NGOs Can Now Wave Their New Digital Flag

HEXONET is pleased to announce that it has launched the highly anticipated new gTLD, .NGO (.ONG is the translated equivalent for regions where Romance languages such as French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Romanian are most prevalent), that will certainly appeal to the large community of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and non-profits around the world. This TLD, operated by the same organization that oversees .ORG, Public Interest Registry, is meant to specifically help NGOs and ONGs build their online presence and establish trust and credibility as genuine members of the global NGO community.

.NGO and .ONG will only be available to true non-profit and non-governmental organizations. Every registrant will be required to submit documentation for validation by the Registry to ensure that their organisation is a genuine NGO. Click here for eligibility requirements.  Furthermore, every .NGO domain name will be bundled with its .ONG equivalent and vice-versa. So whenever a NGO registers either an .NGO or .ONG domain name, they will automatically receive both extensions (at no additional cost).

The Public Interest Registry has also launched an innovative website and service called OnGood to support the new .NGO and .ONG domain names. OnGood provides access to the .NGO & .ONG global directory and to individual organisation profile pages in order for NGOs to attract partners and potential donors. It is also a tool which will enable contributors and funders to find causes they are interested in supporting. 

For NGOs, OnGood is also where they will go to manage and update their directory listing information and profile pages. The OnGood website will provide relevant news and information specifically geared to the NGO community as well as serve as the main site for each of the bundled domains – including WHOIS search, information on .ngo & .ong zone file information (managed by ICANN’s Centralized Zone Data Service), and relevant registry policies.

In the past, since NGOs and non-profits used the .ORG extension instead, how does .NGO / .ONG differ from .ORG? As one of the original three top-level Internet domains, established in 1985, .ORG has always been open for anyone – individual, not-for-profit, social enterprise or corporation.  And moving forward, .ORG will continue to serve as an open domain that gives a voice to causes, passions and ideas. In contrast though, .NGO and .ONG, are exclusive community domains for validated NGOs. For the very first time, these new domain extensions can help identify and distinguish an NGO as a validated organisation to establish trust and credibility. For NGOs, trust is currency.  And for their potential donors and customers, knowing that an .NGO site has been vetted and verified will add reassurance that their donation is going to a genuine NGO.

According to PIR.org,  "The NGO community, estimated at 11+ million around the world, is comprised of organisations that operate in a variety of areas including, but not limited to, advocacy, aid, education, emergency relief, the environment, health, religion, and women’s rights."  Now is an excellent time to to review your own customers who have an .ORG domain name or ccTLDs to help identify those that might be NGOs.

Launch Schedule:

Sunrise:  Ends April 16, 2015

Limited Registration Period:  April 21 - May 5, 2015

General Availability:  May 6, 2015