The continued growth of the internet means that if nothing changed we would run out of unique web addresses. Thankfully, those responsible for ensuring we can all continue to create new sites have solved this problem with something called IPv6. Earlier this month the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers or ICAN started accepting applications from companies seeking new domain suffixes that included .apple, .google, and .church.
So What?
Most congregations now have websites, and most of these sites have the suffix .org. Some congregations that were unable to attain their desired .org site have opted for .com or .net suffixes in order to use their preferred name. If the innovative folks at LifeChurch.tv secure the suffix (they have already submitted the appropriate paperwork and the $185,000 application fee) they intend to share it with others.
- How much attention do you currently pay to site suffixes? Are you likely to pay more attention or less when the variety increases significantly?
- Would your congregation be interested in making a switch to .church if doing so was inexpensive? Why or why not?