The French Constitutional Court has declared that article L.45 of the French Electronic Communications Act, the legal framework for domain name management under .FR, is unconstitutional however it ordered that the current rules remain in place until 1 July 2011.The order was given on 6 October to AFNIC, the registry for .FR, by the French Constitutional Court who considered unconstitutional article L.45 of the French Electronic Communications Act.The order from the court includes provisions that mean past decisions and any decisions made up until 1 July cannot be challenged on the basis of its decision.This decision by the court considers that while intellectual property is taken into account, freedom of communication and freedom of trade are not.The decision does not challenge AFNIC’s role as the registry for .FR. Consequently, the current policies of .FR will remain unchanged until a new legal framework is adopted.
French Domain Name Law Considered Unconstitutional by Constitutional Court
The French Constitutional Court has declared that article L.45 of the French Electronic Communications Act, the legal framework for domain name management under .FR, is unconstitutional however it ordered that the current rules remain in place until 1 July 2011.