The Past and Future of Domain Names
When you give your website an address, you can choose almost anything to name it. Sure, there are addresses that are already taken, but if you’re inventive enough you can label the site just about anything you want, “dot” something. It’s what comes after the “dot” that is a little more complicated. Despite pushes from various countries and groups, these domain names are limited. They are divided into categories like the familiar .com, .net, and .gov as well as a few others, and so far there aren’t very many more domains beyond these that can be used.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, is a non-profit group headquartered in the United States that oversees domain naming. They also oversee country specific codes that come after the domain, such as .ca for Canadian sites.
You may be wondering why sites in the United States don’t have a country code listed but all other countries do. It’s the same reason that British stamps don’t name their country on their paper mail stamps. The country that created the system doesn’t have to use their name; other countries have to list their name to differentiate themselves from the original British invented stamps. The same goes with country codes on an Internet address. The United States originated the domain names, and because of this, there is no country listed on American sites.
So what’s the wave of the future? Well, many groups and cities are asking for an increase in domain names, such as .sports or location names like .nyc. Other countries would like domains that aren’t just English only. With all of this clamor, there are sure to be changes in website addresses coming in the next few years, so pay attention. You may be able to get your business name .sports or just about anything else that makes your company unique.