.WS and .NU – the new rising TLD stars on the global web scene
All users interested in entering into the Web and building profiles targeted at the global audience are faced with a difficult choice – what domain names to register for their new websites. Let’s leave the future website owners ponder over the unique second-level part (SLD) of their web addresses and pay attention to the TLD choices they may have available. Well, as we all know, the most popular domain extensions that first come to mind (the generic TLDs with .COM and .NET at the top of the list) are selling like hot cakes today So, the chances for registering an attractive domain name ending with any of those top-choice TLD are getting slimmer on a daily basis.
So what do you do now in a situation like this? Would you be rather thinking of an alternative name for your website with the sole purpose of preserving the priceless .COM or .NET extension than sticking to your valuable domain choice and searching for a reasonable TLD alternative? If you are one of those persistent guys you will be happy to hear that such solutions do exist and are just a domain search request away from you. It is about two increasingly popular domain extensions – .WS and .NU, that were originally introduced as country code TLDs but have recently been publicly marketed as .COM and .NET alternatives.
What has triggered that special interest in .WS and .NU? Isn’t that alternatives-to-popular-gTLDs statement some marketing trick or a hasty conclusion? Well, let’s keep in mind the dynamic nature of the Web where new trends and practices are established daily and leave the facts talk by themselves.
The .WS extension is seen as holding a great ‘generic’ potential due to its coincidence with ‘ws’ as an acronym for a ‘Web Site’. In general, it stands for Western Samoa. Considering the fact that this TLD is open for registration to anyone in the world – guess which acronym interpretation will get the upper hand among users? Also, its neutral meaning as an acronym for ‘web site’ raises its value as an extension for general-use websites.
We have an even more curious situation with the .NU domain extension. Initially introduced as the country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for the island state of Niue, .NU was quickly recognized as a real ‘generic’ treasure by seekers of alternative TLD opportunities. Its most winning feature is the phonetic similarity between ‘nu’ and and the web’s favorite term ‘new’. Given that no .NEW TLD exists yet and that ‘nu’ is shorter than ‘new’ – .NU is considered as a good new TLD choice. However, there is more to that. In most Scandinavian languages and in Dutch ‘nu’ means ‘now’, which makes the TLD especially attractive on some of the most developed web markets globally where the ccTLDs registrations are associated with some restrictions.
Well, take no notice of any pessimistic comments about the new rising stars on the domain name market and be forward-thinking in your choice of a domain name extension. Get your .WS or .NU domain now to reap the benefits of a high ranking website name pretty soon. As mentioned earlier – the web is changing fast and, who knows, that moment could come tomorrow 😉
Tags: .com, .COM and .NET alternatives, .net, .NU domain, .WS domain, domain extensions, Domain Names