To your question -- If .NYC is delayed until 2013 due to the 'limitation' method I think domain registrants in New York City will be denied more choice and better prices for an additional 2 years
I really have to thank you for this. Never have I seen such a concise demonstration of the fundamental falsity of the entire new TLD process. Anyone in NY who wants a city-specific domain has had new-york.ny.us available for over a decade. If you've never heard of it, that's because nobody was ever interested. I manage the domains for a bunch of upstate counties and municipalities, offering registrations at no charge, and I think I've had a total of three requests in the past decade. The only people who are harmed by delays in new TLDs are the speculators who can't sell their new domains, and even they may turn out to have been protected by ICANN's inaction from squandering $200K on a project that will never recoup its costs. R's, John