The Tim Draper-backed Unstoppable Domains, a company that builds websites and domain registrations using blockchain technology, announced on Friday the release of its “.crypto” registry.
The company’s new domains will be built on the Ethereum blockchain, as opposed to the .zil domains that the company previously sold, which were built on the Zilliqa network.
Functionally, these new domains are the same: Users can tie any cryptocurrency wallet address to their .crypto domains to receive funds. Typically, wallet addresses are comprised of a lengthy array of letters and numbers. One missed digit can result in missing funds or money being sent to the wrong address.
These domains, however, provide crypto users with “human-readable” wallet addresses, which are intended to simplify the process of sending and receiving funds. On top of that, users are able to build “uncensorable” websites on these blockchain-based domains, ensuring that the site’s owner is always in full control of the website’s content and that the domain cannot be seized or taken down by a third party.
The shift to .crypto, though, marks a departure from the Zilliqa blockchain for Unstoppable Domains, which cofounder Brad Kam told Decrypt is meant to broaden the accessibility of these domains.
“The goal here is to create something for the entire crypto industry,” Kam told Decrypt. “This is a system for everybody, and a way to solve all the problems of the whole community. As it stood before, we were creating walled gardens rather than trying to bring the whole community in.”
Since .crypto domains will be built on the Ethereum blockchain, they can support ETH-based integrations, such as dapps that utilize Ethereum-based tokens, which Kam said wasn’t possible with the .zil domains.
Kam also explained that by shifting to “.crypto,” it better conveys the message that these domains can be linked to any cryptocurrency, not just ZIL, ETH, or any other specific coin.
Unstoppable Domains, however, claims that more than 100,000 customers have already purchased .zil domains. So what’s to become of all those domains?
Kam said .zil domains are not being discontinued and can still be used as intended. But for those who have already purchased a .zil domain and would like to make the switch to .crypto, the company is giving its customers a chance to register the same name at no cost through October 21.