That's a theoretical problem that wont matter in practice. Google only has two practical options: they can make .shop completely open and operate it just like .

That's a theoretical problem that wont matter in practice. Google only has two practical options: they can make .shop completely open and operate it just like .co or .io, or they can lock it down and use it only for themselves, in which case it will essentially just be a vanity domain, not an extension. If they choose the latter, just use any one of the hundreds of other extensions that will be available. I hate that ICANN is doing this - but not because of some theoretical power it technically gives Google.