There’s a wide range of domain name extensions to choose from, more recently .xxx being available for purchase and quite a few people buying them. ICANN, the company that controls and releases new domain name extensions, announced today that applications are open for companies to get their very own custom extension.

For example, Google could have .google or Walmart could have .walmart to give you an idea. As far as mainstream acceptance of these new custom extensions goes, only time will tell. Most people when thinking of a domain name think “.com” or “.net” for example.

Via Tom’s Guide:

“On Thursday, ICANN opened up the doors for companies to step up and apply for a domain that replaces the typical .com, .org, .info, .gov or other extension with their actual company name. ICANN expects to see up to 2000 applications within the small three-month window it’s currently permitting, and will likely not take additional .yournamehere domain applications for years to come.”

Your traditional .com domain name can cost upwards of $15 per year depending on the registrar. These custom extensions are much more pricey however and something that very few companies will even be willing to pay for.

“According to Reuters, an application for the new domain isn’t cheap, costing $185,000 per entry. The estimated start-up costs will be around $500,000 and annual costs will be around $100,000.”

That’s a lot of money, but as the article also stated, it’s chump change for multi Billion dollar companies. If you could buy a custom domain name extension, what would it be and why?

Custom Domain Name Extensions Coming Soon, Applications Now Open is a post from: The Inquisitr

Shady domains using similar names to established, larger sites are nothing new- web users often find themselves navigating into unfamiliar waters due to a simple typo, and many of the sites capitalizing on this habit are not exactly above board.

Not surprising, the website Twiter.com hosts content that is visually similar to Twitter, and could ostensibly attract less-savvy web users who may not be fully familiar with the Twitter interface. Also unsurprising is the fact that Twitter has filed a case with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) over the deception.

When you open Twiter.com, nothing majorly nefarious happens to your computer. But the site attempts to collect personal information. After answering three simple questions, Twiter prompts you to select from a bevy of prizes, including a MacBook Air and an iPad and asks for your email and phone number. Ostensibly, after this, they spam the hell out of you.

Twitter has pursued similar miscreants in the past, according to Fusible:

The only other case filed to date by Twitter Inc with WIPO involved twittersearch.com back in 2010, a domain dispute that wasn’t decided by WIPO,  but the company still was successful in having the name transferred.  As I reported in February, though no decision had been officially announced by WIPO and the case was cancelled, the registrant of twittersearch.com is now Twitter, Inc.

The case is still active, so the outcome is pending. Should people be prevented from this kind of behavior, or do you think the web is a bit more caveat emptor?

[Inevitable] Twitter Sues Website “Twiter” is a post from: The Inquisitr

It’s bad enough that we have Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) seizing domains, including legal foreign domains, just because they think the sites are doing something illegal but now it seems that the Obama administration wants to go even further and make it so you have to get government approval for that new domain.

Yes, as hard as it might to believe, Declan McCullagh over at CNET has a report that:

The Obama administration is quietly seeking the power for it and other governments to veto future top-level domain names, a move that raises questions about free expression, national sovereignty, and the role of states in shaping the future of the Internet.

This is coming about as a new wave of domain suffixes are being applied for to extend the list of top level domains that already exist: .com, .org, and .net. The Obama administration is glossing over the affair as they say in a statement to CNET:

“has merit as it diminishes the potential for blocking of top level domain strings considered objectionable by governments. This type of blocking harms the architecture of the DNS and undermines the goal of universal resolvability (i.e., a single global Internet that facilitates the free flow of goods and services and freedom of expression).”

However Declan points out that what the government is looking for is veto rights over any new domain suffix being created.

The Obama administration is proposing (PDF) that domain approval procedures be changed to include a mandatory “review” by an ICANN advisory panel comprised of representatives of roughly 100 nations. The process is open-ended, saying that any government “may raise an objection to a proposed (suffix) for any reason.” Unless at least one other nation disagrees, the proposed new domain name “shall” be rejected.

This would create an explicit governmental veto over new top-level domains. Under the procedures previously used in the creation of .biz, .name, and .info, among others, governments could offer advice, but the members of the ICANN board had the final decision.

Okay so Obama isn’t really looking have a say over what you want to call your new domain but that doesn’t mean that having a veto over whether a new domain suffix is added isn’t good either.

Obama wants you to clear that new domain name with the government is a post from: The Inquisitr

It was bad enough when Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) seized a number of domains without any due process simply by telling VeriSign to redirect the domains to a new DNS address, but this time they have stepped across the line.

Word comes via Mike Masnick at Techdirt that ICE has seized the domain for the Spanish streaming site Rojadirecta.

Let that sink in for a second.

A US government agency made the decision to seize a domain that has been declared as legal by the country where the company does business. It was a legal decision arrived at after a three year court battle in Spain but totally ignored by US Customs agents.

As Mike said in his post:

And the timing is especially ridiculous, given that the US has been pushing very, very hard for Spain to implement a new copyright law, driven in large part by Hollywood. With many in Spain already furious about US meddling in their own copyright laws, I can’t imagine that having US customs agents reaching across the Atlantic to just out and out seize a Spanish company’s domain name is going to go over very well.

Imagine if a Spanish law enforcement agency did that to a US company? How quickly would we see American politicians screaming about this “international incident.” Yet, here we have Homeland Security reaching out to seize the domain name of a foreign company that has been explicitly declared legal, after going through a lengthy trial and appeals process in its native country. And, in typical Homeland Security fashion, no one bothered to contact the company and let them know or express its concerns. Instead, it just seized the domain.

This is a perfect example of the arrogance that DHS and ICE have, especially when acting as the police for for the entertainment business. Personally I find it quite sickening and really hope  that Spain, and Rojadirecta, raise all kinds of hell over this action.

Oh Crap! Homeland Security seizes a Spanish company’s legal domain is a post from: The Inquisitr

Satire and meme’s are an integral part of the Web. While satire has a long and rich history long before electrons started passing information among the InterTubes meme’s have been a much more recent happening but no the less funny or important. While many of the meme’s we see being spawned almost daily are harmless and give us a good chuckle when we run across them before they run out of steam there are others that take on a ling life of their own.

Of these the satire blog set up by an originally anonymous blogger to take a more than fair shot at Glen Beck has a suddenly become fodder for a case before the domain dispute center at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva.

The domain in question is glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com and since failing to get U.S. courts to take down the site due to their common “moron in a hurry” test Beck has decided that despite his dislike for world organizations this is a matter that can only be settled by the WIPO.

Since this has progressed to this point the previous anonymous blogger has revealed his identity and hired a lawyer to deal with the issue. Now to be fair one has to understand where and why the domain came into place which the now revealed blogger, Isaac Eiland-Hall, explained to Ars Technica

Eiland-Hall had discovered a Fark thread in which commenters picked up on a Gilbert Gottfried routine about Bob Saget raping and murdering a teenaged girl (it’s, er, a bit funnier in context than it sounds [NSFW]). They adapted it for Beck to highlight what they perceived as his habit of forcing people to explain away completely baseless charges—as when Beck interviewed Muslim Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN) and opened with this gem: "And I have to tell you, I have been nervous about this interview because what I feel like saying is, sir, prove to me that you are not working with our enemies. And I know you’re not. I’m not accusing you of being an enemy. But that’s the way I feel, and I think a lot of Americans will feel that way."

How better to give Beck a taste of his own medicine than by wondering publicly why he has never addressed the rumor that he raped and murdered a young girl in 1990? No one’s saying that Beck really did it… but if he has nothing to hide, why won’t he deny the tale?

Eiland-Hall’s lawyer, Marc Randazza, is quick to point out when it comes to the WIPO and domain disputes. The process is generally used to prevent cybersquatters  from sitting on trademarked names and generally applies only when there is commercial intent and the real possibility of consumer confusion. It is safe to say that Eiland-Hall’s site is neither commercial in any way and neither does it cause any brand confusion with Glen Beck.

Good luck with that Glenn and as Randazza says in his response to the WIPO

"We are not here because the domain name could cause confusion. We do not have a declaration from the president of the international association of imbeciles that his members are blankly staring at the Respondent’s website wondering ‘where did all the race baiting content go?’ We are here because Mr. Beck wants Respondent’s website shut down. He wants it shut down because Respondent’s website makes a poignant and accurate satirical critique of Mr. Beck by parodying Beck’s very rhetorical style."

Guess it sucks when you have your own medicine shoved back in your face eh Beck.

glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com is headed to the WIPO is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ever wondered just how old some of the domain on the web are? No .. well too bad because here’s a list of them for you to peruse in case you happen to be really bored on a Friday night

Rank  Create date  Domain name
1.    15-Mar-1985  SYMBOLICS.COM
2.    24-Apr-1985  BBN.COM
3.    24-May-1985  THINK.COM
4.    11-Jul-1985  MCC.COM
5.    30-Sep-1985  DEC.COM
6.    07-Nov-1985  NORTHROP.COM
7.    09-Jan-1986  XEROX.COM
8.    17-Jan-1986  SRI.COM
9.    03-Mar-1986  HP.COM
10.   05-Mar-1986   BELLCORE.COM
11.   19-Mar-1986   IBM.COM
12.   19-Mar-1986   SUN.COM
13.   25-Mar-1986   INTEL.COM
14.   25-Mar-1986   TI.COM
15.   25-Apr-1986   ATT.COM
16.   08-May-1986   GMR.COM
17.   08-May-1986   TEK.COM
18.   10-Jul-1986   FMC.COM
19.   10-Jul-1986   UB.COM
20.   05-Aug-1986   BELL-ATL.COM
21.   05-Aug-1986   GE.COM
22.   05-Aug-1986   GREBYN.COM
23.   05-Aug-1986   ISC.COM
24.   05-Aug-1986   NSC.COM
25.   05-Aug-1986   STARGATE.COM
26.   02-Sep-1986   BOEING.COM
27.   18-Sep-1986   ITCORP.COM
28.   29-Sep-1986   SIEMENS.COM
29.   18-Oct-1986   PYRAMID.COM
30.   27-Oct-1986   ALPHACDC.COM
31.   27-Oct-1986   BDM.COM
32.   27-Oct-1986   FLUKE.COM
33.   27-Oct-1986   INMET.COM
34.   27-Oct-1986   KESMAI.COM
35.   27-Oct-1986   MENTOR.COM
36.   27-Oct-1986   NEC.COM
37.   27-Oct-1986   RAY.COM
38.   27-Oct-1986   ROSEMOUNT.COM
39.   27-Oct-1986   VORTEX.COM
40.   05-Nov-1986   ALCOA.COM
41.   05-Nov-1986   GTE.COM
42.   17-Nov-1986   ADOBE.COM
43.   17-Nov-1986   AMD.COM
44.   17-Nov-1986   DAS.COM
45.   17-Nov-1986   DATA-IO.COM
46.   17-Nov-1986   OCTOPUS.COM
47.   17-Nov-1986   PORTAL.COM
48.   17-Nov-1986   TELTONE.COM
49.   11-Dec-1986   3COM.COM
50.   11-Dec-1986   AMDAHL.COM

Of course if you’ve read this far and you’re still bored there is the complete list of 100 of the oldest domains over here. Don’t say I don’t do anything to help alleviate your boredom.

50 of the oldest domains on the web is a post from: The Inquisitr

Snagging a new name won’t be a simple procedure, however: ICANN will first require proof of a “business plan and technical capacity,” meaning you have to have thousands of dollars of server and router-type equipment to get through. A thorough review process will then make sure the suffix is not offensive and does not infringe on anyone’s intellectual property. The names are also expected to cost a minimum of $100,000 and as much as half a million, so the rush may not be as widespread as some have feared.

The change will go into effect next year, with registration opening in April and the first new names going live toward the end of the year. Once approved, nearly anything could be possible — .microsoft, .mcdonalds, .tech — you name it.

The ruling comes right as current domain registration is hitting a new landmark. Go Daddy has just reached an Internet growth record, becoming the first registrar with 30 million domain names under its belt.

The registration of RulesOfSaving.com pushed the company over the line today. It’s a milestone in a strong year for domain registrations: Go Daddy alone says it’s now registering, renewing, or transferring about one domain name per second, with a whopping 72 percent predicted increase in sales this year compared to last. The trend, its execs say, represents positive news for the entire web-based business industry.

“These numbers really demonstrate how the Internet is alive and well, even in these rough financial times,” Bob Parsons, Go Daddy CEO and founder, commented.

One can only assume the introduction of custom top-level domains will lead to even more growth in 2009 — even if the added activity is limited to big business.

Get Ready for Limitless Domain Names is a post from: The Inquisitr