Bush Signs Dot-Kids into Law

President Bush in December signed a new dot-kids domain into law. The move is a follow-up to the 2002 Dot-Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act, which laid the groundwork for a new child-friendly area of the Web for children ages 13 and under.

"[The new domain] will function much like the children's section of the library, where parents feel comfortable allowing their children to browse," Bush said at the signing.

Hyperlinks directing users outside the dot-kids domain will be prohibited, as will chat rooms and other forms of interpersonal communication, unless a site sponsor can guarantee that the interaction will be carefully monitored. NeuStar, the company that will manage the site, is soliciting input from child advocacy groups and safety organizations.

"This is our nation's best chance to guarantee kids an online experience that is fun and age-appropriate," says Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND), who led the Senate campaign to establish ".kids.us."

The idea of a safe place on the Internet for kids started in the fall of 2000, when several Internet-related companies lobbied for a global dot-kids domain. But the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the international group that approves Internet domain names, denied the request because of the difficulty in establishing rules that would apply worldwide.