BIG^(TM) : The Basic Internet Guide
A Sourcebook for Learning Web Essentials
in the School, the Home and the Office
by Andis Kaulins, J.D. Stanford University
Lecturer a.D. University of Trier, Author Langenscheidt Fachverlag
(in collaboration with Chris Loehr, Erlangen)
Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2004 by Andis Kaulins. All rights reserved.

PART 1
Essential Internet Knowledge

Chapter 2
The Administration of the Internet

Page 21 - Domain Name Services and Domain Name Registration Limitations


Domain Name Services and Name Registration Limitations for generic TLDs (gTLDs) - see IANA and ICANN

Domain name registration is available through dozens of competitive registrars. Accredited registrars are found at ICANN and currently operating accredited registrars are found at the list at InterNIC. (For info on becoming an accredited registrar see ICANN.) Domains can be registered subject to the limitations below - alphabetical list.

.aero domain

• reserved for members of the air-transport industry
• sponsored by Société Internationale de Télécommunications Aéronautiques (SITA)

.biz domain

• restricted to businesses
• operated by NeuLevel, Inc

.com domain

• eligible to all
• operated by VeriSign Global Registry Services

.coop domain

• reserved for cooperative associations
• sponsored by Dot Cooperation LLC

.edu domain

• reserved for postsecondary institutions accredited by an agency on the U.S. Department of Education's list of Nationally Recognized Accrediting Agencies
• registered only through Educause

.gov domain

• reserved exclusively for the United States Government
• operated by the US General Services Administration

.info domain

• operated by Afilias Limited (see also NIC)
• eligible to all

.int domain

• used only for registering organizations established by international treaties between governments
• operated by the IANA .int Domain Registry

.mil domain

• reserved exclusively for the United States Military
• operated by the US DoD Network Information Center

.museum domain

• reserved for museums
• sponsored by the Museum Domain Management Association

.name domain

• reserved for individuals
• operated by Global Name Registry

.net domain

• operated by VeriSign Global Registry Services
• eligible to all

.org domain

• operated by Public Interest Registry
• intended for noncommercial community, but eligible to all

.pro domain

• restricted to credentialed professionals and related entities
• operated by RegistryPro

Domain Name Services and Name Registration Limitations for country code TLDs (ccTLDs) - pursuant to IANA and ICANN

See the IANA Root-Zone WhoIs Index by TLD Code

The Infrastructure Top-Level Domain .arpa - see IANA and RFC 3172

.arpa domain

• "address and routing parameter area" domain
• used exclusively for Internet-infrastructure purposes
• administered by IANA in cooperation with the Internet technical community under the guidance of the IAB (Internet Architecture Board)

The .arpa domain includes the following second-level domains: e164.arpa, in-addr.arpa, ip6.arpa, uri.arpa and urn.arpa. The .arpa domain interests only specialists (or special applications e.g. here) - and is described in more detail at CIE. Read RFC 3172 for a full picture.