HEXONET Newsletter

.CHANNEL is the new secure namespace from Google Registry, a TLD to support creators, seeking to monetize their content.

Submit your Sunrise applications today in the Control Panel.

Launch Schedule:

Sunrise: Is live and running until June 7, 2022 (15:59 UTC), for trademark holders with a valid signed mark data (SMD) file. Please note, this is based on a first-come, first-served basis.
Limited Registration Period (LRP): June 7 (16:00 UTC) until mid-2023. During LRP, registrants may apply for a domain name via content creation platforms that have been onboarded to the program. Selected .CHANNEL domains will receive an allocation token which must be provided during registration. More details about these platforms will be announced by the registry. We will update you as soon as we have more details.
General Availability (GA): mid-2023 onwards

Please note, there are restrictions, including usage and HTTPS requirements for this TLD. We encourage you to visit our wiki for more information.

As you know, our team of experts are continuously updating our systems to provide you with optimal system stability. As part of these efforts, we will be making changes to our data center on June 21, 2022. To accommodate these changes, we have scheduled a LIVE maintenance on June 21, 2022. Please note, the LIVE system will be offline for eight hours (7:00-15:00 UTC).

The following updates will take place to enhance your HEXONET experience;

We are adding a new operational and data system to our LIVE system, optimizing performance.
We are migrating to a new data center, increasing efficiency and security.
We are enhancing our maintenance efforts for system administrators, including consolidating infrastructure, streamlining the processes and standardizing tools.

Please note, there will be actions that we will request of you if directly affected, to assist with the updates. We will keep you informed and provide you with further information as needed. Please do not hesitate to reach out to your Account Manager or contact us at [email protected] if you have any questions.

PIR is upgrading its registration platform at the end of May. As a result, there is a scheduled planned unavailability for the PIR registration platform 11:00 UTC on May 31, 2022, expected to be complete at 03:00 UTC on June 1, 2022. The following TLDs will be impacted: .ORG, .NGO, .ONG, .OPГ (.xn--c1avg), .机构 (.xn--nqv7f), and .संगठन (.xn--i1b6b1a6a2e).

PIR is also removing the registry bundle from .NGO and .ONG on June 1, 2022. Following this change, registrants will be able to register domain names in the .NGO and .ONG TLDs separately and existing registrations, previously bundled in the two TLDs, will operate in an unlinked manner. .NGO & .ONG domains will be priced separately as of June 1, please review your HEXONET account for the detailed pricing.

DigiCert will replace the Intermediate CA Certificates listed below on
May 24, 2022:

Current ICA Certificates:

GeoTrust TLS DV RSA Mixed SHA256 2020 CA-1
GeoTrust TLS DV RSA Mixed SHA256 2021 CA-1
RapidSSL TLS DV RSA Mixed SHA256 2020 CA-1
RapidSSL TLS DV RSA Mixed SHA256 2021 CA-1

New ICA Certificates:

GeoTrust Global TLS RSA4096 SHA256 2022 CA1
RapidSSL Global TLS RSA4096 SHA256 2022 CA1

Action is required

If your customers practice pinning, hard code acceptance, or operate a trust store, the environment should be updated as soon as possible. They should stop pinning and hard coding ICA certificate trust or make the necessary changes to ensure their GeoTrust DV and RapidSSL DV certificates issued from the new ICA certificates are trusted.

Please see helpful resources below:

DigiCert Trusted Root Authority Certificates page to download copies of the new Intermediate CA certificates (DigiCert Root Certificates - Download & Test | DigiCert.com )
DigiCert ICA Update knowledge base article: DigiCert ICA Update

If you require support or have questions on any of the following, please contact our Support team at [email protected].