.tattoo

Overview

• .tattoo is a generic top-level domain (gTLD) introduced through ICANN's New gTLD Program.
• The string is intended as a specialty namespace for the tattoo industry, enabling businesses, artists and related services to signal purpose and niche focus in their web addresses.

History

• The .tattoo application was submitted to ICANN as part of the New gTLD Program and was delegated to the DNS Root Zone on 14 November 2013.
• A Registry Agreement with ICANN was signed on 30 August 2013.
• Uniregistry was the original registry operator and the sole applicant for the string.
• The registry/operator ownership changed over time: Uniregistry was acquired by Top Level Design in 2022, and the TLD was later acquired by GoDaddy Registry in 2023.
• Registry metadata in the source lists the Internet Systems Consortium in a registry field and marks the TLD as active and categorized as a generic/industry gTLD.

Usage and Audience

• Target audience:
  • Tattoo artists and studios
  • Tattoo supply and service providers
  • Community sites, blogs and portfolios related to tattooing
• Positioning:
  • The registry application emphasized that a specialized string like .tattoo "immediately conveys the purpose" of a site, making it easier for users to find specialized content compared with broader TLDs.
  • The TLD was promoted as a specialty namespace complementary to existing domains.

Registration Rules

• Allocation and pricing approach described in the registry application:
  • First-come, first-served allocation model.
  • Flat-rate pricing and fixed renewal costs were promised, with no material price increases for the first five years.
  • Rate-limited registration queues with randomized, round-robin acceptance to make land-rush allocation more balanced.
• Post-registration and lifecycle policies excerpted from the application:
  • A 180-day suspension/redemption window for expiring domain names to allow registrants to recover accidentally expired names.
  • After an extended redemption period, domain deletions would occur within a randomized one-month window to limit gaming of deleted-name streams.
  • A stated "must delete" policy intended to discourage registrar warehousing of expiring names.
• Sunrise period (as announced by the registry): 11 December 2013 to 09 February 2014.

SEO and Brand Impact

• The registry application framed .tattoo as a branding tool: specialized TLDs convey site purpose directly in the domain name, which can help with clarity and user expectations.
• The TLD was positioned as a competitively priced, niche namespace that could serve as an alternative or complement to existing domains for industry participants.

Notable Cases or Examples

• An objection to the TLD was filed by Saudi Arabia's Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) on religious grounds.
• .tattoo was delegated to the Root Zone on the same day as other new gTLDs; the registry noted its first two delegations on that date, including .tattoo and .sexy.

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

domain:       TATTOO

organisation: Registry Services, LLC
address:      100 S. Mill Ave, Suite 1600
address:      Tempe AZ 85281
address:      United States of America (the)

contact:      administrative
name:         IANA Contact
organisation: GoDaddy Registry
address:      100 S. Mill Ave, Suite 1600
address:      Tempe AZ 85281
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:      100 S. Mill Ave, Suite 1600
address:      Tempe AZ 85281
address:      United States of America (the)
phone:        +1 480 505 8800
e-mail:       iana@registry.godaddy

nserver:      A.NIC.TATTOO 2001:dcd:1:0:0:0:0:10 37.209.192.10
nserver:      B.NIC.TATTOO 2001:dcd:2:0:0:0:0:10 37.209.194.10
nserver:      C.NIC.TATTOO 2001:dcd:3:0:0:0:0:10 37.209.196.10
nserver:      X.NIC.TATTOO 156.154.172.82 2610:a1:1074:0:0:0:1:82
nserver:      Y.NIC.TATTOO 156.154.173.82 2610:a1:1075:0:0:0:1:82
nserver:      Z.NIC.TATTOO 156.154.174.82 2610:a1:1076:0:0:0:1:82
ds-rdata:     20907 13 2 2eb5f4e97ebc340acc792395037d9bac16b3683099bc109abc2ea74e7d0d2555

whois:        whois.nic.tattoo

status:       ACTIVE
remarks:      Registration information: http://nic.tattoo/

created:      2013-11-08
changed:      2024-07-18
source:       IANA