By Tim Ferguson, 14 May 2007 17:09
NEWS
Get ready for a flurry of new top-level internet domain names in 2008.
Icann (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), the international body responsible for allocating generic and country code top-level domain names - gTLDs and ccTLDs respectively - is asking for public input on developing a new domain name system.
The organisation expects the new process - which is being driven by its Generic Names Supporting Organisation - to be finalised by the end of the year, with applications for new domain names to be invited in early 2008.
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Paul Twomey, president and CEO of Icann, expects new top-level domain names to start emerging next year, between June and August.
The first introduction of new gTLDs came in 2000, with the most recent gTLDs emerging in 2005/06 - including dot-mobi and dot-jobs.
According to Icann there are 120 million domain names with around 80 million of those using gTLDs. The most common gTLD is dot-com, which can be found attached to 62 million domain names.
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1. Simon Cox
Here we go again - more marketing hype - someone is skipping with joy and clapping thier hands. Not me. We don't need new top level domains.
This will cost business huge amounts of money again to protect thier brands and reputations and it will give the spam kiddies even more domains to play with.
They should fix the existing problems first such as the silly loopholes that allow domain tasting. And please make domains at least a little bit expensive - lets say a minimum of £20 per annum to stop the proliferation of millions of automatically built sites that are blocking up the search emgines with junk. My first domain in 1995 cost me £250 - there weren't many useless sites around in those days.