Alternative TLDs Have Caught On

Elliot Silver
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Earlier this week, I was at my local Whole Foods for lunch and to do an Amazon return. While walking in and out of Whole Foods, three local business logos / domain names caught my attention. They were all using domain name extensions that were introduced by ICANN during the first round of new gTLDs.

In the same small parking lot in Wellesley, Massachusetts, I saw a .Cool domain name, a .Homes domain name, and a .Solutions domain name. I’ve seen two of the three domain names before. The three letter .Homes url was a new one for me. I don’t think I have ever seen this many new domain extensions used by small businesses in the same place at the same time. If I have, it wasn’t with local businesses.

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ICANN to Hold New gTLD Program Webinar

Elliot Silver
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The application period for the second round of new gTLD extensions was just opened by ICANN. This will allow businesses, organizations, communities, governments, and others the opportunity to apply to operate their own domain name extension. This is the first new gTLD application round in more than ten years. ICANN is accepting applications until August 12th.

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ICANN to Increase Fee to $.20 on July 1

Elliot Silver
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For as long as I can remember, ICANN has imposed a fee of $.18 for all domain name registrations and renewals. A retail domain registrar might charge $12 to buy a .com or .net domain name, but the buyer will be billed $12.18/year. This fee will increase to $.20/year on July 1, 2025. Notably, this fee is charged for gTLD registrations and renewals (like .com and .org) but not on ccTLDs (like .CO or .AI).

I haven’t received a notification from many registrars, but I received an email from Dynadot yesterday announcing the fee increase:

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ICA Webinar on Transfer Lock Changes

Elliot Silver
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Transfer lock policies can differ at each domain registrar. Depending on the situation and domain name status, some locks are required by ICANN and others are suggested by the organization.

Some registrars are more lenient with transfer locks that aren’t required by ICANN and others are more rigid. Some registrars will lock a domain name for 60 days after a Whois or account change and others will allow that lock to be lifted when requested. Most registrars will lock domain names after an inbound transfer, but some will lift it situationally. All newly registered domain names are required to be locked for 60 days after registrations.

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ICANN Hiring GDD Services Manager

Elliot Silver
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As ICANN continues its preparations for the next round of TLD applications, the organization is hiring to fill roles that will help with these new domain name extensions and applications.

Last week, ICANN posted a job opportunity on LinkedIn that might be of interest to someone who currently works in the domain name space. ICANN is looking to hire a GDD Services Manager. GDD is an acronym for ICANN’s for Global Domains Division. This role appears to be similar in nature to an account management role.

Here’s an excerpt about this position from the job post:

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Com Laude Hosting DotBrand Webinar with ICANN’s Andee Hill

Elliot Silver
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The second application round for new gTLD applications seems to be gearing up. ICANN has slowly been releasing new information about applying for a TLD in the 2nd round of applications. According to ICANN’s website, the next round of applications is expected to commence in April of 2026.

I couldn’t even take a guess at how many new TLD strings will be applied for, but I suspect a good portion of them will be brand-related TLDs. Some brands that weren’t created when the first round of applications started in 2012 as well as those that may have missed out will likely have an interest in applying for a brand matching TLD.

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