The concept of TLDs
If you are familiar with the internet, you might have noticed the different domains used by different sites. Domain names are everything in an online business. They can greatly affect the success or failure of a website. A good number of local and international domain names is available.
Every time you visit a website, you see a domain name, but you might not realize it because you don even know what a domain name is. A very simple definition of what a domain name is is the name on the right just after the dot. Just to name a few examples, domain names are such as the .com, .org, and .net.
Types of TLDs
Currently, the number of domain names exceed 1000. to e exact, the number is 1900. These domain names may be classified into three categories, forming the three major types of TLDs. They are generic top-level domains, country code TLDs, and infrastructure TLDs.
Generic TLDs (gTLDs): are used by a particular class of organization. The popular types of gTLDs are dot-net, dot-info, and dot-com. Dot-Com is the most popular among them all.
Country code TLDs (ccTLDs): represent independent territories and specific countries, and they have only two letters after the dot(.). The rules for registering these domain names fifer from country to country.
Infrastructure TLDs (iTLDs): are special domain names that are supposed to be used temporarily during the transformation of old hostnames to current domain system.
In addition to these main three domains, there are also endings dedicated to special purposes. For instance, governments and military agencies often use .gov or .mil as their ending, while universities and other educational institutions can use .edu as their website.
Other additional top-level domains can also be used, including .web, .info, and .biz.
As top-level domains increase, finding the right name for your Internet company will not be a daunting task. You can acquire any top-level domain name by using reliable registration services.
Precautions when registering for TLDs
Before you hurry to buy domain names, there are several things you need to know or to have done. First, you need to research whether the domain name is legal or illegal. If you register for an illegal one, you might find yourself in great trouble.
The second precaution, do not register a domain name that presently the name of an organization, company, individual or trademark. You might get sued, and the next thing would be paying a huge penalty for trademark infringement. So, what are the options? You can modify your name slightly by adding a few words before or after the selected name, or you could insert a dash between the words. Inserting a dash is not a popular option because many spammers use it and so many registrars do not prefer it. Finding a good domain name that has not been registered is not an easy task- if you find one, you have found a gold mine.
Finally, don’t be so hyped up about the free domain names. Remember that cheap is expensive. If you get a free domain name, you will probably have troubles when your online business has gained momentum. There will be plenty of advertisements that you’ll not be able to control. Are thinking that you could escape this trouble by transferring the free domain name? Unfortunately, it’s impossible to transfer the free domain name to another person. It’s also impossible to change domain name registration company.
History of TLDS
The first and foremost top-level domain to be created was .apra. The domain name was not for websites but rather for technical infrastructure purposes. Other TLDs that were introduced during the same period are dot org, dot net, and dot com. This was in the year 1985. These three were among the initial set of gTLDs and were open to public use.
The other TLDs that were among the first ones to be produced include .gov, .mil, and .int. These domain names are not available for any consumers to register. They are special for special organizations.
On the ccTLDs, the first domain names to be produced in 1985 were .uk (United Kingdom), .us (United States), and .il (Israel). More country codes have been added over the years, and there are now more than 200 of them.
additional top-level domains such as .biz, .name, .info, etc were introduced in the early 2000s.
During all these years, the introduction of the top level domain was minor until the big wave hit in 2013. Hundreds of TLDs were launched as part of a program that was created by the ICANN. ICANN is the body that is responsible for regulating and coordinating domain name activities.
The program of launching new TLDs in 2013 was named “New generic top-level domains” or simply “New gTLDs.“ companies applied for TLDs that matched their trademarks. These are called the brand TLDs. Examples include .sony, .amazon, .google, etc. roughly, a total of 1930 TLD company applications were received, covering 1409 unique TLDs.
Today’s and tomorrow’s landscape
Now that over 1500 TLD names are available to choose from, it is very easy to find an available second level domain to register at Namecheap. Many people have been seen to prefer the familiarity of older names like .com whatsoever.
ICANN is currently working to develop another set new TLDs names. Several issues must be discussed, including pricing and changes in rules. It’s expected that it’ll be at least 2021 before the application of the new domains is accepted. Unexpected delays might push acceptance even further. But before then, you can choose a second level domain and a top-level domain and use it to build your website.
Conclusion
Picking the right domain name is all you need to make your site successful. I hope you understand the top level domain names and their proper applications as presented by this article. You will be able to find and register a perfect top-level domain name once you know what TLD name you should be using. to have an effective website it just requires you proper understanding and application of knowledge on TLDs.
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