The top-level domain (TLD) “.QPON” is a sponsored top-level domain in the Domain Name System of the Internet. It is intended to be used by businesses or individuals who want to provide coupons or discounts on goods and services.
The .QPON top-level domain was delegated to the Root Zone of the Domain Name System on 16 June 2014 as per the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). The applicant and now registry operator for the .QPON gTLD is dotCOOL, Inc. The application process for new TLDs was administrated by ICANN, the entity responsible for the coordination of the global internet’s systems of unique identifiers.
Hotels, restaurants, retail stores, and any business that offers coupons could use the .QPON domain to direct consumers directly to their deals. Essentially, it’s a way to garner more attention for promotions, sales and discounts and can be an effective method of communicating these savings to consumers.
For example, a retailer like Best Buy could use bestbuy.qpon to direct consumers to their latest deals. Similarly, a restaurant could use the domain to advertise special discount meals or promotional offers, such as happyhour.qpon.
Regarding usage, while there is no restriction on who can apply for a .QPON domain, the expectation is that it will primarily be used by businesses; specifically those providing promotional savings. As of making the application for .QPON available, anyone who registers a second-level .QPON domain is expected to use it for couponing and related activities.
Moreover, .QPON could also be used as a digital marketing strategy to increase the visibility of promotional campaigns along with improving analytics. By creating a specialized landing page for a specific coupon and combining it with digital marketing techniques (like email marketing and social media), businesses can track the performance of their promotional campaigns more accurately.
In practise, however, the use of .QPON is not widespread. According to nTLDStats, as of October 2021, there were only around fifty registered .QPON domains. This could be because new gTLDs struggle with acceptance, not only by consumers but also by businesses and internet service providers. Therefore, conventional TLDs like .com remain king.
For more information, it’s worth having a look at ICANN’s TLD application system, the nTLDStats website, and other sites that offer valuable insights into the use and purpose of top-level domains worldwide.
Sources
1. “Delegated Strings”. ICANN. Retrieved 2015-02-25.
2. “About .QPON Domains”. GoDaddy. Retrieved 2021-10-24.
3. “Web statistics of .qp”. nTLDStats. Retrieved 2021-10-24.
