MARINA DEL REY, Calif. — One of the most-prized generic top-level domain names — .club — has been given approval by ICANN to start up.
The new.club gTLD to open next year likely will be popular with the adult entertainment industry, particularly because so many adult brands and stars employ "club" in association with their web brands.
Jenna Jameson, one of the most famous adult performers of all time, built her brand and multimedia company using "club" in her name. Jameson launched ClubJenna in 2000.
There will be no restrictions over the types of domain names or types of content for .club domain holders, .club spokeswoman Bridget King told XBIZ.
The price also will be a popular selling point because .club domain addresses will have a sticker price of $20 or less a year through registrars like GoDaddy.com, Network Solutions and others, which are just starting to finalize resale agreements with .club operators.
"The price of a .xxx address is much higher than that of a .club domain," King said. "Retail pricing for Sunrise and Land Rush will be around $199 and for general availability less than $20."
Its operators haven't announced dates yet for sunrise and landrush periods.
The entity behind .com was founded only one year ago and is backed by $8.2 million from 26 private investors including Canadian entrepreneurs William Campbell and Dirk Bhagat. It is led by Internet entrepreneur Colin Campbell, formally of Tucows Interactive and Hostopia.com.
Operators of the new .club gTLD signed a registry agreement with ICANN on Monday.
Colin Campbell, CEO and founder of .club, said: “To date we have already spent more than $5 million on a private auction, legal fees and market awareness campaigns."
“.Club is global brand, which has so many different meanings for so many people,” Campbell said.