The top-level domain (TLD) “.docs” doesn’t exist in the current domain name system (DNS). Domain names are part of how we navigate the internet. They are the address that we type into our browsers to navigate to a specific website. Every domain name ends in a top-level domain (TLD), which is the last part of the domain name.
Top-level domain names are differentiated into two types: generic TLDs (gTLDs) and country code TLDs (ccTLDs). Examples of gTLDs include .com, .net, .org, and many others, while ccTLDs represent specific countries, such as .us for the United States, .ca for Canada, and .jp for Japan.
The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), which is managed by the Public Technical Identifiers (PTI), an affiliate of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), is principally responsible for the coordination of DNS at the top-most level, including management of the top-level domain name space. This includes both generic TLDs and ccTLDs. The official list of TLDs can be found on their website.
For the “.docs” TLD, it seems like it would be a logical gTLD, similar to domains like .doc or .docs for documentation purposes. However, as of the time of this writing, no such TLD exists in IANA’s database. This may be because there has been no successful application for “.docs” as a gTLD by any party. To become a recognized TLD, a comprehensive application must be submitted to ICANN, who then review and determine whether or not to approve the new TLD, in accordance with their established procedures and guidelines.
It’s worth noting that Google was granted rights to the .docs domain in 2015, but this is not the same as the implementation of a public TLD. Google was granted the right to operate a .docs top-level domain under ICANN’s new gTLD program, but decided to make it a Restricted Registration Policy, meaning that regs are tightly controlled and generally available only to Google. As such, .docs is not currently in use as a public gTLD. You would not be able to register a domain with the .docs TLD through a registrar, unlike .com, .org, or .net.
Sources used:
1. IANA Root Zone Database (https://data.iana.org/TLD/tlds-alpha-by-domain.txt)
2. ICANN (https://www.icann.org)
3. ICANN gTLD application process (https://newgtlds.icann.org/en/applicants/global-support/faqs/faqs-en)
4. Domain Incite: Google .docs, https://domainincite.com/19612-google-beats-donuts-and-string-confusion-objection/
