Your next opportunity for a dotBrand is approaching: Where do you even start?

dotBrands can require significant initial investment but with the right strategy, they can be an effective tool for your domain and branding, explains Colin Costello of GoDaddy Corporate Domains.

The ICANN81 meeting in Istanbul brought together global brand owners to discuss the latest developments from the internet's mothership.

In our November webinar, recapping the event's announcements, a key topic was the next round of TLDs (top-level domains). Since the next round is expected in April 2026, now is the time to prepare.

Like the 2012 round, the upcoming opening of the namespace for additional TLDs presents both opportunities and risks for brand owners. Of course, with new extensions there will be brand protection issues–think defensive registrations or blocking–but perhaps the larger opportunity is whether you should apply for your own dotBrand TLD (eg, .GoDaddy, .Microsoft, .Google).

Though April 2026 may seem far away, many companies are already active in their preparation. Deciding if you should apply can take months, let alone developing a use strategy, securing a budget, and getting the right people and vendors involved to assist with the application process.

Plus, securing a dotBrand is not as simple as purchasing domain names; it involves a detailed application and evaluation process through ICANN.

In the 2012 round, there were over 660 dotBrand TLD applications. While many brands applied for dotBrand TLDs in 2012, only around 260 are active today.

A further approximately 100 brands only completed their registration without activating any domains, and a further 300 abandoned the process entirely by withdrawing their application or terminating their ICANN agreement.

On the flip side, we have seen many companies take full advantage of their new digital assets and use them in powerful and unique ways. For example, Google uses .Google to streamline its corporate identity and goals (like safety.google and blog.google).

As a small aside, I do expect a small number of companies that either withdrew or terminated their applications in 2012 to re-apply for the same TLD again next year.

Clearly, a dotBrand TLD can work well for some companies but not for others. Ultimately though, while dotBrands may require a significant initial investment, they can be an effective tool for your domain and branding efforts with the right strategy and planning.

So, with all this in mind, it begs the question: are dotBrands a worthwhile investment and where do you even begin? Here is how to get started.

Understand timing and rules

As you consider applying for a dotBrand TLD, an essential first step is to become familiar with ICANN and the process and rules around new gTLDs. ICANN meets three times per year and works throughout to develop and implement policies. It is important to track relevant timelines, protocols, and most importantly their regulations that may impact your domain strategy.

ICANN's Applicant Guidebook (AGB) will ultimately contain all the information, terms and conditions relevant to applying for a new gTLD. The AGB will undergo a series of reviews and public comments with final approval and publication coming in early 2026. After this, the next round of applications will open in April 2026 and stay open for 15 weeks.

Though not fully finalised yet, the AGB is a helpful introductory resource for companies applying for new gTLDs to get the proverbial lay of the land. It is also a document that will be hotly debated at the upcoming ICANN meetings, such as at ICANN82 in Seattle, Washington this March.

If attending ICANN meetings or diving into the weeds on Internet Governance policy is not something you are up for, corporate registrars like GoDaddy Corporate Domains (GCD), as industry insiders, are ideally positioned to inform you of recent developments. Companies using those resources have the advantage of their counsel.

Weighing dotBrand gTLD pros and cons

Owning a dotBrand gTLD is not for everyone. They are relatively expensive to operate and often require involvement with multiple stakeholders across your company during both the application phase and day-to-day operations.

That said, dotBrand gTLDs can offer unique advantages. A dotBrand TLD allows you to operate with greater control of your digital assets, starting at the root of the internet. DotBrands provide greater flexibility to adapt, grow, and respond to future opportunities to fuel your businesses.

They do not need to replace your existing domain name-based online strategies, but they can certainly play an important role in managing your existing digital assets.

Many Fortune 500 companies have leveraged dotBrands to achieve positive results. For example, Audi strategically leverages its dotBrand across its online ecosystem—for regional dealerships (berlin.audi), customer support (manuals.audi ), and team management (weare.audi)—dedicating its online spaces to highlight innovation and enhance brand perception.

One recommended early step is to create a core team to evaluate the opportunity. This team should represent the multifaceted aspects of operating a TLD, ideally including having representatives from the legal, marketing, network ops, and InfoSec teams.

In the initial planning stages, the core team should define your objectives and explore whether owning a brand gTLD will contribute to achieving your business’s overall goals. Early brainstorming meetings can generate ideas as to which specific TLD(s) would make sense to purchase and how they could be used.

Then, team members can conduct a feasibility study to determine if a TLD already exists as an exact or similar match. This investigation should include an intellectual property (IP) check by the legal department to decide which additional IP applications may be necessary to support your TLD application.

It is important to note that not every idea for a TLD is allowed. The AGB and ICANN rules can help you and your team determine if your desired dotBrand TLD is allowable, so it is important to reference this and ask for help as needed.

Having IP rights, ensuring the TLD is available, and considering allowed usage is key. An early check on these TLD allowances and restrictions to vet potential TLDs can prevent headaches down the road.

DotBrand competitive considerations

Based on our experience in the last round, there is a heavy dose of FOMO (fear of missing out) that can happen between competitors. Who is applying for what is a top question, but historically that information has not been public until the window closes.

We expect the same for 2026, so you will need to ultimately be comfortable with your decision to proceed or not with a dotBrand without knowing what competitors' strategies will be.

A good starting point is to conduct a competitive analysis across the industry. How many competitors have existing dotBrands and how are they using them? Are there competitors who do not have a dotBrand yet, but are likely to apply for one in the next round? Noting how peers use dotBrands to attain success or failure will help determine your decisions and path forward.

Also, it is worth considering whether any competitor or organisation is likely to apply for the same or similar TLD string. If you are new to the coming round, ICANN will allow applicants to submit an alternative string to avoid any contention set issues.

Having a backup plan in mind in case the first choice dotBrand is not available is a good idea. Visit ICANN's String Similarity Guidelines for details about String Similarity Review, where applied-for strings are evaluated, and Alternative Strings, where applicants can submit multiple options.

Securing budget for the dotBrand TLD

Once internal stakeholders are on board, moving into the budget process becomes much more manageable. The expected application fee to ICANN has been set at $227,000, plus an additional “continual evaluation” fee between $5,000 and $10,000 for a dotBrand application to be confirmed by ICANN, a substantial increase from the 2012 round fee of $185,000.

If you secure your TLD, there is also an annual ICANN fee of $25,800 along with other costs you may incur, such as the cost of running the backend registry, data escrow services, and registrar services, which can vary depending on their chosen providers.

Brand owners may want to retain the services of companies experienced in the ICANN and dotBrand space which can provide a tailored suite of services, such as corporate registrars, consultants, or outside counsel.

As an approximate guide and depending on how many domains you plan to register in your TLD, you should budget between $25,000 to $100,000 per year to operate your dotBrand gTLD, depending on the level of support and outsourcing you require.

Resources for dotBrand applicants

One helpful resource for brand owners is the Brand Registry Group (BRG), an association of organisations working together to champion the use of dotBrand TLDs. The BRG consists of experienced existing brand registry operators who are ideally placed to support members in launching and operating their brands.

The BRG provides advocacy between governments and internet stakeholders and also a forum for brand owners to share best practices for navigating the application process with internal stakeholders.

While numerous resources exist for dotBrand planning and management, choosing the right partners through the process is crucial. Companies like GoDaddy Corporate Domains offer a range of services, from feasibility studies to day-to-day operational support, including access to essential tools and strategies.

Only you know whether dotBrand TLDs are for you

Given the timeline for the launch of the next round of TLDs, the coming months are an optimal time to consider the potential benefits of obtaining a dotBrand TLD. The advantages can be substantial, but so are the time and fixed costs of owning and operating them.

By forming a core team, thoroughly examining the possibilities, and leveraging all available resources to support the process, your company can make an informed decision about dotBrand gTLDs that will best serve your organisational goals.

Colin Costello is a senior account executive at GoDaddy Corporate Domains and its resident Brand TLD expert.

Working in the domain industry and enterprise sales for over 25 years, including 11 years at Verisign managing their 200+ Brand TLDs, Colin has worked with countless global corporations in helping them effectively and efficiently enhance, manage, and secure their domain portfolios and ultimately help them navigate their way through an ever-changing digital landscape.

He can be contacted at Colin@gcd.com.