DotGreen Rises From the Ashes

Back in October 2013 we lamented the demise of the .green new TLD bid. A lot of people who work in the domain name industry were shocked, surprised and disappointed when the .green bid was withdrawn. But we got over it. We moved on. And several of the people involved with the original .green bid moved on too. Tim Switzer is now working for the .build registry.

So it was with great surprise that I learnt earlier this evening that the guys from the original .green bid were back on the scene. Not only that, but they’d managed to ink a deal with Afilias, who won the bid to run the .green TLD.

It’s unexpected and it’s good news.

It’s also a very smart move from Afilias.

Of the “colour” TLD applications that Afilias made .green is probably the strongest. The others might pick up some volume over time, but at present .black, .red and .pink aren’t exactly thriving (though they only launched in the last couple of weeks).

By teaming up with the team behind the “original” .green application they should be able to turn “another colour” TLD into something with a bit more behind it.

Here’s the full release:

DotGreen Community, Inc. and Afilias are pleased to announce the partnerships supporting the .green Top Level Domain (TLD), the world’s first TLD for the growing green economy, businesses, social and environmental initiatives.

DotGreen Community is a San Francisco Bay Area startup that provides Internet users the ability to promote green causes. Like the social movement it serves, .green is rapidly expanding into an organization with collaborative partners spanning the globe.

“.green is a brand for growth and it will serve companies and registrants who have aligned their values with their customers,” says Annalisa Roger, Founder and CEO of the DotGreen Community, Inc. “There’s no better or easier way to draw attention to your sustainability efforts than a .green name on and offline.”

Afilias, the world’s second largest domain registry, will provide secure and trusted technical operations behind the .green domain names, allowing DotGreen Community, Inc. to deliver reliable registry services for the green community.

“.green will operate on a world class registry system that is already linked to all of the leading registrars,” said Hal Lubsen, Chief Executive Officer of Afilias Limited. “This will enable green supporters to register and activate their .green domains conveniently and efficiently. We are proud to serve this growing and diverse movement.”

DotGreen brings additional partnerships with EarthShare, a federation comprised of the world’s leading environmental and conservation charities; and The DotGreen Foundation, a California Non-profit, 501 (c)3 Public Charity. These organizations will work together to distribute a percentage of the proceeds collected from the sales of the .green domain names to programs that work towards the advancement of sustainability worldwide.

“Every .green domain name will increase the value of this unique partnership,” explains Kal Stein, President and CEO of EarthShare. “Registering a .green name and visiting these new .green websites will be an action that businesses and the public can take on behalf of our planet. The fact that a portion of the registration revenue will be committed to supporting a healthy environment makes this TLD launch very special.”

The .green TLD is as inclusive as the green economy it serves. With an open registration policy, it invites all those interested in showcasing their path to sustainability.

They’ve also announced separately that industry veteran Kathy Nielsen, who was with Sedo, is joining DotGreen Community Inc as Executive Director of Registry Operations and Channel Relations.

To date exact launch dates and other details of .green have not been made public, but it would be safe to assume that with this new change in management and direction that they will be forthcoming shortly.

Andrew, Kevin and Ron provide more background.