The .PHARMACY tld, operated by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, is now open for registration to certain types of businesses. Specifically, the following types of businesses are eligible to apply for approval to register a .pharmacy domain name:

  • Pharmacies
  • Pharmacy Benefit Managers
  • Durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies providers
  • Prescription Drug Information and Pharmacy Referral Sites
  • Prescription Drug Related Patient Advocacy and Consumer Education Sites
  • Medical Professionals' Offices
  • Schools or Colleges of Pharmacy
  • Continuing Pharmacy Education Providers
  • Wholesale Drug Distributors
  • Pharmaceutical Manufacturers

Applicants are also subject to some other standards specific to the industry, including licensure and legal compliance. So, the potential for run-of-the-mill squatters is relatively low, but it cannot be ruled out that another company seeking to register a domain name may infringe an entity's corporate name or pharmaceutical trademarks.

The cost of a .pharmacy domain name registration for one year is $2,800, which is obviously expensive in the world of domain name registrations. We don't yet know if the tld will receive acceptance so that consumers and others in the industry will look to the .pharmacy tld when searching the Internet, making the cost worthwhile. At the same time, many entities have valuable names and while a UDRP action to retrieve an infringing domain name can always be filed, registering the domain name would avoid this issue altogether.

As an option, marks can be registered on the Trademark Clearinghouse offered by ICANN. The registration costs, per mark, are: 1 Year -- $250; 3 Year -- $690; 5 Year -- $1,100. For this, entities receive (1) an automatic notice any time someone tries to register its exact mark for any TLD (not just .PHARMACY); (2) the ability to pre-register your mark for any new TLD; and (3) access to a faster resolution process than the UDRP process.

Using the Clearinghouse does not secure the relevant domain name, but for a lower cost, if another company attempts to register another's trademark as a .pharmacy domain name, an action may be filed for the quickest resolution possible. By adopting a wait and see approach, entities can watch and determine whether the value of the .pharmacy tld is worth the expense.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.