Decentralizing The Web: What you need to know about Blockchain Domain Names.
The domain name has been said to be the real estate of the internet and the domain industry is exponentially increasing day by day. We have been used to traditional domain names that have TLDs(Top level domain) like .com, net, .io etc which doesn’t give users full access to own their domain names.
How Does The Web Work with Domain Name?
A domain name is like an address, it is where your site lives on the web, which makes all domain belongs to a Domain Name System (DNS), a very wide network managed by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). DNS is like an address book that stores all domain names, without it we would need to always memorize something called IP(Internet Protocol) Address. Each computer has a unique IP address in form of a number separated by dots e.g (12.45.67.123). You might have to enter 45.67.78.897 instead of google.com. It is safe to be able to type in a word on the web than typing some long numbers. This set of numbers is the one computers uses to communicate with each other over a network.
The Structure Of a Domain Name
Second-level Domain: The second-level domain name in cloudname.io is cloudname
Top-level Domain: The TLD is the suffix you see at the end of your domain name e.g .com, .crypto etc
Subdomain: This is the prefix that further categorizes a domain name e.g home.grace.com. Sud-domains are also called third-level domains.
Blockchain Domain Names.
Blockchain domain names are one of the most used cases in the blockchain protocol. A blockchain domain name is a decentralized domain name that does not have the influence of DNS or ICANN. Just like we have been hearing of web3 as a decentralized system/web, the work of decentralizing the web starts from decentralizing domain names which are called blockchain domain names.
So why blockchain domain and why it is mostly preferred to traditional domains
- Blockchain domain allows domainers to have access to their domains using private keys WHILE traditional domains are being controlled by the organization.
- Blockchain domain name uses a decentralized system where each domain name is itched by a public registry. It allows the user has a sense of ownership as it cannot be modified or censored by third parties WHILE traditional domain is controlled by a centralized system like the DNS and controlled by ICAAN where they can censor individuals.
- Blockchain domain names can link to cryptocurrency wallets and not just websites WHILE traditional domain names can only link to websites.
The blockchain domain name has brought a lot of advantages to the web. The rise of NFT has also resulted in the rise of the blockchain domain in the domain industry where we have NFT domains. NFT domains have made trading of NFTs very easy with customizable domain names built on blockchain
Another beautiful thing about blockchain domain names is that they can link to any crypto wallet and not only websites. Asking for payments via “myname.crypto” is more convenient and easier to remember than “1F1tAaz5x1HUXrCNLbtMDqcw6o5GNn4xqX”
A blockchain domain name is a next hit in the domain industry as there are has been a sudden rise in investor and consumer interest for so many reasons.
There are so many blockchain domain names e.g .eth,.nft,.x etc more blockchain domain name TLDs can be seen on cloudname or here
If you are someone looking into building in crypto,web3 and blockchain generally, it’s advisable to get a blockchain domain name as it will help in enhancing a more decentralized system for your app.
Companies like Cloudname or unstoppable domains allows you to purchase blockchain domain names and even traditional domain name and also trade and tokenize them.
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