Dot.What?
Expanding the Top Level Domain Space
ICANN rules its top level domain monopoly with an iron fist, although some new extensions are now available-some say, too little too late. New unsanctioned domains are also available, but will they prove to be viable alternatives?
The Internet domain name space is broadly divided into a number of Top Level Domains (TLD) that appear as the last element in a URL. A small number of generic domains (gTLD) such as .com or .net are available to anyone, as well as about 200 country code domains (ccTLD), such as .ca or .uk that usually carry some restrictions, such as citizenship, residency, or operating a legally established business in the country. Some ccTLDs impose no restrictions, and are available for registration by anyone. Examples include .tv (Tuvalu) and .ws (Western Samoa).
Expanding the TLD Pool
ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (www.icann.org), specifies and sanctions the list of official TLDs and maintains a database of the accredited registrars who actually sell them. Some of the registrars are also responsible for one or more TLDs registry, or database of registered names and the associated DNS information.
According to NetNames.com, the .com extension accounts for over 60% of TLDs registered worldwide. Together, ICANN's original .com, .net, and .org extensions account for 80%. The other 20% includes several US government-restricted TLDs (.edu, .gov, and .mil) and the ccTLDs.
To provide a bit more elbow room in the domain name space, ICANN has recently sanctioned seven new gTLDs, selected from 44 applications. These include .biz, .info, .name, .pro, .coop, .aero, and .museum. Some of these, such as .pro (doctors, lawyers, etc.), are rather specialized and not of direct interest to adult webmasters. But several of them are.
.biz
This alternative to .com is aimed at business use and cannot be used for personal or non-commercial purposes. The business need not be formally registered or incorporated, but must be involved in commerce-exchange of goods or services-or facilitating it in some way. However, the "business" involved cannot be just selling the domain name itself.
This TLD is already taking off quickly, particularly for commerce and small to medium-sized businesses. It potentially offers a second chance at a coveted .com name you missed out on, but expect the current .com owners to protect their name brand by registering .biz in addition to .com, and there are some legal issues that favor the existing owners of .com names where there is a dispute.
.info
Created to supplement .com, this is the only totally unrestricted new domain, and is reported to be the fastest-growing Web address in the history of the Internet. Already it is about tied with .biz for the most new registrations after the big three .com, .net, and .org.
The .info TLD doesn't seem an obvious first choice for the adult site selling media content, but could provide a good fit for other types of content, such as sexadvice.info, FreeSitesGuide.info, e-handicapper.info, or lasvegasline.info.
.name
This TLD is for individuals, and has a three-level format-john.smith.name-providing Web addresses like www.john.smith.name and e-mails like smitty@john.smith.name. The names of a fictional character can be registered, if you have legal rights to it, e.g. mickey.mouse.name. This new TLD seems a bit clunky to me, but is expected to become a popular standard for personal Web sites.
Two issues come to mind. First, your name is likely to become unavailable fairly quickly, even though variants such as smith.john.name and j.smith.name are possible. Second, the .name TLD shows a lot of promise for an individual amateur's site.
.us
Previously reserved for the US government, and under federal rather than direct ICANN control, this ccTLD has now been opened up, but still with some restrictions. To register this domain, you must be:
- A permanent resident of the USA.
- A US-based organization or company.
- A US federal, state, or local government entity, or
- A foreign entity or organization that has a presence in the USA who regularly engages in lawful activities (e.g., sales of goods or services or other business, commercial or non-commercial, including not-for-profits.)
The .us TLD allows you to capitalize on being American (or reflect your pride and patriotism), get a second crack at an already-registered .com or .net name, or it may characterize your content well-e.g. californiagirls.us. There also appears to be a rich opportunity for names such as playwith.us. Incidentally, .usa is not a bona fide TLD-neither ICANN nor the feds ever sanctioned it, and the FTC has taken to task the companies who were offering it.
.XXX AND .SEX
What would really be useful to adult webmasters, of course, would be an .xxx or .sex gTLD. There have been some initiatives and unsuccessful applications to ICANN (see: Rebecca Sausner. "The Approaching Internet Domain Name Revolt," Newsfactor.com Tech Culture 4/13/2001). Several companies offer domain names ending in xxx to adult content providers. Domain Name Systems, with a group of partnering adult sites, operates a system that grants access to the .xxx and .sex domains to surfers who have pre-registered their credit cards.
But Pasedina, California-based New.net seems to be making the most progress to date. They are now registering a baker's dozen of non-ICANN-approved gTLDs, including .inc, .ltd, .shop, .tech, .mp3, .sport, .chat, .video, .club, and .free. Three of them (.kids, .travel, and .xxx) were rejected by ICANN, but still have a chance with ICANN's oversight review board.
In the meantime, New.net's new gTLDs can be accessed by over 15 million surfers through major partners such as Earthlink, Excite@Home, and NetZero, or by anyone who downloads a software patch from New.net's site. There are some DNS and e-mail issues with New.net's initiative, and certainly other major ISPs such as AOL and MSN are not on their side, but New.net is responding to a perceived need.
ICANN - You Can't?
"ICANN's taken forever to do things," said New.net's Steve Chadima, in the Sausner article mentioned earlier. "They're not very responsive to the market. We're a market-based solution... Everyone outside the US thinks ICANN is a complete puppet of the US government, and resents the US thinking it can control the Internet."
There definitely is some dissatisfaction with ICANN as a monolithic arbiter of Web domains, reflected by industry grumbling, interest groups (e.g. Youcann.org and ICANNwatch.org), and even some recent misgivings in the US Senate. For New.net, it's a David and Goliath issue for sure, and the big question is how much centralized control over the Internet is desirable.
Webmasters, by and large, are independent freedom-loving businessmen. Numbers such as market base are the bottom line for business, so webmasters have to work with the status quo as best they can, while leveraging any new opportunities presented. At the same time, some changes seem past due. Webmasters can do their part by contributing to the debate, and by supporting positive initiatives at reform. One way to show support is to register alternative TLDs, if only to point them to your established .com paysite for the time being.
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