Amazon now has ownership of the suffix .buy on the internet after spending US$4.6m to cement its place as the largest online marketplace, beating off opponents that include internet search giant Google.
The suffixes web users have all come to know – .com, .gov, .ie – have all been determined by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), who act as the internet’s domain regulator.
The organisation announced its decision in 2011 to offer a whole new range of suffixes which, aside from .buy, included .hello and .music and even .xxx. These suffixes have seen companies move quickly, eager to get their hands on unique suffixes for marketing reasons.
Now, according to CNet, Amazon has won an auction run by ICANN for one of the most highly sought after suffixes from an online retailer perspective.
It is also understood Google missed out on other major suffixes, including .tech and .vip, having gone through its own internet registry service, Charles Road Registry.
Amazon has also been busy harvesting domain names from around the web that might be trying to harm the company’s reputation, with reports last week indicating it has bought a number of domain names, including Screwamazon.com, amazonsucks.com and amazonstinks.com.
Amazon on tablet image via Shutterstock
