Question

Is it possible to get my own extension?

Answer

Now the internet is flooded with all kinds of new extensions, generic ones (.email, .club) but also trade and brand names (.bnpparibas, .samsung), the question arises if everyone can get his own extension (new gTLD).

For example, we may want to apply for .openprovider, so that we can register domain names like support.openprovider or cp.openprovider. Then, we're not bound to an "old" extension like .nl anymore. 

So, can everyone get its own extension? The short answer is "yes", but it comes with a number of "however"s.

Timing

First of all, ICANN is far from ready to open a new round for applications. The latest information is that it will not happen before 2021. So be patient... An application can be prepared already, but a lot of information is just not yet known.

Costs

Also important: it's not cheap. The 2012 round came with a $185.000 application fee and a commitment to pay at least 10 years $25.000 per year. Those are just the ICANN fees. Composing an application document takes a lot of time as well, and time is money.

Depending on what kind of extension you want to apply for (your brand name or a generic that will be available to the wide public), you need more resources. If you intend to launch an open extension, you need to sell it: this requires people for sales, marketing, support, ...

We can't set a fixed price label, but we've heard rumours that the absolute minimum is around half a million dollars.

Application process

Being aware of the above, it is absolutely possible to apply for your own extension. Because there are many rules to follow and every application requires tailoring, we cannot provide you with a full checklist here. Please contact us to see how we can help you.