UN agency calls for global agreement on cyber-squatting

A United Nations agency is pushing for international laws on "cyber-squatting", when people buy up popular Internet domain names in order to sell them for high prices.

The World Intellectual Property Organization held a one day conference with electronic commerce companies, government delegates and lawyers.

WIPO authorities say they want to prevent people from using different country codes to corner sites, often of famous people or prominent businesses. For instance, using ".fr" which is used to stand for France or ".jp" for Japan.

There is also a growing number of cyber-squatters, especially with the number of domain names being registered on a daily basis.

There are currently about 20 million Internet addresses registered around the world. That number is expected soar 10 times in three years.

WIPO has already settled 200 cases involving disputes over domain names. Among them, actress Julia Roberts who sued sites that where using her name.

It costs $1,500 US to bring a case to the WIPO. Officials at the U.N. want a uniform dispute resolution process set up.

Three other companies, two in the United States and one in Canada, offer the service in domain disputes.