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    • .pw

    Country-code top-level domainsIDNDNSSEC

    Overview

    • .pw is the country code top-level domain (ccTLD) assigned to the Republic of Palau.
    • The string has been marketed as the "Professional Web" ("pw" = professional web) and is positioned for use as a professional identity on the web, though it can be registered and used for any purpose.
    • Registrations are available at the second level and the registry supports DNSSEC.

    History

    • Introduced / delegated in 1997 (delegation to Palau). The official introduction date recorded is 12 June 1997.
    • The registry is operated by PW Registry with technical operations provided by CentralNic; the sponsoring organization is the Micronesia Investment and Development Corporation (MIDCORP).
    • The string has been redelegated multiple times. Directi obtained exclusive rights from EnCirca in 2004 and later rebranded and relaunched the TLD as an open namespace.
    • From 25 March 2013 the registry opened registrations to the general public and began marketing .pw as the "Professional Web."
    • Early commercial milestones after opening: roughly 50,000 registrations within three weeks and over 250,000 registrations within three months of the public launch.

    Usage and Audience

    • Target audience: professionals, individuals and businesses seeking a professional web presence; however, the TLD is available to anyone worldwide.
    • Originally operated with restrictions for Palau residents; following the relaunch it became an open-use ccTLD.
    • Second-level labels intended for use within Palau include: .co.pw, .ne.pw, .or.pw, .ed.pw, .go.pw and .belau.pw.
    • The registry has also marketed premium single-character and short names as high-value assets.

    Registration Rules

    • Open-use ccTLD: anyone in the world can register a .pw domain; there are no country-based eligibility requirements and no documents required for registration.
    • Structure: registrations are available directly at the second level.
    • Restrictions: official policy notes reserved and restricted names. Examples of reserved categories include:
      • ICANN- and IANA-related names and existing TLD strings (gTLDs and ccTLDs)
      • One- and two-character domain names (all letter/digit combinations)
      • Labels with hyphens in the third and fourth positions (with IDN exceptions)
      • Geographical place names, references to regions, and names of Palauan chiefs
      • Short forms of country and territory names on ISO 3166-1
      • The label "EXAMPLE" at second and other levels
      • Premium domains reserved for non–first-come-first-served allocation
    • Policy and dispute handling: the registry publishes policies and enforces a UDRP-based dispute policy.

    SEO and Brand Impact

    • The TLD has faced significant abuse-related reputation challenges after being opened for general registration:
      • Security vendors reported high volumes of spam originating from .pw domains shortly after the public launch.
      • The registry operator stated a zero-tolerance stance on spam and took enforcement actions (including large-scale deactivations) against abusive domains.
      • The Anti-Phishing Working Group cited .pw (along with a few other TLDs) as accounting for a substantial share of malicious domain registrations in analyses referenced by the sources.
    • These security and abuse issues affected trust signals for some security products and network operators; some companies warned customers or blocked .pw domains during periods of heavy abuse.

    Notable Cases or Examples

    • Premium-name sales: early premium registrations included sales of "w.pw" and "p.pw" (reported sold for US$8,000 each).
    • Rapid registration milestones after public launch: ~50,000 domains in three weeks and over 250,000 within three months.
    • Spam and abuse incidents in 2013 prompted reports from security vendors and enforcement action by the registry, including deactivating thousands of domains for policy breaches.

    Operator

    Micronesia Investment and Development Corporation

    Whois

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

domain:       PW

organisation: Micronesia Investment and Development Corporation
address:      P.O. Box 1256
address:      Koror 96940
address:      Palau

contact:      administrative
name:         .pw Admin Contact
organisation: PW Registry Corporation
address:      P.O. Box 1106
address:      Koror 96940
address:      Palau
phone:        +680.488.3414
fax-no:       +680.488.3415
e-mail:       admin-iana@pwregistry.pw

contact:      technical
name:         .pw Technical Contact
organisation: Radix Technologies Inc SEZC
address:      CO Services Cayman Limited, P.O. Box 10008, Willow House, Cricket Square, Grand Cayman, KY1-1001, Cayman Islands
address:      Cayman Islands (the)
phone:        +1.4154494774
fax-no:       +1 781 823 8911
e-mail:       admin@radixregistry.com

nserver:      NS1.NIC.PW 194.169.218.12 2001:67c:13cc:0:0:0:1:12
nserver:      NS2.NIC.PW 185.24.64.12 2a04:2b00:13cc:0:0:0:1:12
nserver:      NS5.NIC.PW 212.18.248.12 2a04:2b00:13ee:0:0:0:0:12
nserver:      NS6.NIC.PW 212.18.249.12 2a04:2b00:13ff:0:0:0:0:12
ds-rdata:     44440 13 2 362cd4eb8c8fd51674622639f860f906ea08a7c977400547a9f0ac7db92e14c6
ds-rdata:     41432 13 2 ab329751c91ed6648a0f77cd45a3008773ce24a4c8a8fd4a510c3a303e19f1ac

whois:        whois.nic.pw

status:       ACTIVE
remarks:      Registration information: http://www.registry.pw

created:      1997-06-12
changed:      2025-04-15
source:       IANA

    Registrars