How generic domain names work: .com, .net, .info, .org…

There are many generic domain name extensions, and each one works in its own way. How do you choose yours? How do you manage your domain name properly? How does a generic domain transfer work? What happens if you have not renewed your generic domain name? All the answers are in this article!

Generic domain names (also known as generic top-level domains, or gTLDs) are overseen by ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), a private, not-for-profit organisation.

Extensions

A reminder: what is an extension? A domain name’s extension is simply the final part of the site’s name, the part that comes after the “dot”. For more details, take a look at our article on domain name extensions.

Generic domain extensions have a meaning: they are abbreviations of existing words. There are too many to list them all, but here are the main ones:

• The .com extension stands for Commercial
• The .net extension stands for Network
• The .org extension stands for Organization
• The .biz extension stands for Business
• The .pro extension stands for Professionals
• The .info extension stands for Information

Choosing the right extension

Choosing your domain name’s extension matters, because it reflects your brand image and your target audience.

These domain names are generally registered for business, e-commerce or international websites, the main goals being visibility in search engines and protection of intellectual property.

For example, a clothing company that sells its products worldwide and wants to be known around the globe would do well to choose a .com domain name. A news site might choose a .info extension for its search visibility. The .org extension is intended for organisations.

Registration

A domain name is registered through a registrar such as HaiSoft.

You can register a domain name containing 4 to 63 characters. It will be active within 24 hours of the registration request. However, it is possible to register a three-letter domain name under certain conditions (please contact us).

There are no restrictions on registering these domain names.

Registration costs €14.99 excl. VAT per year, or is free if you have taken out a shared hosting plan.

Domain name owner

We must specify the owner of the domain name during the registration process. We need the contact’s surname, first name, company, address, e-mail and telephone number.

An e-mail is sent to the domain holder’s e-mail address and must be confirmed so that the contact is verified. If it is not confirmed, the domain name will be temporarily suspended.

The domain name’s WHOIS information is now anonymised.

A change of owner can be made at any time, simply on request; however, you will need access to the current contact’s e-mail address to confirm the change-of-owner e-mail.

This change locks the domain name against transfers for 60 days.

Transfer

Transferring a domain name means changing registrar. The transfer procedure for these domain names is simple.

Just ask your current registrar for the transfer code and give it to your new provider so that the transfer request can be made. The domain name is then transferred within 5 working days. You may receive a verification e-mail for the domain holder; if we changed the holder during the transfer, this e-mail must also be confirmed.

Renewal and reactivation

A few days before the renewal date, you will receive an e-mail from ICANN reminding you of your domain name’s renewal date. The domain name must be renewed on that date for you to keep ownership of it. We take care of the renewal and will let you know if it could not be carried out.

If the domain name could not be renewed on its anniversary date, you can still renew it: you have 35 days after the expiry date to do so. Reactivating the domain name costs €5 excl. VAT.

If the domain name has still not been renewed, there is a second 30-day period during which it can still be recovered. The domain name enters the “redemption period”, meaning it is in the process of being deleted. Reactivating the domain name then costs €150 excl. VAT (a fixed fee charged to us for recovering the domain name).

After this period, if the domain name has still not been renewed, it returns to the public domain, where anyone can register it again. Domains that have been successful are often snapped up immediately by bots, making them impossible to recover.

Losing a domain name can be costly, so it is essential to manage your domain name carefully and protect it!

If you have lost your domain name, we can offer to register a new one. Some sites need changes to work with a new domain name. For WordPress, see our article How to change the WordPress URL.

If you would like to register a generic domain name, feel free to order on our website or by support ticket: register a domain name. We are also always happy to help you make your choice.