So I know all the buzz about getting domains and how some sites have them for cheaper and some are yearly and some are monthly and blah blah blah. But how come those sites get to register domains?
Who gave GoDaddy GoDaddy.com? How come I can’t just become my own domain name reseller?
So, is there any way for me to manually create my own domain name?
I’ve googled this dozens of times and haven’t found anything remotely useful.
Each region around the world has an entity responsible for domain names with certain endings, like .us for the United States, .uk for the United Kingdom, .de for Germany etc. .com, .org etc. for international entities.
They can then license companies to sell certain domain endings. They are usually ISPs and hosting companies.
There are also restrictions, the US registry responsible for .co.us, .org.us domains ,but they can’t register domains for the UK, Germany or any other country. The same goes the other way round.
There is also an international registrar, responsible for .com etc.
Companies can apply to the registries to be able to sell the domains for that region. Most service providers apply for the rights to sell domains to their customers.
ICANN sits at the top and the regional registrars, such as DENIC take care of the countries or regions then you have the likes of 1&1, Strato or GoDaddy who sell the domains to companies and individuals, registering them through the relevant registrar.
The are also some caveats, only EU based companies and individuals can buy .eu domains, for example and only non-profits can buy an .org domain.
@big_D is correct on this one.
A domain name registry have the ultimate authority over their respective TLDs (.com, .net, .org). They are also able to apply and enforce their own policies. ICANN for instance has an accreditation process for registrars along with terms and conditions you are required to sign, $4000/year in fees and enforcement policies to suspend domains. They may also allow domain registrars for example to register domain names for their own purpose for free or for a small fee.
If you want to create a new root level domain and be the registrar for it, you CAN do it… for about $185K US. This is how Google got in the registration business for .app .new and probably a few others.
https://newgtlds.icann.org/en/applicants/global-support/faqs/faqs-en