WHAT IS A DOMAIN NAME EXTENSION? WHAT IS A TLD?
The domain name extension is the part of https://www.SSL247.co.uk that follows SSL247 - the .co.uk.
In layman’s terms, the bit following /DOMAINNAME|the domain name after the dot.
It could be .co.uk, .com, .fr, .net, .org, or .info. This is known as the top-level domain or TLD.
However sometimes they feature a country code second-level domain (ccSLD); for example SSL247.co.au. This is what is known as a domain name extension. In this instance the top-level domain is .au and the domain name extension is .co.au. The ccSLD indicates that it’s a company; if it was .org.au it would suggest it’s an organisation.
What is a gTLD domain name?
gTLDs or generic top-level domains are primarily used to indicate organisations and businesses. It’s the .com or the .org following the domain name.
The most commonly used ones are as follows:
- .com (commercial)
- .mil (military)
- .net (network)
- .co (company)
- .biz (business)
- .info (informational)
- .me (personal)
- .org (organisation)
- .edu (education)
- .gov (government)
However ICANN, the group responsible for domain names on the internet, are planning to launch hundreds of new gTLDs. Although unconfirmed this could mean gTLDs appearing such as .amazon, .lol, and .london. In fact they have just released several gTLDs in Arabic, Chinese and Russian characters.
We offer a brand protection service that allows you to register your trademark and reserve it for the release of these new gTLDs. This is to protect your brand from the likes of cyber-squatters and identity thieves. Click here for more info.
What are ccTLD domain names?
Certain countries and regions use Country-Code Top-Level Domain Names to represent them.
E.g. com.cn for a Chinese commercial site, or org.cn for a non-profit organisation based in China.
co.uk is perhaps the most well-known ccTLD used for companies whose business interests lie in the UK.
ccTLDs tend to have certain requirements dependent on your choice of country/region. They can vary in their registration criteria and lengths, as well as their automatic renewal dates, transfers and domain name contact changes.
Contact our Domain Names Product Managers for more information on specific ccTLDs.
+44 (0)203 697 9386 or +33 (0)9 72 33 25 33
domains@ssl247.co.uk or domaines@ssl247.fr