Overview
- .hotmail is a brand top-level domain (gTLD) applied for and operated by Microsoft Corporation.
- It was created to support the Hotmail email service brand, aiming to provide secure and authentic experiences tied to Microsoft services.
- The registry backend services are provided by Verisign.
History
- .hotmail was delegated as part of ICANN's New gTLD Program on 10 June 2015.
- The TLD is classified as a brand gTLD and is managed by Microsoft; registry services are handled by Verisign.
- The ICANNWiki record lists the TLD status as delegated and notes Microsoft as the manager with Verisign as the registry backend.
Usage and Audience
- Intended audience: Microsoft, its Hotmail service, and affiliated Microsoft business units.
- Purpose: to promote the Hotmail email service, provide a more secure and authentic experience for consumers and businesses interacting with Microsoft, and protect the Hotmail trademark and associated intellectual property.
- Applicant statements cite Hotmail usage metrics (e.g., more than 360 million users and statements of hundreds of millions of users sending billions of messages daily) as context for the TLD's mission.
Registration Rules
- Registration is restricted to Microsoft Corporation and its wholly owned subsidiaries.
- Eligibility checks will be performed by the registry.
- All domains in the .hotmail registry will remain the property of Microsoft Corporation or one of its wholly owned subsidiaries.
- Registrants may not assign rights in .hotmail domains to any third party.
SEO and Brand Impact
- The TLD is explicitly positioned as a controlled brand space to enhance trust, authenticity, and security associated with the Hotmail service and Microsoft communications.
- As a brand gTLD restricted to Microsoft and its subsidiaries, .hotmail is intended primarily for official Microsoft use and brand protection rather than broad public adoption.
Operator
Microsoft Corporation
Whois
% IANA WHOIS server
% for more information on IANA, visit http://www.iana.org
% This query returned 1 object
domain: HOTMAIL
organisation: Microsoft Corporation
address: One Microsoft Way
address: Redmond WA 98052
address: United States of America (the)
contact: administrative
name: Program Manager
organisation: Microsoft Corporation
address: One Microsoft Way
address: Redmond WA 98052
address: United States of America (the)
phone: +1 425 706 3546
fax-no: +1 425 457 2511
e-mail: registry@microsoft.com
contact: technical
name: TLD Registry Services Technical
organisation: Nominet
address: Minerva House, Edmund Halley Road, Oxford Science Park
address: Oxford OX4 4DQ
address: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the)
phone: +44 1865 332211
e-mail: registrytechnical@nominet.uk
nserver: DNS1.NIC.HOTMAIL 213.248.219.131 2a01:618:403:0:0:0:0:131
nserver: DNS2.NIC.HOTMAIL 103.49.83.131 2401:fd80:403:0:0:0:0:131
nserver: DNS3.NIC.HOTMAIL 213.248.223.131 2a01:618:407:0:0:0:0:131
nserver: DNS4.NIC.HOTMAIL 2401:fd80:407:0:0:0:0:131 43.230.51.131
nserver: DNSA.NIC.HOTMAIL 156.154.100.3 2001:502:ad09:0:0:0:0:3
nserver: DNSB.NIC.HOTMAIL 156.154.101.3 2001:502:2eda:0:0:0:0:3
nserver: DNSC.NIC.HOTMAIL 156.154.102.3 2610:a1:1009:0:0:0:0:3
nserver: DNSD.NIC.HOTMAIL 156.154.103.3 2610:a1:1010:0:0:0:0:3
ds-rdata: 12876 8 2 5d35f9e8561ce9835fbdbcd44fd9f80c93d5412827694bd7b17bc1477a8e70ab
ds-rdata: 30586 8 2 c055d04ac9301bff85af9424f6d368d206d7e4786813a22fd3cceaa6928f50cc
whois:
status: ACTIVE
remarks: Registration information: http://www.microsoft.com
created: 2015-04-30
changed: 2025-05-01
source: IANA
