Domain Names

Third-Level .name Registrations and Email Forwarding to Be Discontinued in 2027

Verisign plans to discontinue third-level .name registrations and email forwarding in February 2027, prompting objections from longtime users concerned about losing established addresses, disrupting online accounts and potential security risks.

Testing the Classifier: What a Blind Comparison Revealed About Domain Namespaces

A blind comparison of domain classification results found strong agreement for investor-pattern names but lower recall for operator-aligned names, raising questions about earlier namespace composition estimates and the limits of structural classification.

The Domain Trust Badge: Making Anti-Abuse Work Visible

The Domain Trust Badge pilot introduces a voluntary framework for registries and registrars to demonstrate effective anti-abuse practices through 17 requirements, evidence-based validation and a new metric measuring abuse mitigation performance.

Pakistan’s .PK Is Now DNSSEC-Signed, but Only One Domain Validates

Pakistan's .pk domain has gained DNSSEC protection, but an October 11 scan found just one fully validating domain among 158,561 examined. Another 1,230 signed domains lack the parent-zone records needed to establish trust.

What ICANN’s Contention Sets Reveal About New gTLD Values

ICANN's Reveal Day list holds 263 contention sets. With private deals banned this round, any set that reaches an ICANN auction will end in a public price. The 2012 auctions show why the number of bidders is a weak guide to that price.

ICANN’s New gTLD Round Draws 16 African Applications, 10 Controlled by a Chinese Business Network

A Seychelles company controlled by Lu Heng accounts for 10 of Africa's 16 new gTLD applications, linking ICANN's domain expansion to commercial interests and an ongoing dispute over AFRINIC's governance and IPv4 resources.

Abolish The Public Suffix List

The Public Suffix List has become a critical dependency for web security despite inconsistent implementation, restrictive admission policies and limited maintenance resources. Its replacement would require coordinated standards development and greater domain operator control.

The Fight for a String: Understanding ICANN’s Objection Process in the 2026 New gTLD Application Round

ICANN's 2026 new gTLD objection process presents applicants and rights holders with four distinct mechanisms for challenging proposed strings, each carrying different legal standards, evidentiary requirements and consequences for delegation.

Why So Many .do Domains Lack Functioning Websites: Exploring Strategic Uses of the Dominican Republic’s ccTLD

An analysis of 41,140 Dominican Republic .do domains reveals widespread website inactivity and distinctive naming patterns, raising questions about domain speculation, brand protection and the international appeal of the country's Internet namespace.

The TLD Fight Is On: 1,615 Applications, and One Question Nobody Is Asking

ICANN's 2026 new gTLD round attracted 1,615 applications, with competition concentrated on contested extensions. Strong registration growth contrasts with weak renewal rates, raising questions about long-term demand and commercial viability.

From Apps to Agents: How the 2026 New gTLD Strings Mirror a Changed Internet

ICANN's 2026 new gTLD applications reveal a shift toward AI agents, developer infrastructure and digital trust, with .agent replacing .app as the most contested string amid growing competition and persistent geographic disparities.

Big Brands, Bold Moves: The 2026 dotBrand Wave

ICANN's 2026 new gTLD round attracted 333 dotBrand applications, representing 20.6% of submissions. Participation across major industries reflects growing interest in controlling branded namespaces and strengthening enterprise digital identity.

How AI Answer Engines Are Quietly Rewriting What Makes a Domain “Brandable”

As AI answer engines become referral channels, domain distinctiveness may matter more than exact-match search intent, challenging traditional valuation models built around keyword demand, traffic and historical sales.

The Namespace You Plan - and the One That Takes Shape

Structural analysis of four established gTLD namespaces suggests registration totals alone offer an incomplete picture. Tracking composition alongside operational data could help new registry operators investigate whether their namespaces are developing as intended.

Governance Theater: Why the gTLD Expansion Program Is a Lose-Lose Proposition

ICANN's gTLD expansion program is structured to collect fees regardless of outcomes, leaving brand, portfolio and single-string applicants bearing financial risk while accountability mechanisms offer little meaningful remedy when the process fails.