This document provides a brief history of domain names from 1985 to 2014 in a series of bullet points highlighting some key events:
- In 1985, Symbolics Inc. registered the first .com domain name, Symbolics.com, making it the first commercial domain name.
- In 1995, domain name registration became a paid service through Network Solutions rather than being free.
- In 1998, the US government privatized domain name system management and created ICANN to oversee it internationally.
- Major domain name sales and the exhaustion of possible short domain name combinations show the increasing value and scarcity of desirable web addresses over time.
Original Description:
a brief history of domain names (source included within)
This document provides a brief history of domain names from 1985 to 2014 in a series of bullet points highlighting some key events:
- In 1985, Symbolics Inc. registered the first .com domain name, Symbolics.com, making it the first commercial domain name.
- In 1995, domain name registration became a paid service through Network Solutions rather than being free.
- In 1998, the US government privatized domain name system management and created ICANN to oversee it internationally.
- Major domain name sales and the exhaustion of possible short domain name combinations show the increasing value and scarcity of desirable web addresses over time.
This document provides a brief history of domain names from 1985 to 2014 in a series of bullet points highlighting some key events:
- In 1985, Symbolics Inc. registered the first .com domain name, Symbolics.com, making it the first commercial domain name.
- In 1995, domain name registration became a paid service through Network Solutions rather than being free.
- In 1998, the US government privatized domain name system management and created ICANN to oversee it internationally.
- Major domain name sales and the exhaustion of possible short domain name combinations show the increasing value and scarcity of desirable web addresses over time.
On March 15, 1985, Symbolics Inc., a computer manufacturer in Massachusetts, registered the domain name Symbolics.com, making it the first appropriately registered .com domain in the world. Symbolics.com remained under the same ownership until 25 years later, in 2009, when it was purchased for an undisclosed sum by XF.com Investments. As it stands today, Symbolics.com is a strange hybrid: part-online museum, part-advertising space.
1995: Domain name registration is no
longer free Before 1995, anyone who wanted a domain name could register it free of charge. That all changed when the National Science Foundation awarded tech consulting company Network Solutions the ability to charge for registration. Domain prices began at $100 for a two-year registration.
1998: Privatization of the DNS and
ICANN In 1998, the Department of Commerce, under President Clinton's urging, issued a proposal for privatizing the Domain Naming System (DNS), which was then controlled by the U.S. government. The document known as the "Green Paper" was created with the goal to both increase competition in the market and encourage more participation internationally. Public criticism of the proposal led to the creation of the "White Paper," which addressed many concerns with the original document and led to the formation of ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers)
2003: Truth in Domain Names Act
Incorporated into the PROTECT Act of 2003, this piece of legislation set a punishment for the creators of deceptive domain names, which lure users to a pornographic website without their consent. Early offenders included "Bobthebiulder.com" and "Teltubbies.com," both of which led visitors to a pornographic site called "Hanky Panky College."
2007: Most expensive domain sale
The most expensive domain ever sold was VacationRentals.com, which was scooped up for the low, low price of $35 million. What's more interesting is that its buyer, Ben Sharples, purchased the site primarily to keep it out of the hands of its competitor, Expedia. Another high-end domain sale occurred when ownership of the sex.com domain was sold for a whopping $13 million in 2010.
2012: Man registers 14,962 domains
in 24 hours In April 2012, Mike Mann, a domain speculator registered nearly 15,000 domain names in a span of 24 hours. In explanation of his actions,he simply said, "I'm just really greedy. I want to own the world."
2013: Internet runs out of four
letter .com-domains In December 2013, WhoAPI, a domain data analysis startup, revealed thatevery possible combination of four-letter .com domain names had been registered. From AAAA.com to ZZZZ.com, all 456,976 combinations have been exhausted. The threecharacter .com domains have been used up since 1997.
2014: More than 100 new generic
top-level domains added Generic top-level domains (gLTDs) are recognizable to the casual web user as the text coming at the end of a URL .com, .org, .edu, etc. Recently, more than 100 new gLTDs were added, increasing the possibilities for new websites exponentially. Some of the new possibilities include generic words such as .cars and .music, as well as company names such as .apple and .hyundai.