Dixons is a good example for a number of reasons. Being in Canada I had to do a search to figure out what Dixons is. The only Dixons that rang a bell with me was a Canadian (?) coffee company I hear advertised on the radio, and on further searching I find that that is in fact spelled Dicksons. I was unable to find a website for the latter, the coffee company I mean. Meanwhile, going to dixons.com bounces me to dixons.co.uk, arguably where they should belong, if they're unknown even out here in an English speaking colony, why should they be considered worthy of a global .com. So I guess my point remains that the meaning of sucks is better known than most supposedly global brand names.

As for Yan Ming, a cursory search suggests it is much more likely to mean Harry Smith than our boats don't sink. I was unable to find a site for the shipping company, either thru searching on that term, or thru yanming or yan-ming .com/.net/.org/.hk/.cn/.com.hk/co.hk/ and various others. I eventually found them only thru a more specific search and after following a number of links, at yml.com.tw. That is only partially due to the fact that the shipping company (unless there are two similar ones) is actually yang ming. The latter was almost equally hard to find. BTW, learning Chinese [they don't specify which type] might not be a bad idea.

The above examples, amongst many similar or even more confusing, show that there is no consistent use of the namespace by trademark holders, certainly not in comparison to consistent use of the term sucks. If the trademark lobby has a problem with that perhaps the fault lies with them for not coming up with a consistent standard (or lobbying for a single, or even multiple, TLDs which are only open to TM holders, thus assuring the consumer that it is the genuine article). ICANN should also move quickly on allowing a .sucks domain which doesn't allow defensive registrations, particularily if some companies wish to assert their presumed right to a character string, even mis-spelled or with epithets added to it, across most all TLDs. While I understand that trademark holders, and even consumers, want trade names protected, they aren't character strings with magical powers. I suspect the term sucks is used more often per day than even McDonald's or Coca~Cola, though they may sometimes be used in concert. :) I think it is sucks that deserves to be considered the operative word, not some trademark name, no matter how well known. -g