Whether or not to acquire a .brand Top Level Domain (or gTLD) depends on an organization’s brand and marketing strategy, market position, customers and possibly even its partners and channels.  The big question though is what will those elements look like five years from now?  Five years is beyond most strategic business plans and in Internet time is an eternity. 

Why a five year horizon?  First, it will be over a year from now before any newly applied-for gTLD goes live.  Then, it could be two to three more years before the next application round. The .brand gTLDs that get through the process quickly will have the most time to gain user adoption.  And if successful, that could increase interest from other companies in applying in subsequent rounds as they attempt to catch up. 

For companies there are essentially three approaches to new gTLDs: 

  1. Take no action / wait and see
  2. Apply for a .brand gTLD for marketing potential
  3. Apply for a .brand gTLD to keep the name from being registered by another entity 

The first approach would likely be the preference for most organizations – let the early adopters test the water and then determine if new gTLDs do in fact develop brand power.  However, the reality is that the universe of unique names is limited. Waiting out the first round creates the risk of competing in a more crowded field in the next round. 

Companies that invest heavily in marketing and advertising will want to consider the second approach.  The ability to have a consistent brand strategy for URLs and the ability to create them on demand will provide significant value. But there are other additional benefits that can and will also be explored from a marketing standpoint. 

The last option is the safe bet for companies that value their brand, especially where there are multiple brands in the world with identical or closely similar spellings.  It still requires completing the ICANN application and evaluation processes.  If successful, the company will be required to enter into a relationship with ICANN for the gTLD and to maintain a registry (however the cost of maintaining an idle registry may be considered reasonable).  This option will ensure the appropriate gTLD is in the brand portfolio and the company can then consider its options later when there is more clarity around the potential use and applications.