New Domains

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• What are the new domains and how do they work?

  By ‘New Domains’ we mean new domain extensions that have been released on the market over the past three years. Choice in registering a domain has greatly expanded. In addition to the most commonly used extensions (such as .it, .com, and .net), there are now hundreds of new generic extensions (new gTLDs) such as .bio, .pizza, .wine, .agency, .club, .company, etc. Domains registered in a new extension are identical to those registered in a standard extension: there is no difference in terms of their technology and they are indexed by search engines in the same way.

• My domain is already registered in a standard extension, should I also register it a new extension?

  Registering a new domain offers you many advantages. First, it lets you to match your brand name to a specific extension. For example, if you’re a photographer, you’d be able to register your domain in a new extension that immediately identifies you, such as .photo or .photography. Second, by registering a new domain you’re protecting your brand name from fraudulent registrations: someone could register your name and exploit your image and/or sell counterfeit products under your name.

• What is the pre-registration phase of a domain?

  Domain names registered in a new extension can be pre-registered or reserved, before they are actually released. Pre-registering a domain increases your chances of getting the domain you want. The procedure has no additional cost, you only pay the price of a normal registration. Once you have pre-registered a domain, we will make every attempt to purchase it for you, the second it becomes available. If the procedure is not successful (for example, if you were not the first person to pre-register the domain) we will be refunded the entire amount.

• What is the Sunrise phase?

  Before a new extension is made available for registration, trademark holders who have included their trademark in the TMCH (the Trademark Clearinghouse, the largest registered trademark database), will be able to register the domain name corresponding to their brand name before anyone else. This priority phase is regulated by the TMCH and it’s called the Sunrise Period. Our experts are available to assist your in registering your brand with the TMCH.

• What is the Early Access Program?

  Once the Sunrise Period has ended, some of the new domain extensions go through an Early Access Program (EAP). During this phase, anyone can register or pre-register a new domain. We’ll attempt to register the domain for you up to 7 days ahead of time. The cost of the priority pre-registration decreases over time, from the first to the fifth day and the price does not vary in the last two weeks. If the attempt to register the domain is not successful, you will be refunded the entire amount.
  On the other hand, with a priority registration, you can register the domain you want on any of the 7 days before the official launch of the new extension. The cost of priority registration decreases from the first to the firth day and the price does not vary in the last two weeks.
  

• What is General Availability?

  This is the final phase in which a new extension is released on the market and becomes available for registration by anyone. In this phase, if the domain name is available, the first person to register it will get the domain. No priority criteria is applied.