ICANN has laid off 33 people, about 7% of its 485 staff, and has raised the specter of increased domain name prices, as it struggles to balance its budget. The job losses are effective today and come “across all functional areas and regions”, acting CEO Sally Costerton wrote. The Org said this evening that it […] The post ICANN slashes staff and domain prices could rise first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more

Unstoppable Domains has revealed the next partner with which it intends to apply to ICANN for a new gTLD two years from now. It’s linked up with Secret Network Foundation to apply for .secret and in the meantime to flog .secret names that only work on its Polygon blockchain naming system. Secret is a startup […] The post Secret new gTLD application revealed first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more

All URLs using new gTLD domains are now being automatically linkified by WhatsApp, according to the registry manager who’s been pushing for greater support from the major social networks. Rami Schwartz of Latin American Telecom, the .tube registry, says that WhatsApp on Android devices is now making all new gTLD domains clickable even without the […] The post WhatsApp now linkifying new gTLDs, but… first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more

Is ICANN stifling competition and pricing out the Global South by setting its new gTLD evaluation fees too high? A great many community volunteers seem to think so, judging by recent conversations. The Org last week revealed that it plans to charge registry service providers that want to participate in the next application round $92,000 […] The post Outrage over ICANN’s new gTLD fees first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more

ICANN’s Address Supporting Organization has elected Alan Barrett to fill one of its two seats on the ICANN board of directors for the second time. Barrett, an ISP pioneer from South Africa, was first elected in 2021 and will re-take his seat at ICANN’s AGM this November, assuming the Empowered Community gives him the nod. […] The post Barrett gets second term on ICANN board first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more

DotMusic has pushed it general availability launch date out by more than three months, as it tries to recruit anchor tenants from the music industry. The registry says GA is now planned for October 8, versus a previous date of June 25. The gTLD is currently in its “community organization phase”, during which musicians and […] The post DotMusic delays gTLD launch again first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more

Already-expensive ccTLD .tm is set to see its prices rocket by hundreds of dollars next week, with an annual registration set to cost $1,000 or more. .TM Domain Registry says a one-year registration or renewal will cost registrars $400, which can be reduced as far as $200 if they register more than 100 domains. Currently, […] The post .tm prices to skyrocket next week first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more

Unstoppable Domains has announced plans to apply for the first gTLD devoted to a metaverse. The company has partnered with Metropolis, a “a 360° curated universe that blends commerce, gaming, and experiences that span both digital & physical worlds” to launch .metropolis names on Unstoppable’s blockchain. “Metropolis plans to explore future ICANN gTLD applications in […] The post First metaverse gTLD is announced first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more

Chinese registrar Alibaba is no longer at risk of losing one of its ICANN accreditations, according to a notice on the Org’s web site. Alibaba.com Singapore E-Commerce, one of Alibaba’s four registrars, failed to respond to abuse reports and missed ICANN payments, according to its March breach notice. But the company has now provided ICANN […] The post Alibaba off the naughty step first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more

A controversial proposed amendment to ICANN’s bylaws is set to be killed off after the community flexed its muscles over the board of directors. The amendment, which sought to give ICANN a switch to turn off its accountability mechanisms under certain circumstances, is now likely to be replaced by one that limits accountability only when […] The post ICANN to kill auction fund bylaws change first appeared on Domain Incite ..read more