Currently all domains names are .com, .net and .org to .gov, .edu .aero, country codes and a handful of others. If the change is adopted, the web’s 1.3 billion users would be able from early 2009 to buy an unlimited number of generic addresses based on common words, brands, company names, cities and proper names, according to ICANN.
This is the mother of all branding issues online. The last thing you want is someone other than P&G getting .shampoo or .cars going to Toyota…. you get the point.
Today ICANN is voting to open it up to everything… You got it… .sex, .wpp , .yooter , .ibm and .nyc will become realities.
That means if you want to visit Microsoft’s site.. it’s not http://www.microsoft.com .. it will literally be just http://microsoft will get you there… or should they choose something like http://windowsupdate.microsoft would take you to the windows update page… or http://ubuntu or http://download.ubuntu would be the new URL… we think you get the point.
This isn’t cheap… it will cost upwards of 100 grand to get the the domain name and have a primitive technology base installed to manage it. Meaning that this is out of touch for many startups… small firms.. or individuals…. some are already calling it ‘domains for the rich’
This will also settle the .xxx domain name that was rejected in favor of the .mobi failure.
Enjoy.
