IDN Announcements
IDN ccTLD Request From Syrian Arab Republic Successfully Passes String Evaluation
21 JUN 10
IDN ccTLD Request From Singapore Successfully Passes String Evaluation
21 JUN 10
Blog Post: أسماء النطاقات الدولية الأولى
13 MAY 10
Blog Post: IDN ccTLDs – The First Four
13 MAY 10
First IDN ccTLDs Available
5 MAY 10
IDN ccTLD Request from Jordan Successfully Passes String Evaluation
21 APR 10
Webinars: Synchronized IDN ccTLDs
8 APR 10
IDN ccTLD Requests Completes Fast Track String Evaluation
23 MAR 10
Proposed Implementation Plan for Synchronized IDN ccTLDs
22 MAR 10
Blog Post: Clearing the Confusion (Fast Track)
6 MAR 10
First IDN ccTLDs Requests Successfully Pass String Evaluation
21 JAN 10
IDNs: Final Report on Three-Character Requirement and Variant Management Now Available for Public Comment
3 DEC 09
Blog Post: Fast Track Status Update
16 NOV 09
IDN ccTLD Fast Track Process Launch
16 NOV 09
Blog Post: Next Generation Internet Users?
14 NOV 09
IDN Blog Posts
- Making Chinese Internet History
- Russia Launches First Cyrillic IDN ccTLD, First Russian Internet Governance Forum
- أسماء النطاقات الدولية الأولى
- IDN ccTLDs – The First Four
- IDN TLD Update
- First IDN ccTLDs now available
- IDN ccTLD Delegations approved by the ICANN Board
- Update about Synchronized IDN ccTLDs
- Clearing the Confusion (Fast Track)
- Community Support for IDN ccTLDs
Internationalized Domain Names
Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) are domain names represented by local language characters. Such domain names could contain letters or characters from non-ASCII scripts (for example, Arabic or Chinese). Many efforts are ongoing in the Internet community to make domain names available in character sets other than ASCII.
This area is designed to document the progress of the implementation of IDNs as well as allow for discussion of issues encountered in implementation. For more information on how to participate in IDN activities, please contact idn@ICANN.org.
IDN ccTLD Fast Track Process
The IDN ccTLD Fast Track Process is launched as of 16 November 2009 (00:00UTC). The system for submitting requests for IDN ccTLDs is now available along with additional material supporting the launch.
The recent ICANN meeting in Korea (26-30 October 2009) was a milestone in IDN TLD development. The ICANN Board approved the IDN ccTLD Fast Track Process. The resolution of the Board approval is available here, and the transcript from the ICANN Board meeting is available here. A detailed presentation of the requirements in the IDN ccTLD Fast Track Process can be found here.
The IDN ccTLD Fast Track Process will enable countries and territories that use languages based on scripts other than Latin to offer their users domain names in non-Latin characters. These IDN ccTLDs will be available only to the governments and administrations of countries and territories listed in the ISO 3166-1 standard, or their designated representatives or operators. There is a number of string requirements for IDN ccTLDs to be delegated through the process, one of which is demonstration that the IDN ccTLD constitute a meaningful representation of the corresponding country or territory name.
IDN Video