract for the provision of paid services between
the organization for the distribution of domain names and the potential
owner of the domain name” after the registration of information about the
domain name and inclusion in a single database. The proposed wording
allows attributing this type of contract to a contract for the paid provision
of Internet services.
It is necessary to further develop the Russian domain space, attract
both individuals and legal entities to this market — Russian and foreign
international companies to maintain the country’s competitiveness. At the
same time, such an expansion of the domain market indicates the need
for control by the state and independent organizations, therefore, it is also
necessary to create a legal framework regulating the provision of domain
name services.
The terms of the contract for the provision of paid services that meet the
modern realities of the studied sphere of relations have been put forward,
namely, standard rights and obligations of the parties under the Internet
services agreement, considering the specics of domain names, have been
proposed:
Obligations of the contractor:
provision of the service requested by the customer/consumer in the
time and the manner stipulated by the contract.
providing the necessary and reliable information about the service
provided.
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warning the customer/consumer about cases when the latter’s
requirements may violate the law.
the direction of the result that meets the established requirements.
elimination of deciencies (in case of their detection) in a reasonable
time.
Contractor’s rights:
the right to demand the provision of a certain amount of information
with an indication of the list and the purpose of the processing.
refusal to perform the contract if the customer does not fulll its
obligations.
the right to demand remuneration for the services rendered by him/
her.
Obligations of the customer/consumer:
provision of all necessary and reliable information.
provision of the request to the extent required for its execution.
acceptance of the result of the Internet service within the time and
in the manner provided for in the contract; inform when deciencies
are detected, setting a reasonable time for their elimination.
assistance in the execution of the contract.
payment to the customer for the Internet services provided.
Rights of the customer/consumer:
obtaining reliable and complete information about the services
provided.
the requirement to eliminate the detected deciencies in the manner
and terms specied in the agreement.
unilateral refusal to perform the contract: if the contractor has not
committed to work within the terms specied in the agreement;
delay in the performance of obligations unless otherwise provided
for in the contract.
3. Discussion
The legal status of domain names in the national legislation, to date, has
not yet been determined, but there is a close relationship with the rights to
trademarks and trade names since they perform a similar function, which
756
Vladimir Lvovich Slesarev, Alena Nikolaevna Vakulenko, María Alexandrovna Volkova y Alla
Andreevna Neznamova
Current state and role of domain names as an object of legal relations
makes it possible to consider them as a means of individualization of an
information resource.
In this regard, “unauthorized use of the mark in the information and
communication network-Internet, in particular in the name of the domain”
was recognized as a violation of the rights of the owner of the trademark in
the text of the draft law “On Trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations
of Origin of Goods”, however, this amendment did not appear in the nal
version of the Law of the Russian Federation of September 23, 1992, N
3520-1 “On Trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin of
Goods” (hereinafter– the Law “On Trademarks ...”).
Therefore, today there are no legal grounds to classify a domain
name as a means of individualization, and disputes on this issue do not
subside in the courts. The court’s approach in the case “commpromat.ru”
versus “anticompromat.ru” is noteworthy, where the court considered
that the domain name of the former was transformed into a means of
individualizing the site on the network. Based on this, the court considered
it necessary to prohibit the defendant “anticompromat.ru” from using the
specied domain name (Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of
the Moscow District of March 26, 2009, N KG-A40/964-09 in case N A40-
44359/07-93-440).
The Moscow Arbitration Court has an opposite point of view, and it
indicated the following in conrmation of the impossibility of violating
the rights to a domain name: “A domain name is neither a means of
individualization, nor is it an object of copyright, it is a” telephone number
“on the network, and the very concept of “the right to address” is absent
in the legislation” (Decision of the Moscow Arbitration Court of June 10,
2011, in case No. A40-136893/10 (6-1133). The Intellectual Property Rights
Court explained that the main function of a domain name is to convert IP,
represented in the form of numbers, into a domain name to facilitate the
search and identication of the owner of an information resource, and is
like a trademark.
The court also decided that the domain name is fully covered by the Law
On Trademarks...”, which gives the exclusive right to use, dispose of and
prohibit the use of the domain name to other persons. (Resolution of the
Intellectual Property Rights Court of October 30, 2013, N C01-155/2013 in
the case N A40-12151/2013). In our opinion, the court’s position is fair and
corresponds to modern trends.
The mention of sites with the corresponding names in the bylaws of
certain public authorities is a conrmation, for example, the Order “On
commissioning the ocial website of the Investigative Committee under
the Prosecutor’s Oce of the Russian Federation on the Internet”, as well
as the Federal Law “On Non-State Pension Funds” of May 7, 1998, N 75-FL,
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Vol. 39 Nº 71 (2021): 751-766
the Federal Law “On Investment Funds” of November 29, 2001, N 8-FL,
which states that the fund is obliged to have a website in the information
and communication network, including a domain name that belongs to the
foundation.
In addition, Article 1484 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation
species a domain name in the context of ways to exercise the exclusive
right to a trademark (Civil Code of the Russian Federation (Part four) of
December 18, 2006, No. 230 – FL).
Considering such a phenomenon as a domain name, xed in the
Federal Law “On Information, Information Technologies and Information
Protection” of July 27, 2006, N 149-FL as: “a symbol designation intended
for addressing sites on the network to provide access to the information
posted on the Internet”.
However, the legislative consolidation of the concept of a domain did not
allow the discussions around it to subside. I.M. Rassolov denes a domain
name as “a unique symbolic name intended for navigation in cyberspace
and identication of an information resource on the network” (Rassolov,
2009). V.B. Naumov denes a domain name as “a special object of law, the
use of which is provided within the DNS system, performing the function
of individualization on the Internet and having a high defense capability”
(Naumov, 2009).
S.A. Sudarikov believes that this is “a part of the network address
of a site or resource in the network belonging to a second or third level
domain” (Sudarikov, 2010). a domain name is understood in this work as
a full domain name, which includes all domains of higher levels, where the
“domain” term should be considered the lower level, and “domain zone” –
the upper level. The above levels have dierent technical content; however,
they do not need to be distinguished from a legal point of view.
The early version of the draft of Part four of the Civil Code of the Russian
Federation (Draft No. 323423-4 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation
(Part four), 2006) contained repeated references to domain names, they
were included in the list of results of intellectual activity and equated means
of individualization of legal entities, goods, services, information resources
that were provided with legal protection.
The specied project contained the eponymous chapter 76, which
included section 5 “The right to a domain name”, containing 9 articles. The
condition for the emergence of an exclusive right was the registration of a
domain; two types of agreements were also envisaged: on the alienation
of the exclusive right to a domain name, and a license agreement on the
granting of the right to use a domain name.
758
Vladimir Lvovich Slesarev, Alena Nikolaevna Vakulenko, María Alexandrovna Volkova y Alla
Andreevna Neznamova
Current state and role of domain names as an object of legal relations
The draft also provided grounds for challenging the provision of legal
protection to a domain name, unfair competition. The issues of termination
of the exclusive right to a domain name, the terms of its validity were
considered, in addition, it was envisaged that in the event of continuous
non-use of a domain name for 2 years, legal protection could be terminated
ahead of schedule by a court.
This provision brought domain names closer to trademarks. the
adoption of the considered draft law could solve many problems, contribute
to the development of national legislation in this area. However, the bill
adopted by the State Duma of the Federal Assembly in the rst reading was
subsequently amended: the provisions on domain names were excluded.
In many ways, the legislator rejected the proposed draft law in connection
with the report of the Working Group on Accession to the WTO, which
included the position that domain names are not considered as intellectual
property in the World Trade Organization Agreement on Trade-Related
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, or by virtue of other agreements on
intellectual property (Clause 1252 of the Report of the Working Group on
the Accession of the Russian Federation to the World Trade Organization
(November 16 – 17, 2011)). A certain role is also played by the “The Internet
Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers”, created with the support
of the United States in 1998, and controlled by it (Starodumova, Sitdikova,
2020).
The registration of rst-level RU and РФ domain names is carried out
by an autonomous non-prot organization “Coordination Center for TLD
RU”. The registration of second-level domain names by providers is carried
out only if they are accredited by the above-mentioned center, it provides
services for organizing the functioning of the network domain, is engaged
in the expansion of the use of the information and communication network
in Russia in the interests of the state (Charter of the ANO “Coordination
Center for TLD RU”, n.d.). The RU and РФ domains play a special role
in the Russian Federation, the latter acts as an internationalized domain
name (IDN).
The use of the Cyrillic alphabet in it is a distinctive feature. The
appearance of the RU Domain in 1994 marked a new stage in the
development of information and communication technologies in Russia,
and D.A. Medvedev, being president, approved the initiative to create a
domain name – РФ in June 2008. The following sites were launched on
this platform in 2010: http://government.ru/ and http://kremlin.ru/ .
Another step was the creation and development of the Russian Internet
space “Runet”, which received its name from the RU domain. It should also
be noted that the SU and newgTLD domains belong to the national zones,
where the USSR acts as the rst, its management is carried out by the
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Coordination Center, about 119 thousand are registered under this domain,
which is comparable to the national domains of Kazakhstan, Latvia, Estonia
(Revinova, 2016). Of the new TLDs, the most popular today areМосква and
Moscow.
The appearance of each domain name is associated with the registration
process arising from civil contractual relations. According to E.I. Gladkaya,
registration of a domain name is “the conclusion of an urgent consensual
civil law contract for the provision of services between the organization for
the distribution of domain names and the potential owner of the domain
name” after registration, information about the domain name falls into a
single database (Gladkaya, 2014).
Indeed, the scholar’s description of the contractual relations between
the parties is logical, since it allows talking about this contract as a paid
provision of Internet services. The regulatory legal framework recognized
to regulate these legal relations is represented by a large number of sources,
depending on the specics of the services provided. Thus, the Constitution
of the Russian Federation contains the fundamental rules, which are
contained in Articles 8 and 74, guaranteeing the free movement of goods,
services, and nancial resources, freedom of economic activity (Tchinaryan
et al., 2021; Ryzhik et al., 2020).
Chapter 39 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation contains a
general statute on the provision of paid services, paragraph 2 of Article 779
indicates the application of this chapter to information services, and as is
known, Internet services are a type of information. Also, there is a reference
to the following in Article 783 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation
(Civil Code of the Russian Federation (part two) No.51-FL dated November
30, 1994): the general provisions on the work and labor contract (Articles
702-729) shall apply to the contract for the repayable rendering services
unless this runs counter the specic subject of the contract for the repayable
rendering of services (Neznamova et al., 2020).
The provisions of Chapter 39 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation,
dedicated to the regulation of the contract for the paid provision of Internet
services, apply to contracts for the provision of information services, the
structure of which includes the rst. N.K. Naroznikov in his study directly
refers to these relations for the provision of Internet services – a contract
for the provision of information services using the Internet, which is
not a contradiction but rather reveals the essence of the relations under
investigation (Naroznikov, 2010).
Also, Internet services include the following in the Tax Code of the
Russian Federation, namely in Article 174.2 (the Tax Code of the Russian
Federation (part two) of August 5, 2000, N 117-FL): the provision of domain
names, the provision of hosting services. Domain names are also included
760
Vladimir Lvovich Slesarev, Alena Nikolaevna Vakulenko, María Alexandrovna Volkova y Alla
Andreevna Neznamova
Current state and role of domain names as an object of legal relations
in the classication of Internet services by E.P. Pakhomov: “hosting service
and providing a domain name to the customer” (Pakhomova, 2016: 225).
Considering the contract as a means of legal regulation of Internet
services, the contract model proposed by the legislator of Chapter 39 of the
Civil Code of the Russian Federation (Civil Code of the Russian Federation
(Part two) of November 30, 1994, No. 51-FL) contains only general
provisions of the norms, the content of which is insucient for regulating
the paid provision of Internet services due to several features:
the subject composition of the participating persons: it is not
always possible to nd out with which person, natural or legal,
the relationship takes place, whether the counterparty also has
the legal capacity, whether he/she is authorized to conclude such
transactions because there is a risk of recognizing the transaction as
null and void.
the lack of the possibility of identifying the subjects of legal relations,
which prevents the proof of contractual obligations between them,
entailing the impossibility of applying liability measures in case of
non-fulllment or improper fulllment of obligations.
the customer is not always allowed to verify whether the contractor is
authorized to provide the services in question, there is no possibility
of bringing the culprit to justice in case of violation of the rights of
third parties.
there is a practice when a certain program acts as a contractor, the
customer sends a request to the database and the program gives out
certain information corresponding to the request.
often there is no possibility of quickly changing the terms of the
contract, the ability to agree on it, since several Internet services
are characterized by an instantaneous direction of the result, and
therefore it is necessary to apply again to eliminate shortcomings.
In addition to the above, the very nature of the service provided in the
contract for the provision of Internet services is also endowed with specics.
According to N.K. Naroznikov, it is advisable to determine the condition of
Internet service quality as a guarantee of its expected result, quality should
be recognized in connection with this essential condition of the contract
(Naroznikov, 2010). The question of the contractor’s responsibility for
quality should be considered separately in each case.
There is an opinion that the contractor, even in cases where the result is
of proper quality, should be responsible for the customer’s failure to achieve
the desired eect, which he/she assumed when concluding the contract
(Starodumova et al., 2018).
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Therewith, the circumstances that the information is mobile are not
considered: the information may lose its relevance and reliability from the
beginning of receiving the request and by the time of receiving the service.
It is advisable to pay special attention to the terms of the service provided
since untimely receipt of information in today’s ultra-fast realities can lead
to several negative consequences. Oblige the contractor to notify about the
time of the processed information in cases when the request is processed
by the program.
Based on the provisions of Chapter 39 of the Civil Code of the Russian
Federation and the specics of Internet services, it is advisable to include the
following in the duties of the contractor: provision of the service requested
by the customer in the time and the manner stipulated by the contract;
sending the result that meets the established requirements; elimination of
deciencies in the time, in case of detection, to provide full information.
In turn, the contractor has the right to demand remuneration for the
services rendered by him/her; to demand the provision of a certain amount
of information indicating the list and purpose of processing, to refuse to
fulll the contract if the customer does not fulll his/her duties.
The rights and obligations of the latter should naturally include: to
provide a request to the extent required for its execution; to accept the
result of the Internet service in the time and manner provided for in the
contract; to report when deciencies are detected, setting a reasonable time
for their elimination; to facilitate the execution of the contract; to pay the
customer for the Internet services provided.
The contract for the paid provision of Internet services is terminated
with the end of the fulllment of its obligations by the parties based on
Article 425 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, and the agreement
of the parties is recognized as the basis for the change as a rule. Article
450 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (Civil Code of the Russian
Federation (part one) of November 30, 1994, No. 51-FL) regulates the
procedure for unilateral refusal to perform the contract. In our opinion,
taking into account the peculiarity of the services under consideration it is
also advisable to include the following in the list: unilateral refusal, if the
contractor did not start working within the terms specied in the agreement,
as well as delays in fullling obligations; if the detected shortcomings were
not eliminated in the order and terms specied in the agreement and if
the parties did not provide for the number of penalties or nes for non-
compliance with obligations. In addition to the services, registration is
often performed by hosting providers.
Formed provisions of the agreement of L.B. Sitdikova and S.V. Petrovsky
on the provision of paid Internet services can fully apply to domain names,
there are no contradictions between these provisions and the Rules for
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Vladimir Lvovich Slesarev, Alena Nikolaevna Vakulenko, María Alexandrovna Volkova y Alla
Andreevna Neznamova
Current state and role of domain names as an object of legal relations
registering domain names, (Rules for registering domain names in RU
and РФ domains (approved by the decision of the Coordination Center for
TLD RU from October 5, 2011, N 2011-18/81)), moreover, they are similar
(Sitdikova, 2008; Petrovsky, 2003). Thus, for example:
the user is obliged to provide the registrar with reliable information
to the extent and following the procedure established by the Rules
and the contract, to notify about changes in the provided information
promptly.
the registration period is one year; it is possible to extend an
unlimited number of times after the expiration of the period.
a citizen of any country can register a RU and РФ domain.
the registrar has the right to suspend the maintenance of the domain,
in case of specifying false data.
the right to apply for the renewal of the domain name registration
is reserved for the previous owner 30 days after the end of the
registration period.
the domain is canceled in cases when the registration is not renewed,
and in the future, it can be registered by another user.
After reviewing the Rules, the document protects the interests of both
parties, which is not enough in hosting services, and what the derived
provisions of the paid provision of Internet services serve. As for the
parties when registering domain names, they are called the registrar and
the user, we also refer to the donor registrar, the recipient registrar, and
the administrator. Where the registrar is a legal entity accredited by the
Coordinator for the registration of domain names in domains .RU and/or
.РФ; the donor registrar is a registrar who transfers support for domain
name information to the recipient registrar; the recipient registrar is a
registrar who accepts support for domain name information from the donor
registrar; a user is a person who orders or uses services related to domain
name registration; the administrator is a user in whose name the domain
name is registered in the Registry.
However, the usual terms are more common in Russian civil turnover
in practice: the customer and the contractor, which is not a violation but
refers to a standard contract for the provision of paid services. Moreover,
the participants of these relations oer their sample contracts, so CJSC
“Regional Network Information Center” within the framework of the
“parking” or “domain parking” service, according to which the client
provides domain names to the company for temporary use for advertising
purposes, oered a sample contract, according to which the company
undertakes to: accept the client’s Internet resource (domain name) for
advertising and information belonging to third parties; consult on all issues
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CUESTIONES POLÍTICAS
Vol. 39 Nº 71 (2021): 751-766
of interest to the client who transferred his/her resource; notify about all
changes in the work of the site, including possible interruptions; comply
with all rules established by law; timely pay income payment.
This approach of the participants in the studied legal relations is
commendable, but it should be considered that insucient legislative
regulation can contribute to permissiveness and violation of the rights of
individuals.
Conclusion
To date, the existing legislative array does not contain the legal
qualication of domain names, does not fully regulate the relations on
registration and use of a domain name, although they were contained in the
early version of part four of the Civil Code. At the same time, the Government
of our state has been paying great attention to the development and use of
the information and communication space in recent years.
The Institute for the Development of the Internet began to function
in 2015. The state policy has a positive impact on the development of the
domain market, which corresponds to global trends, at the same time, it
allows talking about the need for control. The adoption of the statute on
the paid provision of Internet services would regulate the activities of
stakeholders in this eld, in particular the activities of e-Commerce, having
at the present stage, the demand of most of the population; to create legal
protection for contractors and consumers.
Due to the dynamism of the legal relations under study, the legislator
practically cannot quickly respond to the rapidly emerging types of services
on the network and when omissions are detected about a particular use
of Internet resources. However, recently there has been an increase in
control over the Internet space in the Russian Federation, in connection
with which international experts have classied Russia as a state with a
“partially free Internet”. information resources that are antisocial and anti-
state in nature are blocked to a greater extent, thus the state complies with
national legislation, protects minors from “dangerous” information for
them, prevents the formation of illegal behavior among the population.
Also considering the legal regulation of the paid provision of Internet
services, in particular the services of providing a domain name, it is
necessary to emphasize that they often go beyond the limits of national
regulation. With the accession of the Russian Federation to the World
Trade Organization, it became necessary to bring the national legislative
array following the provisions of the Agreement Establishing the World
Trade Organization and multilateral trade agreements. To date, there is no
764
Vladimir Lvovich Slesarev, Alena Nikolaevna Vakulenko, María Alexandrovna Volkova y Alla
Andreevna Neznamova
Current state and role of domain names as an object of legal relations
Federal law regulating the position of domain names in Russian legislation
and Internet services in general.
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Esta revista fue editada en formato digital y publicada
en diciembre de 2021, por el Fondo Editorial Serbiluz,
Universidad del Zulia. Maracaibo-Venezuela
Vol.39 Nº 71