A thousand plus top level domain names added to the Internet, and counting

The Internet web address regime saw a milestone being reached a few days ago, when the number of names available for use in the concluding part of web addresses, like .com or .org, crossed the 1,000 mark. These generic top level domain names (gTLDs) were just 8 in number till 1988.

A new programme to massively boost the number of gTLDs was launched in 2012, by which time their number had increased to more than 20. From October 2013 onwards new gTLDs were added to the Internet month after month, in batches - a process that still continues.

It was after a long process of consultation and study that the organisation dealing with the use and deployment of internet address resources, Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), started accepting applications for new gTLDs. It was seen as a business opportunity by many applicants, especially companies operating Internet registry services. Many other companies thought of using it to protect and promote their business space. ICANN received 1,930 applications for new gTLDs during the period the application window remained open in 2012. The largest number of applicants were from North America, followed by those from the Europe and Asia Pacific regions. The few applications that came from India were mostly submitted by companies to uphold their brands.

Other types of applicants too had an opportunity to secure different kinds of gTLDs. For instance, municipalities or public authorities could apply for geographical domain names, like .dubai or .paris. Community-based applicants, like professional associations or other organisations could also leverage this opportunity to apply for gTLDs as well. Many top level domain domain names in different languages, including Hindi, have also come into being as a result of this process. ICANN had also put in place an elaborate mechanism for processing the applications and resolving disputes, as in the case of trademarks, for instance.

As ICANN explains: “An applicant for a new gTLD is, in fact, applying to create and operate a registry business supporting the Internet's domain name system.” The processing fee to be paid by gTLD applicants works itself out to 1,85,000 dollars. And this is an entirely different proposition from the commonplace and usually inexpensive process of acquiring a domain name (a unique website address) - thousands of website addresses are registered every day.

To understand how the opening of the floodgates of Internet gTLDs has unfolded, consider the example of .organic; one of the hundreds of new top level domain names that came into existence in 2015. The company that applied for and secured this domain name says the .organic website addresses would be available only to those associated with the organic products sector. They could be companies, farmers, distributors, restaurants, publications, NGOs, trade bodies and so on. In contrast to such gTLDs there are many others that come with no such restrictions like .website or .xyz. The expectation is that a particular range of websites will naturally gravitate towards certain gTLDs ; for instance an organisation or body that is closely associated with a city might choose to have a domain name incorporating the gTLD of that city, if available. In the end, those looking for website addresses now have a huge array of top level domain names to choose from.

"The expansion of the domain name system to more than 1,000 gTLDs signifies greater diversity in how people and businesses can represent themselves online. It enables communities, cities and brands to more closely align their digital and real-world identities. It's also helping to redefine the internet experience for people across the globe by introducing internationalized generic top-level domains for the first time," said a recent ICANN blog post.

When the processing of applications is completed in the coming months, the Internet could end up with a total of more than 1,300 new gTLDs.

Keywords: ICANN, internet domain names

Source: The Hindu, 4-06-2016