ICANN held an auction for some of the new top level domains (TLDs) this week, which attracted the attention of all the big name tech companies. The one that got the highest bid is the .app TLD, and that was purchased by Google. The TLD, of course, has a lot of potential given the massive market for apps today.
While Google has not confirmed how they will use it, most people expect it will become a major part of their Google Play store. Perhaps they will begin having all apps get their own dedicated .app domain. They may also want to begin selling sites on this TLD, which would fit into their recently launched domain registration service.
Whatever the case, they had to pay a pretty penny to get this top level domain. The final bid was $25 million, which is the largest amount ever paid for a TLD. They were bidding against other major companies including Amazon.com, Minds + Machines and Radix.
The Google Spokesperson wrote to Business Insider in a somewhat lighthearted way saying, “We’ve been excited and curious about the potential for new TLDs for .soy long. We are very .app-y with .how, at a .minna-mum, they have the potential to .foo-ward internet innovation.”
Anyone who is marketing using apps, or creating apps, will want to keep a close eye on what Google does with their new .APP TLD. It could change the way apps are marketed in the future.
