The top-level domain (TLD) “.co” is an internet domain extension that is originally the country code top-level domain (ccTLD) assigned for the nation of Colombia, similar to “.uk” for the United Kingdom or “.jp” for Japan. This domain was introduced in 1991 and is managed by the Ministry of Information Technologies and Communications of Colombia in conjunction with the private company .CO Internet S.A.S.
Despite initially being a geographical domain, the .co domain has since gained global popularity in the world of business and startups and is now being widely used for a variety of purposes beyond Colombia’s borders, comparable in part to how the “.tv” domain (the ccTLD for Tuvalu) has been adopted by the television and media industry.
The global adoption of .co was driven in part by the unavailability of preferred domain names in the oversaturated .com space. When .CO Internet S.A.S took over the administration of .co domains from the University of the Andes in Bogota, it marketed .co as the new .com, leading to its widespread usage by startups and tech companies. Today, it is used by a multitude of established companies including Twitter (t.co), Google Inc. (g.co), American Express (amex.co), and more.
A .co domain can provide several benefits. Firstly, it is easy to remember and relatively short, making it a premium choice for businesses and brands. Secondly, it is highly available, meaning businesses have a good chance of getting the domain name they desire without having to compromise. Thirdly, it’s universally recognized and treated on par with gTLD’s (general top-level domains) like .com, .net, .org by the Google algorithm, making it SEO-friendly.
While there are many benefits to using a .co domain, it’s worth noting that, as with any domain, businesses should consider their specific needs and target audience before making a choice.
One potential disadvantage could be the potential confusion with .com domains, as some users may mistype the intended website address. Therefore, businesses considering a .co domain should consider whether their target audience may be likely to make such an error.
Sources used:
1. IANA (https://data.iana.org/TLD/tlds-alpha-by-domain.txt)
2. ICANN (https://icannwiki.org/.co)
3. cointernet.co (https://www.cointernet.co/)
4. Google’s statement regarding ccTLDs and gTLDs (https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/1347922?hl=en)
5. Webnames blog (https://blog.webnames.ca/dotco-top-level-domain/)
6. Moz post on TLDs and SEO (https://moz.com/learn/seo/domain)
7. Medium post on domain extensions (https://medium.com/@JohnBeardslee/dot-co-vs-dot-com-which-domain-extension-is-better-a-web-design-case-study-on-seo-ce99297ae48b)
