A Map of Domain Facts That You Should Know

If you are reading this then it is obvious that you know about the internet.

Do you realize that the internet is truly one of the technological marvels of our age?

If you’re looking to domain fact, domain name history and how it works, you’ll really enjoy this.

I think you might have some questions like…

what is the difference between a domain name and website?

What is Domain name lifecycle?

Importance of a domain in online business?

Do you have a concept about your site?

And so on..

Do you think all domain names are equal?

They are not! Every domain name and extension have their own specialty and importance.

So, Here, you will find amazing “Domain Facts” that one should know and will get answers to all of your questions.

Before that take a quick look at here.

To appreciate the immense scale and reach of the internet, consider these quick stats about the World Wide Web:

• Over 4.1 billion individual internet users were reported visiting over 1.9 billion websites worldwide.
• The World Wide Web has reached over 55% and connects to around 40% of the global population.
• This has also resulted in more than 342 million domain names being registered on top-level domains (TLDs).
• Interestingly, over 4 million blog posts are uploaded every single day by more than 6.7 million bloggers from around the world.
• Blogging is the most popular content-based marketing strategy, holding over 65% of the digital marketing industry’s market share.
• The internet also gave rise to e-commerce, opening an exciting new frontier for businesses of all sizes.

The internet also gave birth to e-commerce, which opened an exciting new frontier for small and large businesses alike.

• Today, the number of eCommerce websites worldwide ranges between 12 million and 24 million, with tens of thousands of new eCommerce websites registering to go online every day.

The stats above just prove the impressive reach and extent of the internet around the world.

As a user, you only see the viewable content on websites. In reality, the entire internet is a network of interconnected computers and servers that form their own virtual world. In this vast network, a domain name is the first and most fundamental requirement for any website.

Now, see a titanic list of domain facts in 2021 and domain name journey!

If you are planning to launch your own website or blog, do you know that you need to register a domain name even before you can launch your website? Choosing and registering the right kind of domain name is extremely important for the success of your new website? How to select the perfect domain name for your website? Well, then you need to understand just how close and essential domain names and websites are to each other.

In case you have never heard about domains for websites, then this article is definitely a must-read for you.

Here, you will learn all about:

1. Domain names
2. History of domain names
3. How domain names work
4. The difference between a website and domain name
5. The importance of domain names
6. What happens when domain names expire
7. The list of top-level domains (TLDs)
8. DNS and how it works
9. IDN domain names
10. gTLDs
11. TLDs
12. ccTLDs
13. Domain name registration and its lifecycle
14. Domain expiry process

What is a Domain Name?

Simply put, a domain name is your website’s name.

Domain names are virtual addresses where users can view your website on the internet. Your domain name helps users’ computers search for and select IP (Internet Protocol) addresses of server computers where your website data is stored (host server).

Domain names are easier for humans to remember, while IP addresses, which are strings of numbers separated into sets of 1, 2, or 3 by periods, are more easily recognised by computers in the network.

Domain names can consist of letters, numbers, or be alphanumeric, but they must be completely unique within their domain extension. Domain extensions are the set of letters that follow the actual domain name.

For example, when you type www.Google.com into your browser to begin your search, “Google” is the domain name, while the “.com” following it is the domain name extension.

Domain extensions come in various types, such as .com, which is the most popular, followed by .net, .org, and others. To launch a website, you first need to register your domain name with an authorised domain name registrar.

Domain History

To understand how it all started, here is a brief but fascinating history of domain names:

• Symbolics.com was the first-ever domain name, registered on 15th March 1985 by US-based computer makers Symbolics Inc.
• In 1995, domain name registration became a chargeable service, having been completely free before that.
• In 1998, the Domain Naming System (DNS) was privatised at the behest of the US Department of Commerce, which had controlled it until then. This led to the creation of ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), which is responsible for managing the internet infrastructure of domain name space and its development.
• In 2003, the Truth in Domain Names Act was incorporated into the PROTECT Act of 2003. It made it a punishable offence to create domain names with misleading titles, especially those that lure users to pornographic websites.
• In 2007, VacationRentals.com became the most expensive domain name registered when it was purchased for an astonishing USD $35 million by Ben Sharples.
• In 2013, ICANN announced that it had run out of four-letter .com domains. Every possible combination of letters between aaaa.com and zzzz.com had been registered by then.
• The following year, in 2014, over 100 new generic top-level domains (gTLDs) were launched to accommodate the thriving growth of domain name requirements. The new generic TLDs consist of common words, such as “.music”, “.cars”, etc.

How does a Domain Name work?

Now that you know the basics and history of domain names, let’s look at how a domain name works in a few simple steps:

1. User request – Users type in the domain name of the website they wish to visit. On pressing the Enter button, the request is sent to a DNS server.
2. DNS server checks – The DNS server checks whether the requested domain name is in its cache or database. If not found, the DNS server sends the domain request to another DNS server until the correct domain name-carrying DNS server is found.
3. DNS server updates – The first DNS server then updates its cache with the requested domain name in case it is requested again in the future.
4. User connects to website server – Once the correct server with the requested domain name is found, the user is instantly connected directly to it and can access the website normally.

This entire process takes less than a second and is processed instantly if the domain name entered is correct.

What’s the difference between a Domain and a Website?

In simple terms, the main difference between a domain and a website is:

• Domain names are the human-readable addresses of websites.
• A website is the platform containing the files and data that allow users to browse and navigate the internet site.

In other words, you need to register your domain name first to launch and operate a website with the same name.

Why is a Domain Name important?

After learning about how domain names work and the difference between a domain and a website, check out the facts below which show just why a domain name is important.

1. Domain names identify you – Domain names are not merely virtual addresses for your website, but actually help to identify you, your business, or corporation.
2. Domain names enhance organic search results – Of the numerous different parameters that SEO is based on, your website’s URL is one of the most basic yet essential factors. Domain names with keywords are found to result in increased organic user traffic.
3. Domain names add credibility – Both small and large businesses can add credibility and professionalism to their operations by maintaining a website with their company name as the domain name.
4. Domain names have far-reaching potential – Once you own the perfect domain name, you can ensure to keep it for yourself by making sure to renew your domain name registration regularly. You can retain your domain name even when you are shifting your website from your current web hosting service to another web hosting service provider.
5. Domain names become brands – Your domain name likely acts as the first branding strategy for your online business or website. With a simple, relevant, and popularised domain name, you can easily turn it into a powerful online marketing tool.

What happens when a Domain expires?

Domain names are actually leased to website owners for a specified period of time. The domain name you have registered is yours as long as you keep renewing the subscription before the allotted expiry date, which is usually a year (12 months).

If you are wondering what happens when a domain name expires, here’s the simple step-by-step process:

1. Alerts for Domain Name Expiry – The domain registrar sends at least two notices to alert you of the impending subscription expiry through emails. It sends a final notification via email five days after the subscription expires.
2. Domain Name expires – When the domain name registry is not renewed before the expiry date, the domain’s status is changed to a “Renewal Grace Period” for the next 30 days. Owners can easily renew their domain name subscription within these 30 days without incurring additional charges. As soon as the domain name expires, your website will be replaced with a parking page indicating your domain name has expired and its other services have also stopped working.
3. End of Renewal Grace Period – Once the 30-day Renewal Grace Period after the expiry date of the domain name registration ends, the status of your domain name is changed to “Registrar Hold” which is held for another 30-day period. You can still renew your domain name registration subscription within this 30-day Registrar Hold status, but you will have to pay a redemption charge along with the renewal fee.
4. Auction of Expired Domain Name – During the Registrar Hold period, the registrar may attempt to auction off the expired domain name to the highest bidder. However, the highest bidder will still have to wait for the Registrar Period of 30 days to end before gaining ownership of the domain name. This ensures that if the original owner decides to renew their domain name registration within the Registrar Hold period, the bidder can still get a refund on the bidding fee. Otherwise, the domain name’s registration is handed over to the highest bidder. (The expired domain name is listed on a Closeout Sale list where buyers can purchase the offered domain names at a considerably lower price, along with the registration fee once the Registrar Hold period is over.)
5. Period of Redemption – If the expired domain name is not auctioned or sold by the time the Registrar Period ends, the domain name status is listed back in the registry for a 30-day Redemption Period. During this time, the domain name is not changed or deleted for another 30 days. This provides another opportunity for the original owner to regain ownership of their expired domain name by paying the redemption fee and the renewal fee.
6. Registry Grace Period ends – Once the 30-day Redemption period ends, the domain name in question is marked as pending deletion. If there are no further actions performed by the original domain name owner, the domain registrar, or domain registry during this period, the expired domain name is then sent for deletion. Once deleted from the domain registry, the domain name will again be open for bidding on the public domain.

List of Top-Level Domain Names

Domain names come in various types today, such as:

• Infrastructure Top-Level Domain (ARPA)
• Generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs)
• Generic Restricted Top-Level Domains (grTLDs)
• Sponsored Top-Level Domains (sTLD)
• Country Code Top-Level Domains (ccTLD)
• Test Top-Level Domains (tTLD)

Here is a list of top-level domain (TLD) names:

• .COM – A commercial and completely open TLD, originally intended for businesses but now available for registration by any individual.
• .ORG – Initially meant for non-profit organisations, this TLD falls under the Public Interest Registry but can now be registered by any individual.
• .NET – Originally intended for use by domains under private or restricted intranets, it is now available for any individual.
• .INT – This restricted TLD is for organisations, entities, committees, panels or offices covered by an international treaty between two countries.
• .EDU – Reserved for select higher education institutes, such as universities or technical colleges.
• .GOV – Limited to use by governments, their agencies, states, counties and municipal organisations in the US and many other countries.
• .MIL – Highly restricted, this domain name is only available for use by the US Military services.

Additionally, individual country-code TLDs are available for entities, individuals or organisations within a specific country.

What is DNS and how does DNS work?

The Domain Name System (DNS) can be thought of as the internet’s phone directory. DNS translates domain names entered by users into the corresponding IP addresses. DNS servers allow us to use domain names instead of having to remember and enter a website’s IP address when we want to visit it.

IDN Domain Names

Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) are internet domains that have at least one label partially or completely in a language-specific script and notation, such as Chinese, Arabic, Hindi, etc. IDN Domain Names are sometimes restricted from search as they are composed of ASCII strings with Punycode transcription. Hence, IDNs provide an excellent solution for translating names in native language scripts to those easily recognised by the Domain Name System (DNS).

What is a gTLD?

Now that you know about the importance of DNS and how it works, it’s time to learn more about the different types of TLDs. Generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs) are among the most popular TLDs in use today. They include commonly used domain extensions like .com, .net, .org, .name, .pro, etc. These TLDs typically contain domains from the early development stage of the domain name system (DNS). As of March 2018, there were over 1,200 active gTLD domains.

What is a TLDs?

Top-Level Domains (TLDs) include the most commonly used domain name extensions, such as .com, .org, .net, .agency, etc. TLDs are further divided into gTLDs and ccTLDs.

What is ccTLDs?

Country Code Top-Level Domains (ccTLDs) are a popular type of TLD, mostly reserved for use by government departments and offices of individual countries, sovereign or dependent territories. A ccTLD typically consists of two initials for the specific country following a dot, for example, .US or .UK.

Domain Registration and Lifecycle

Domain registration can be carried out with any ICANN-authorised domain name registrar. The rates for domain name registration vary significantly, depending mainly on the popularity or relevance of the chosen domain name.

To upload and make your website live, you will first need to register your domain name and then acquire web hosting services to get your website online.

The lifecycle of domain names ranges from 1 year to 10 years and is clearly pre-defined by the domain name registrar at the time of purchasing the subscription.

You will need to renew your domain name registration before the pre-determined expiration date. If you fail to renew your domain name before it expires, refer to the section above titled “what happens when a domain name expires” to learn about the actual lifecycle of domain names.

Domain Expiry

Each domain name is assigned a pre-determined life cycle before it is sold for registration. Once it expires, it goes through the following domain name expiry process:

• Day 1 After Domain Expires – A 30-day Renewal Grace Period begins, during which the original subscriber can renew their expired subscription before the domain name is auctioned off.
• Day 30 After Domain Expires – A Redemption Period of an additional 30 days begins once the 30-day Renewal Grace Period expires. Owners can still renew their expired domains by paying a redemption charge along with the renewal fee.
• Day 60 After Domain Expires – The domain name is sent for the deletion process as the 30-day Redemption Period ends, in case the domain has not been sold or auctioned off. Owners can still renew their domain subscription within this 5-day deletion process.
• Day 65 After Domain Expires – The expired domain is deleted from the registry and is then listed for registration again in the public domain.

Hopefully, this article has provided you with sufficient information to understand domain names. Now you can launch your own website with confidence and retain your valuable domain name successfully.