Nearly four years ago, The Boston Globe tried to get in on an Internet land rush when the number of domains — the .com, .org, or .edu in online addresses — were expanded. Now, the Globe’s parent company has decided to stick to more familiar territory.
Last week, Boston Globe Media Partners LLC sold the right to sell Internet addresses ending in “.boston” to Minds + Machines Group Ltd., an Internet address marketing firm with offices in Los Angeles and Dublin.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, and it must be approved by the Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Number (ICANN), the global organization that manages Internet addresse
When the deal is completed, Minds + Machines will be able to sell Internet addresses specifically targeted to Boston-area businesses. For example, a cab company might run a “taxi.boston” website, or a diner might buy “joesburgers.boston.”
“We’re super-excited,” said Minds + Machines chief marketing officer Toby Hall. “We see it as a massive opportunity for communities.”
A thousand “.boston” addresses will be set aside for government use, while another 15,000 will be made available to local nonprofit organizations at a discount price of $8.75 per year. The city also requires that between 10 and 30 percent of all revenues from address sales be put into a fund to support various community organizations.
Boston officials, who must also approve the deal, said they were pleased that the pending sale will soon allow businesses and residents to use “.boston” Internet addresses.
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