.app is a
generic top-level domain
Generic top-level domains (gTLDs) are one of the categories of top-level domains (TLDs) maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) for use in the Domain Name System of the Internet. A top-level domain is the last level of ev ...
(gTLD) in
ICANN
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN ) is a global multistakeholder group and nonprofit organization headquartered in the United States responsible for coordinating the maintenance and procedures of several dat ...
's New gTLD Program.
Google
Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...
purchased the gTLD in an ICANN Auction of Last Resort in February 2015.
The TLD is of interest due to its utility in regards to branding
mobile,
web
Web most often refers to:
* Spider web, a silken structure created by the animal
* World Wide Web or the Web, an Internet-based hypertext system
Web, WEB, or the Web may also refer to:
Computing
* WEB, a literate programming system created by ...
, and
other applications.
History
The development of the .app domain name began in 2012 after ICANN announced its "New gTLD Program".
The program's goal is to expand the current variety of namespaces by an almost unlimited quantity of new entries. In January 2012 the program received its first applications and in 2013 first serious investment inflow. The first part of the program's domain names were released in late 2014.
On 25 February 2015 Google won the ICANN Auction of Last Resort for the .app gTLD, via their Charleston Road Registry Inc. company, paying US$25 million.
Google opened public registration of the domain in May 2018.
Use and purpose
The name "app" is a short form of the word ''application'' often used in the
IT sector. This domain name is to be used by developer companies, professionals and enthusiast developers and entrepreneurs applications, app-support services or other useful related products and tools.
Because of its potential for use as a domain name space for mobile, web, and other applications—as well as for related products—the .app domain name creation is of interest to many development companies, professionals or enthusiast developers.
The .app gTLD would allow users to easily recognize a Web site dedicated to an application or related product or service, which has benefits in terms of brandability.
.app domains are, according to Gandi.net and other Resellers, "a security-focused space, meaning that
HTTPS
Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) is an extension of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). It uses encryption for secure communication over a computer network, and is widely used on the Internet. In HTTPS, the communication protoc ...
is required for all websites."
This is accomplished by including the .app top-level domain on the
HSTS preload list, making HTTPS required on all connections to .app websites.
See also
*
List of Internet top-level domains
This list of Internet top-level domains (TLD) contains top-level domains, which are those domains in the DNS root zone of the Domain Name System of the Internet. A list of the top-level domains by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) ...
*
Generic top-level domain
Generic top-level domains (gTLDs) are one of the categories of top-level domains (TLDs) maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) for use in the Domain Name System of the Internet. A top-level domain is the last level of ev ...
*
Sponsored top-level domain
A sponsored top-level domain (sTLD) is one of the categories of top-level domains (TLDs) maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) for use in the Domain Name System of the Internet, alongside country-code top-level domains (ccTLD ...
References
External links
Google - Get App product site Release Presentation by gTLD Google Development Team— Ben McIlwain and
Adrienne Porter Felt
{{Google LLC
Generic top-level domains
Google top-level domains