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A database which is a telephone book-like listing of various internet addresses and their holders. Basically, WHOIS information is public information that no one owns. Free public access to WHOIS information serves two important public policies: first, it facilitates the resolution of trademark, cybersquatting, and other domain name-related disputes; and second, it facilitates competition among downstream service providers.

Under the terms of the ICANN Agreement, each registrar must, among many other things, maintain its own on-line, interactive WHOIS database for those domain names it registers and make the database publicly available, in the way specified by the agreement. Specifically, the database must contain, ...