Google has introduced a new top-level domain for the web to use. It’s .ing, and it seems it exists primarily to challenge the internet and its capacity for creativity. I must admit, I’m struggl.ing to figure out a domain name that isn’t a curse word.
Google revealed the new domain in a Keyword blog. Several brands have already jumped on the naming convention, including Canva, Adobe Acrobat, and even The Swiss Association of Consulting Engineering Companies. Canva nabbed the domain design.ing, naturally, while Adobe Acrobat can be visited at both edit.ing and sign.ing. The Swiss organization went with suisse.ing—suisse is French for Swiss. It’s marketing built right into the URL and that’s precisely the point.
When Google teased the advent of .ing back in August, the company said it was hop.ing that “people, businesses, and brands can express themselves in a whole new way.” The domain does call for some serious creativity, which might be why it costs so much to register currently.
GoDaddy is one of the few domain registrars that offers those .ing addresses currently. They are pretty expensive. If I wanted writ.ing, let’s say, it would cost me about $US13,000/year to register. I tried typing in flo.ing, pretending that’s how I’d market my name with the domain, and that one is only $US195/year.
“Fuck.ing,” goes for about $US11,000/year which might be a steal. Freak.ing is much more affordable at $US3,900/year, and I implore anyone dealing in soft-core entertainment to register that before a brand hops on it. Smil.ing is also available for a small-town dentist, and it’s not too bad at $US455/year.
You can register domains as part of Google’s early access period to honor the new URL, though there will be a one-time fee for being first. The price will be discounted daily until December 5. After that, the .ing domains will be publicly available to all.
Google is also working on getting .meme into the zeitgeist. The company previously wrote that meme is “for the culture.” I’m curious what kind of havoc will be wrought when that top-level domain makes it out.