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    • .name

    Restricted generic top-level domainsIDNDNSSEC

    Overview

    .name is a generic top-level domain (gTLD) intended for use by individuals to represent personal names, nicknames, screen names, pseudonyms or other personal identifiers. It supports both web presence and personalized email forwarding.

    History

    • Proposed and selected as one of seven new gTLDs by ICANN in 2000.
    • Founded by Hakon Haugnes and Geir Rasmussen; initially delegated to Global Name Registry (GNR) in 2001 and became operational in January 2002.
    • Verisign served as the outsourced operator from launch and acquired Global Name Registry in 2008.
    • Internationalized domain names (IDNs) became available for second- and third-level names in November 2009.

    Usage and Audience

    • Intended audience: individuals who want domain names or email addresses that reflect their personal name, nickname, screen name or pseudonym.
    • Common uses:
      • Personal websites and blogs (e.g., firstname.name or firstname.lastname.name)
      • Personalized email addresses and email forwarding (e.g., john@doe.name)
    • Structure:
      • Registrations are available at the second level (john.name) and third level (john.doe.name).
      • Third-level registrations share the second-level name; the second-level of third-level domains is not available for individual registrants.
      • Email forwarding is provided by the registry with EPP mappings to target addresses.
    • Many accredited ICANN registrars offer .name registrations, and some registrars continue to support third-level registrations.

    Registration Rules

    • Intended eligibility: registrations are meant to be by or on behalf of an individual using a name similar to the domain, or for fictional characters where the registrant holds rights.
    • Restrictions: there was no prior blanket restriction on registration, but registrations can be challenged if not held by or for an appropriate individual or rights-holder.
    • Structure and availability:
      • Originally only third-level registrations (first.last.name) and forwarded e-mail addresses were available; direct second-level registrations were allowed starting in January 2004.
      • IDNs are permitted at second and third levels (available since November 2009).
    • WHOIS access policy (historical): GNR implemented paid access to detailed WHOIS data, while offering tiered and agreement-based access to more extensive lookups.

    SEO and Brand Impact

    • Actual use: .name is reported to be mostly used as intended — for personal naming and email purposes.
    • Trust and security notes: the registry's past practice of charging for detailed WHOIS access drew criticism from security researchers who said it hampered efforts to locate and remediate malware and abusive hosts, which affected perceptions of the zone's openness to security investigations.

    Notable Cases or Examples

    • WHOIS access controversy (2007): Global Name Registry was criticized by security researchers for selling detailed WHOIS lookups, a practice that was said to hinder community efforts to find and clean up malicious infrastructure. The registry later provided tiered or agreement-based access and unlimited lookups to approved users under legal agreements.
    • Acquisition: Verisign acquired Global Name Registry in 2008 and became the registry operator for .name.

    Operator

    VeriSign Information Services, Inc.

    Domain Promos

    RegistrarPriceDiscount
    EuroDNSUS$22.27 US$15.5930

    Whois

    % IANA WHOIS server
% for more information on IANA, visit http://www.iana.org
% This query returned 1 object

domain:       NAME

organisation: VeriSign Information Services, Inc.
address:      12061 Bluemont Way
address:      Reston VA 20190
address:      United States of America (the)

contact:      administrative
name:         Registry Customer Service
organisation: VeriSign Information Services, Inc.
address:      12061 Bluemont Way
address:      Reston VA 20190
address:      United States of America (the)
phone:        +1 703 925 6999
fax-no:       +1-703-948-3978
e-mail:       info@verisign-grs.com

contact:      technical
name:         Registry Customer Service
organisation: VeriSign Information Services, Inc.
address:      12061 Bluemont Way
address:      Reston VA 20190
address:      United States of America (the)
phone:        +1 703 925 6999
fax-no:       +1 703 948 3978
e-mail:       info@verisign-grs.com

nserver:      AC1.NSTLD.COM 192.42.173.30 2001:500:120:0:0:0:0:30
nserver:      AC2.NSTLD.COM 192.42.174.30 2001:500:121:0:0:0:0:30
nserver:      AC3.NSTLD.COM 192.42.175.30 2001:500:122:0:0:0:0:30
nserver:      AC4.NSTLD.COM 192.42.176.30 2001:500:123:0:0:0:0:30
ds-rdata:     52563 8 2 4e2671f0dbc3927d842053044c6a0cbf8b21e1e657de8bba99a4835031a85a41

whois:        whois.nic.name

status:       ACTIVE
remarks:      Registration information: http://www.nic.name

created:      2001-08-17
changed:      2020-10-01
source:       IANA

    Registrars