The term “xn—g2xx48c” refers to a top-level domain (TLD) in Punycode format. Punycode is a coding system used for representing Unicode characters in an ASCII format, which is acceptable for the Domain Name System of the Internet.
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which oversees the entire domain name system, primarily uses ASCII characters, so non-ASCII characters are converted into Punycode for TLDs. This TLD in Punycode, “xn—g2xx48c,” corresponds to the string of characters “.谷歌,” which translates to “.google” in English.
As a top-level domain (TLD), “.google” is one among many hundreds of gTLDs (generic top-level domains) that ICANN has approved and released into the internet’s Domain Name System. Other well-known examples of gTLDs include .com, .net, and .org, besides newer gTLDs like .google, .apple, and .amazon.
As a company-specific or branded TLD, “.google” is therefore a TLD dedicated solely to Google’s use. Branded TLDs are relatively new and came to exist after ICANN started to periodically open up applications for new gTLDs in 2012. Companies applied for these to better control their brand on the internet and create memorable URLs for various functions. You might remember domains like “ai.google” which was released by Google to link to its Google AI research division, and “environment.google” which highlights its environmental commitments.
However, not everyone is authorized to register a domain under .google. According to ICANN, a so-called “Specification 13” must be signed by Google and ICANN, which includes anti-abuse provisions specific to the registration and use of .Brand TLDs. This is designed to ensure that the use of such gTLDs is consistent with the brand’s legitimate business purposes, also protecting the consumer from potential misuse.
The information about the Punycode system of encoding can be found in the IETF’s (Internet Engineering Task Force) Request for Comments (RFC) 3492, and details about ICANN’s operations and guidelines are found on its official website.
Sources:
- Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). (2003). Punycode: A Bootstring encoding of Unicode for Internationalized Domain Names in Applications (IDNA).
[Link: https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc3492]
- ICANN. Specification 13 – .Brand TLD Provisions
[Link: https://newgtlds.icann.org/en/applicants/agb/base-agreement-contracting/specification-13-applications]
- ICANN. The Expanding World of Domains
[Link: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/educate-2012-02-25-en]
- ICANN New gTLD Program
[Link: https://newgtlds.icann.org/en/]
- Google AI
[Link: https://ai.google/]
- Environmental Commitment by Google
[Link: https://environment.google/]
