.Brand TLDs: company-owned endings
Brand top-level domains explained: how companies like Google and BMW got their own endings, the .amazon dispute, why brands want them and why many gave them up.
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A .brand TLD is a top-level domain owned and used by a single company for its own websites, like .google or .bmw. Instead of renting names under .com, the company controls the entire ending.
How .brand TLDs came about
ICANN's 2012 New gTLD Program let companies apply for their own trademarks as endings. Hundreds of brands applied. Special contract terms let these companies keep the ending closed, so only the company and its close affiliates can use names under it.
Examples in use
- .google: Google uses addresses like blog.google.
- .bmw: the carmaker's own ending.
- .amazon: approved in 2019 after a seven-year dispute with Amazon-region governments. See the Amazon.com domain story.
Why companies want one
- Security: customers know any address ending in the brand is genuine, which helps fight phishing.
- Control: the company manages every name itself.
- Short, memorable addresses for campaigns and products.
The reality
Running a TLD is expensive, and many brands that got one barely used it. A good number later gave their endings back. Brands were again among the applicants in the 2026 application round, giving companies that missed 2012 a second chance. See new gTLDs.
Questions
Can I buy a domain ending in .google?
No. .brand endings are closed and used only by the company that owns them.