.tel

Internet top-level domain the top-level domain other uses Tel (disambiguation)Tel September 2020 .tel dot-tel logo.png 150px yes 2006 5 30https://www.icann.org/en/public-comment/proceeding/proposed-renewal-of-tel-registry-agreement-04-08-2016 Proposed Renewal of .TEL Registry Agreement ICANN 20 October 2025 Sponsored top-level domain Active Telnames Limited Telnames Limited Namespace to find contact information Telecoms; miscellaneous sites; contact information; online business card; personal sites None Registrations at second level permitted ICANN New sTLD RFP Application, Policies UDRPhttp://telnic.org/faq.html Telnic | FAQ Telnic.org 6 January 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20090106104521/http://telnic.org/faq.html 6 January 2009 dead Yes Yes https://www.do.tel The domain name .tel is a top-level domain (TLD) in the Domain Name System (DNS) of the Internet. It was approved by ICANN as a sponsored top-level domain, and is operated by Telnames.http://telnic.org/ https://web.archive.org/web/20010302031953/http://www.telnic.org/ dead 2 March 2001 Telnic web site Telnic.org 29 February 2012 The domain's purpose is to provide a single name space for Internet communications services. History ICANN and Telnic Limited (now Telnames) entered into a Sponsored TLD Registry Agreement on 30 May 2006 for operation of the .TEL top level domain. Telnic started accepting public registrations for .tel domain names on February 3, 2009. Before this, there was a closed "Sunrise" period where only trademark holders could secure their names.https://www.broadcastlawblog.com/2008/11/articles/tel-domain-name-to-become-available-soon/ https://web.archive.org/web/20250815223837/https://www.broadcastlawblog.com/2008/11/articles/tel-domain-name-to-become-available-soon/ live 15 August 2025 “.tel” Domain Name To Become Available Soon Broadcast Law Blog 20 October 2025 The .tel domain experienced a rapid initial registration phase upon its launch. Following its "Landrush" period, the domain became available for General Availability on March 24, 2009, and surpassed 100,000 registrations within the first 36 hours.Model of Excellence Profile – Telnic Limited https://r-perkins-mhwu.squarespace.com/s/MofE2009-Telnic.pdf InfoCommerce Group 2009 24 October 2025 Over 100,000 .tel domains were registered within the period of 36 hours of General Availability. This initial momentum continued, with the registry reporting over 300,000 domains registered by January 2010.TelNic - ICANNWiki https://icannwiki.org/TelNic ICANNWiki 24 October 2025 As of January 2010, 300,000 .tel domains have been registered. https://web.archive.org/web/20240918071038/https://icannwiki.org/TelNic 18 September 2024 However, the TLD's popularity declined in the following decade. By early 2012, the number of registered domains had dropped to 256,566.Allemann Andrew 13 March 2012 The state of .tel in 2012 https://domainnamewire.com/2012/03/13/the-state-of-tel-in-2012/ Domain Name Wire 24 October 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20240523171358/https://domainnamewire.com/2012/03/13/the-state-of-tel-in-2012/ 23 May 2024 At the beginning of 2012 there were 256,566. As of October 2025, that number had fallen to approximately 145,000 registered domains..tel - TLD info https://domainnamestat.com/statistics/tld/tel-TLD_ID-969 Domain Name Stat 24 October 2025 Registered domains 145,691 The initial idea behind .tel was for it to work like a public contact card on the internet. Instead of building a normal website, the owner of a .tel domain used a special control panel (provided by Telnic) to enter their contact information (like phone numbers, email, etc.). This information was stored directly in the DNS records. When someone visited a .tel address (like "example.tel") in their browser, they didn't see a regular website. Instead, the domain pointed to a standard Telnic page that simply displayed the contact information the owner had saved. When accessed via a mobile phone, it was possible to transfer the contacts from a .tel domain to the device's address book. The original purpose of .tel domains was largely rendered obsolete by the rise of social media, instant messaging apps and new gTLDs focused on contact information and personal websites without the technical limitations inherent to the .tel domain. In response, the registry changed its policies, allowing .tel to be used as a general-purpose TLD, removing the technical limitations. Since March 13, 2017, .tel domains support standard Domain Name System (DNS) record management, allowing them to function like any other TLD for services such as web hosting and email, much like a .com or .net.https://wiki.hexonet.net/wiki/TEL#.TEL_Updates_on_March_13th.2C_2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20250525051448/https://wiki.hexonet.net/wiki/TEL#.TEL_Updates_on_March_13th.2C_2017/ live 25 May 2025 .TEL Updates on March 13th, 2017 Hexonet 23 October 2015 Registration .tel domains can be registered by any individual, business, or organization through an accredited registrar for a term of one to ten years. Domain names must be between 1 and 63 characters. As of March 13, 2017, registrants are permitted to use their own name server and hosting, rather than being required to use the registry's built-in directory service. All registrations are subject to the .tel Registration Rules and Acceptable Use Policy..tel Domain Management Policies https://www.do.tel/policies/tel-domain-management/ do.tel live 30 October 2025 https://www.google.com/search?q=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907133036/https://www.do.tel/policies/tel-domain-management/ 7 September 2024 References 30em External links IANA – .tel whois information Category:Sponsored top-level domains Category:Internet properties established in 2006 sv:Toppdomän#Generiska toppdomäner