Overview
- .beats is a brand gTLD delegated under ICANN's New gTLD Program.
- The TLD is managed by Beats Electronics, LLC. The registry operator is Neustar.
- The registry is operated as a closed registry with Beats itself responsible for all domain names; the TLD is intended to help Beats introduce products, designate authorized sellers, and address counterfeit issues.
History
- Application reveal: 13 June 2012 (ICANN reveal day for applied-for strings).
- Delegated to the DNS Root Zone on 03 November 2015.
- TLD subtype: brand; TLD type: gTLD. The registry is listed as delegated and operated for Beats Electronics.
Usage and Audience
- Primary user: Beats Electronics, LLC (the brand owner).
- Intended uses described in the application include:
- Introducing new products and services in an easy-to-find way.
- Designating which sellers are authorized so consumers can verify genuine Beats-branded goods.
- Target audiences: consumers seeking official Beats products, authorized resellers, and the brand's marketing and rights-protection teams.
- The application materials note Beats' high-profile marketing and celebrity associations (e.g., Dr. Dre, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Will.i.am, Sean "Diddy" Combs) as part of the brand context.
Registration Rules
- Closed registry model: Beats will be responsible for all domain names within the registry; there will be no applications from third parties for domains.
- No bulk registrations or third-party registrations are planned under the registry model described in the application.
- The application stated there was no plan to make a contractual commitment regarding the magnitude of price escalation.
SEO and Brand Impact
- The .beats gTLD is positioned as a brand-control tool to:
- Improve discoverability of official Beats products and services.
- Help consumers verify authenticity and avoid counterfeit products.
- Centralize brand-owned web properties under a dedicated, brand-specific namespace.
Notable Cases or Examples
- The application emphasized use of the TLD to combat counterfeit Beats-branded headphones and to clearly identify authorized sellers.
- No specific registered second-level domain examples are listed in the provided source.
Operator
Beats Electronics, LLC
Whois
% IANA WHOIS server
% for more information on IANA, visit http://www.iana.org
% This query returned 1 object
domain: BEATS
organisation: Beats Electronics, LLC
address: 8600 Hayden Place
address: Culver City CA 90232
address: United States of America (the)
contact: administrative
name: Counsel-Trademark, Copyright and Domains
organisation: Apple, Inc.
address: 1 Infinite Loop
address: Cupertino CA 95014
address: United States of America (the)
phone: +1.408.996.1010
fax-no: +1.408.253.0186
e-mail: ngtld-apple@cscglobal.com
contact: technical
name: Howard Eland
organisation: Afilias
address: 300 Welsh Road
address: Building 3, Suite 105
address: Horsham PA 19044
address: United States of America (the)
phone: +1.215.706.5700
fax-no: +1.215.706.5701
e-mail: tld-tech-poc@afilias.info
nserver: A0.NIC.BEATS 2a01:8840:3a:0:0:0:0:9 65.22.60.9
nserver: A2.NIC.BEATS 2a01:8840:3d:0:0:0:0:9 65.22.63.9
nserver: B0.NIC.BEATS 2a01:8840:3b:0:0:0:0:9 65.22.61.9
nserver: C0.NIC.BEATS 2a01:8840:3c:0:0:0:0:9 65.22.62.9
ds-rdata: 18805 13 2 cfaa03f127215ab386663865fb2f6142984d0cadb057a15f0906b837c0bdddb9
whois: whois.nic.beats
status: ACTIVE
remarks: Registration information: http://beatsbydre.com
created: 2015-08-13
changed: 2025-03-25
source: IANA
