The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is proposing to add more suffixes beyond the .com, .org and .net now in place, and is asking the public for input on into several questions regarding the additions.

ICANN wants to know how many new domains the public would support, whether trademark protection should be extended for names registered under new domains, and whether these domains should be open to anyone who want one or if they should be reserved for "specific types of companies, groups or individuals," the New York Times reports.

To move the process forward, ICANN posted 74 questions as part of its new report for the public and organizations to ponder. The governing body will issue its final recommendations for the board's consideration at a July 16 meeting in Yokohama, Japan.

ICANN officials hope the board will approve criteria for groups and companies to meet before becoming one of the registries for the new domains, the Times reports.

"There obviously are a lot of aspects, details, about how a registry might operate," Louis Touton, senior vice president and general counsel for ICANN, told the newspaper. "The idea is to get the people who are serious about operating a registry on the record so people can express their views about them."

The application period for new domain proposals is scheduled to run from Aug. 1 to Oct. 1, but ICANN has said it will accept early inquiries. Winners are expected to be chosen by November with contracts being finalized by December, the newspaper reports.

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