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Geographical Applicants
Information for Potential City, Council or Regional Applicants
Geographical gTLDs (generic top level domains) may enable cities, councils and regions to promote greater recognition of their area, generate additional revenue and serve their people better. Examples of Geographical gTLDs are “.paris” and “.africa”.
Some applicants may decide that their most expedient, cost-effective and best route to satisfying these criteria is to outsource to a proven registry provider such as Verisign. To learn more download our white paper.
A Geographical gTLD may offer the following benefits:
- Increased recognition
- New revenue streams
- Simpler, more relevant addresses
- Enhanced security, control and trust
Increased recognition
A Geographical gTLD may help to reinforce the visibility of a city, council or region by putting it firmly on the online map and becoming the "official" Internet resource for its citizens and visitors. It could potentially become a high-profile virtual space to discuss ideas, conduct transactions, support diverse ethnic and cultural groups and enable citizens to interact with councils, public bodies and MPs.
New revenue streams
A Geographical gTLD may enable councils to generate new income streams by licensing second-level domain names to local businesses, citizens, non-profit and other organisations. With locally branded affiliations such as ".hotel.city" or ".restaurant.city", councils may be able to extend their revenue opportunities from the physical world to the virtual.
Enhanced online profile
New Geographical gTLDs may make it possible to introduce email addresses such as "cafe@city" or "jsmith@region" one day, potentially adding local relevance and branding to private and business email traffic. If email clients and servers were updated to permit this simplified format, then short, memorable email addresses such as "mayor@city" or "planning@city" could one day make it easier for citizens to access their local government.
Enhanced security, control and trust
As the steward of a Geographical gTLD, a city, council or region is likely to have the authority to set requirements for second-level domain name registrants. By restricting registration of these names to vetted, legitimate registrants the stewards of Geographical gTLDs may help improve trust and confidence. Every entity with a second-level domain name, from the largest to the smallest organisation, could potentially benefit from the prestige, visibility and authenticity conferred by the Geographical gTLD.
Want to learn more or speak with a Verisign New gTLD Services expert?