I'd been doing some research on domain names for an upcoming article
I'd been doing some research on
domain names for an upcoming article when I became curious about what
type of sites had the most basic of all domain names -
The Alphabet Dot Coms! I was interested in how these sites (a.com, b.com, c.com etc) were being monetized.
Most of the single letter domains have been reserved by
ICANN
since 1993 when they became worried that there may not be enough domain
names to meet demand. The idea was that they could use these domains to
create 26 sub-domains (ie, microsoft.t.com) of the internet. There was
talk in 2005 of these domains being released through an auction, but it
hasn't happened yet.
Before
ICANN reserved the single-letter dot coms, three were already assigned. Although ownership has repeatedly changed hands, they are:
- Q.com - Points to the Qwest company site. Qwest is a communications site that provides voice, video and data services.
- X.com - It's Paypal!
- Z.com - Nissan's site on the very cool Nissan Z.
The only other single-letter domains that exist are
i.net,
q.net and
x.org.
Moving
on from the single-letter domains brings us to the double-letter
domains! So let's countdown....errr.....spelldown....the
Top (only?) 26 Alphabet Dot Coms!!
- American Airlines allows you book flights and vacations from their website.
BB.com - A books directory site where every link leads you to 'sponsored link' ads. You know the sort.
CC.com - '
Bad Request - Invalid Hostname'
DD.com - Another directory site that is clearly listed as being '
not for sale'. I guess they've had a few inquiries about it.
EE.com
- Innervision Computers is a Californian company that has been
providing computer consulting in Silicon Valley and Japan since 1982. I
don't doubt their credibility, but you'd think a computer consulting
site would be better designed.
FF.com - First Franklin is a well established mortgage broker in the US.
GG.com - A great horse racing news and information site. Great for learning about the G-Gs!
HH.com - The Hecker Law Group specializes in intellectual property matters.
II.com
- Infinite Ink appears to be a web 1.0 blog about computing,
mathematics, science and philosophy. An eclectic mix to say the least!
JJ.com - Johnson & Johnson. Hasn't
everybody used their Band-Aids?
KK.com - Another directory site. Does anybody actually use directory sites these days?
LL.com - And another directory site.
MM.com - Minnesota Micronet is an Internet Services Provider (ISP) in the US.
NN.com - Site was down or doesn't have hosting. Obviously not being utilized to it's full potential.
OO.com
- Kitchen Warfare is a blog about cooking! Definitely the most
interesting site in the list and probably the only 'personal' site.
PP.com - Yet another directory site. Looks the same as
KK.comQQ.com - Looks like a Chinese search engine that is very similar to
Yahoo!'s design. Incredibly popular site with an Alexa ranking of 9!
RR.com - Road Runner provides high speed internet connections in the US.
SS.com - Hey! A directory! What a surprise!
TT.com - Tiroler Tageszeitung (how do you pronounce that??) is a German newspaper site? Correct me if I'm wrong.
UU.com - Redirects to Gov.com which provides information on the United States governmet.
VV.com - Netsville provides ISP and e-commerce services.
WW.com - World of Webcams! This site lists over 500 webcams and enables those with a webcam to reach a larger audience.
XX.com - Didn't appear to be hosted. Add an extra 'x' and you'll certainly see some interesting sights!
YY.com -
'under construction' and just displays sponsored ads.
ZZ.com - Oh my god. A bag-pipe band site!! Does it get any worse!!! Turn off your speakers if you dare to visit this one!
It's
interesting to note that of all these highly-prized domains, only a
handful are owned by large companies or are being put to good use. It
makes me wonder how valuable they really are?
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