This.sucks for companies
ICANN, the organization that governs internet domain names, recently rolled out hundreds of new domain extensions. We still have “.com” and “.net,” but they’re joined by “.app” and “.baby,” as well as foreign language extensions.
The domains that had multiple bids went to auction or arbitration, and Google broke records by paying $25 million for “.app”. Johnson & Johnson paid $3 million for “.baby” and a Chinese corporation paid $600,000 for “.信息” which is Chinese for “information.”
The most controversial new domain may be “.sucks” which will be administered by a company called Vox Populi. They won the rights to administer the extension in an auction — the exact price they paid is confidential.
Vox Populi says “.sucks” will serve as a place for consumers to publicly air grievances against companies, but the pricing scheme raised eyebrows by allowing trademarked corporations to purchase their “.sucks” domain names early for $2,500.
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
