Sponsored top-level domain
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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 on the Internet.
Overall, IANA currently distinguishes the following groups of top-level domains:[1]
- infrastructure top-level domain (.arpa)
- country-code top-level domains (ccTLD)
- sponsored top-level domains (sTLD)
- generic top-level domains (gTLD)
- generic-restricted top-level domains
The term sponsored top-level domain is derived from the fact that these domains are based on "theme" concepts proposed by private agencies or organizations that establish and enforce rules restricting the eligibility of registrants to use the TLD. For example, the .aero TLD is sponsored by the Société Internationale de Télécommunications Aéronautiques, which limits registrations to members of the air-transport industry.
| TLD | Eligibility | Sponsors |
|---|---|---|
| Current sponsored TLDs | ||
| .aero | Members of the air-transport industry | Société Internationale de Télécommunications Aéronautiques |
| .asia | Companies, organisations and individuals in the Asia-Pacific region | DotAsia Organisation |
| .cat | Catalan linguistic and cultural community | Fundació puntCat |
| .edu | Post-secondary institutions accredited by an agency of the U.S. Department of Education | EDUCAUSE |
| .gov | United States Government | General Services Administration |
| .int | Organizations established by international treaties between governments | IANA |
| .jobs | Human resource managers | Employ Media, LLC. |
| .mil | United States Military | DoD Network Information Center |
| .mobi | Providers and consumers of mobile products and services | dotMobi |
| .museum | Museums | Museum Domain Management Association |
| .tel | For businesses and individuals to publish contact data | Telnic Ltd. |
| .travel | Travel agents, airlines, hoteliers, tourism bureaus, etc. | Tralliance Corporation |
| Pending sponsored TLDs | ||
| .post | Postal agencies and similar businesses | Universal Postal Union |
| Rejected sponsored TLDs | ||
| .xxx | Sexually explicit material | ICM Registry, Inc |
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