One of the characteristics of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers has been its commitment to create a level playing field between big companies and individuals who use the Internet.
That’s all changing with a radical revision to the way domain names are assigned. Big companies are going to be able to get prime addresses that individuals and small business will not be able to afford.
Icann is about to let anyone start a top-level domain — the part of an Internet address to the right of the period. It mainly says this plan will let entrepreneurs sell specialty addresses to people and companies interested in certain areas, like .shoes or .movies.
Read the entire article here : http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/14/the-best-internet-addresses-will-cost-a-cool-million/?partner=MOREOVERNEWS&ei=5040