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    • .nrw

    Generic top-level domainsIDNDNSSEC

    Overview

    • .nrw is a geographic generic top-level domain (GeoTLD) intended to represent North Rhine-Westphalia (Nordrhein-Westfalen), a German state.
    • Proposed and applied for on behalf of the state to provide a region-specific namespace for businesses, organizations, institutions and individuals with ties to NRW.

    History

    • Applicant/Manager: Top Level Domain Holdings Ltd. (TLDH) applied for .nrw on behalf of North Rhine-Westphalia.
    • Registry/back-end: Minds + Machines acted as the registry/registry services provider; back-end services were subcontracted to Knipp Medien und Kommunikation GmbH (based in Nordrhein-Westfalen).
    • Key person listed in application materials: Antony Van Couvering (CEO, Minds + Machines & TLDH).
    • Contract status: A Registry Agreement with ICANN was signed for .nrw on November 21, 2013, after passing Initial Evaluation.

    Usage and Audience

    • Target audience: people, businesses, brands, organizations and other registrants that are from or have a relationship to North Rhine-Westphalia.
    • Intended purposes listed by the applicant:
      • Provide a recognizable domain namespace associating sites and email with NRW.
      • Support promotion, information dissemination, commerce, cultural and political activities tied to NRW.
      • Offer additional domain choices and affordable options for the region's population and businesses.
    • Regional context cited in the application:
      • North Rhine-Westphalia population cited as about 17.8 million.
      • NRW described as Germany's most populous and densely populated state and a major economic region (GDP cited in application materials: 543 billion in 2010).
      • Internet usage in NRW cited at 74.4% of the population (as of 2011) in the applicant's materials.

    Registration Rules

    • The applicant described .nrw as targeted at the North Rhine-Westphalian business community and population.
    • Registration procedure: the application stated registrations would be implemented in a transparent and non-discriminatory way.
    • Eligibility statements in application materials include both an emphasis on serving those "from or with a relationship to North Rhine-Westphalia" and, elsewhere in the materials, a mention that there are no nexus requirements; the application also describes implementing a registration policy in the interest of the North Rhine-Westphalian population.
    • Specific technical details such as allowed characters, minimum/maximum registration periods, or pricing are not provided in the input materials.

    SEO and Brand Impact

    • The applicant framed .nrw as a regional alternative to crowded TLD spaces (noting .de saturation) to provide more relevant and affordable names tied to NRW.
    • Positioning goals stated by the applicant:
      • Establish .nrw as the recognized choice for registrants wishing to market to or associate with North Rhine-Westphalia.
      • Help consumers identify sites and services that relate to NRW, strengthening regional brand recognition online.
      • Increase availability of desirable names for local businesses and organizations as an aid to online visibility and promotion.

    Operator

    Minds + Machines GmbH

    Whois

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

domain:       NRW

organisation: Minds + Machines GmbH
address:      Hansestr. 111
address:      Köln 51149
address:      Germany

contact:      administrative
name:         IANA Contact
organisation: GoDaddy Registry
address:      2155 E GoDaddy Way
address:      Tempe AZ 85284
address:      United States of America (the)
phone:        +1 480-505-8800
fax-no:       +1 480-624-2546
e-mail:       iana@registry.godaddy

contact:      technical
name:         IANA Contact
organisation: GoDaddy Registry
address:      2155 E GoDaddy Way
address:      Tempe AZ 85284
address:      United States of America (the)
phone:        +1 480-505-8800
fax-no:       +1 480-624-2546
e-mail:       iana@registry.godaddy

nserver:      ANYCAST10.IRONDNS.NET 195.253.64.12 2a01:5b0:4:0:0:0:0:c
nserver:      ANYCAST23.IRONDNS.NET 195.253.65.11 2a01:5b0:5:0:0:0:0:b
nserver:      ANYCAST24.IRONDNS.NET 195.253.65.12 2a01:5b0:5:0:0:0:0:c
nserver:      ANYCAST9.IRONDNS.NET 195.253.64.11 2a01:5b0:4:0:0:0:0:b
nserver:      ARI.ALPHA.TLDNS.GODADDY 2001:dcd:1:0:0:0:0:2 37.209.192.2
nserver:      ARI.BETA.TLDNS.GODADDY 2001:dcd:2:0:0:0:0:2 37.209.194.2
nserver:      ARI.DELTA.TLDNS.GODADDY 2001:dcd:4:0:0:0:0:2 37.209.198.2
nserver:      ARI.GAMMA.TLDNS.GODADDY 2001:dcd:3:0:0:0:0:2 37.209.196.2
ds-rdata:     61012 10 2 03b1a9b2f537eeb6e16872fef7971d7fc55a71b270952bd1e7be44301f1cc245

whois:        whois.nic.nrw

status:       ACTIVE
remarks:      Registration information: http://mindsandmachines.com

created:      2014-05-29
changed:      2023-06-13
source:       IANA

    Registrars