At the end of April, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) opened the application period for domain registrars, to allow companies to register for .BRAND domains for the first time since 2012, allowing organizations to register a new generic top-level domain (gTLD) that matches their trademarked name.

“Top level” refers to what is typically the “.com,” “.net,” “.gov,” etc. part of a domain. A .BRAND instead features a brand name after the final dot in a domain address, such as https://about.google.

As a custom domain extension, it is owned and operated by the business that holds the trademarked name.

With this, companies take full control over their domain ecosystem by creating, managing and deactivating domains quickly without third-party assistance.

This means .BRANDS are about much more than a name. The current application period marks a fresh opportunity to future-proof digital assets by carving out a trusted space for company information and partner interactions. Such trust is needed because emerging AI tools are triggering increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks and brand infringements by targeting domains.

Nine out of ten organizations, in fact, have experienced at least one domain name system (DNS) attack, with a $1.1 million average cost per incident. Executive leaders must reassess how to best prepare their own internal, partner and customer infrastructures for the new era of digital threats.

The great promise of dot BRANDS

Dot BRANDS bring great promise to help companies achieve this. They bolster domain security against phishing and other types of fraud by mitigating the incidence of lookalike domains. At the same time, they boost brand visibility and placement in search results and AI-generated responses alike.

There are more than 400 .BRANDS in global web ranks, including dns.google, home.barclays and group.softbank. To cite one use case example, Microsoft is consolidating Microsoft 365 apps and services under the cloud.microsoft domain. Subsequently, businesses significantly improve domain protection with the following advantages:

1. ICANN Specification 13 ensures that a .BRAND domain is exclusively reserved for the trademark holder, eliminating third-party use of the domain.

2. An official .BRAND enables full traceability and consistency for domain-associated sites, assuring authenticity for any hosted website linked to it.

3. By operating in this exclusive namespace, organizations reduce exposure to lookalike domains commonly used in phishing, malware and impersonation schemes. As a result, a .BRAND fortifies security, limiting financial and reputational risks.

4. Users readily distinguish fraud domains from real ones because a .BRAND establishes clear authenticity, a company-controlled online space and, thus, customer trust. What’s more, a .BRAND domain is automatically disassociated from the brand if the content/information cannot be traced to the organization.

Fueling reliable AI/LLM results

This means businesses can say with confidence, “If it doesn’t end in our .BRAND domain, then it’s not us.” Such confidence extends to the ubiquity of AI/large language models (LLMs) in multiple ways.

For starters, .BRANDs create a future-ready, controlled TLD infrastructure with a secure foundation for emerging technologies like AI and LLMs. Because the brand exclusively owns and operates the TLD, every domain published under it is inherently authenticated, giving AI systems a clean, unambiguous signal of origin when crawling and sourcing content.

An organization’s domain ecosystem plays a major role in influencing whether AI tools will use its content as a source. In gathering information to generate responses, LLMs and AI search engines increasingly rely on digital signals that are verified and contain reliable content, not those that appear to be fraudulent and/or contain inaccurate information. An ability to identify legitimate sources plays a crucial role here, especially given the wealth of AI-generated misinformation out there.

By definition, content hosted on a .BRAND website is verifiable and authentic. It would not exist if not for the indisputable confirmation associated with a legitimate organization. Beyond security, this establishes a strong signal for AI search results/response rankings, with .BRANDs emerging as machine-readable trust signals to optimize algorithmic rankings.

Seizing a rare domain opportunity

A .BRAND is not a short-term marketing initiative; it is a long-term strategic position. It is distinctive, secure and easily identifiable as authentic by both humans and machines – delivering a decided, competitive advantage in the AI race. Indeed, a .BRAND indicates that your company is considered a market leader focused on innovation, with a lasting commitment to domain defense, brand control and digital strategy.

That said, pursuing a .BRAND is a significant undertaking. Applicants must hold a registered trademark for the desired extension, and the costs are considerable. These .BRANDs are most viable for larger organizations with legally defensible brand names and the resources to transition to and maintain a TLD long-term. For those that qualify, however, the investment secures a level of digital ownership that no other domain strategy can match.

It’s been 14 years since the last application window opened, and there may not be another opportunity in the foreseeable future after the current one closes on August 12 this year. Therefore, executive leaders should seize the moment to assess whether now is the time to ensure greater control over their brand’s digital identity – and position their organization as forward-thinking and authoritative.

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Director of Policy and Global Domain Name Services for CSC.