Originally, the .TRUST new gTLD was granted by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to Deutsche Post in 2013, who then sold its rights to NCC Group, a UK information assurance firm. .TRUST was first launched in December 2014 at a particularly high price with rigorous registration and security policies to comply with.
The new gTLD then changed hands again as UNR acquired it last year. In its press release, UNR states that;
“businesses and individuals should use .Trust domains to establish authenticity, emphasize privacy, amplify social responsibility, and promote trusted engagement with customers.”
UNR is now re-launching .TRUST as un unrestricted gTLD, in the following three phases:
Sunrise: 24 March - 21 April 2021
Because it is a re-launch, the .TRUST Sunrise is not just reserved to holders of trade marks registered at the Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH). Indeed any entity with a naming right can participate in the Sunrise. Valid naming rights include:
- Trade marks
- Company names
- Product names
- DBA, fictitious, and trade names
- Individual names and aliases
Thus priority will not be given to users of the TMCH and domain names will be allocated on a first come, first served basis.
Early Access Period (EAP): 21 - 28 April 2021
The EAP will be open to the general public on a first come, first basis, but during this phase domain names will be available at higher prices than normal. Prices will decrease day by day, thus a domain name will be much cheaper on the seventh day of the EAP than on the first day.
General Availability: 28 April 2021
Domain names will be available for everybody on a first come, first served basis at the standard price from 28 April onwards.
It should be noted that the Registry has set the .TRUST registration fee rather high. However, unlike most other new gTLDs, one and two-character domain names are accepted and there are no premium or reserved domains.
Authored by Anchovy News Team
