.Tel - the domain which is different
The .tel domain uses the Domain Name System (DNS) in a way that empowers .tel domain owners, whether businesses or individuals, to control how and where people can communicate with them. Traditional Top Level Domains (TLDs) use the DNS to return Address records or IP addresses that are used to reach websites or send email.
In the case of a website, when users look up netim.eu, their device queries the DNS for netim.eu's IP address (the Address record). The DNS returns the IP address associated with netim.eu (87.98.168.98) and the device uses the IP address to locate and view the netim.eu website. All existing Top Level Domains use the DNS in this traditional way. However, the .tel does not communicate with web content or email -- it enables communication with people. It therefore requires an approach to storing contact information directly in the DNS for which Address records are inappropriate, since an Address record cannot identify a phone number or a VoIP service address.
The .tel will allow contact information to be stored directly in the DNS so that when a device performs a query for a .tel domain (i.e., AdamSmith.tel), the DNS will not respond with an Address record, rather it will return the contact information directly to the device, which enables the click-to-communicate functionality.
All your contact information centralised on one single location
What characterises the .tel domain names is that they fulfil a specific function: they are the contact point for all your current contact information. Such as e.g.: adres, telefoon (vast of gsm), fax, VOIP / Skype, sms, E-mail, Instant Messengers (bvb msn, icq, …), Linkedin, Facebook, Hyves, Ebay account, Google maps, ... ...
This way, those who need to contact you will only have to enter your .tel domain name in order to check which contact method is the best to reach you at that very moment. However it is not possible to place a website at the address of your .tel domain name; it is not even possible to forward the people who visit your .tel domain to your current domain name
How is it working ?
You will be able to make use of this functionality without having to run you own webiste/hosting - this is included with the domain registration. After the registration of the domain name, the owner receives an access to a control panel in order to add/edit his contact information. This control panel can be consulted via any web browser, but also via your smartphone or PDA and even in your e-mail client. You can also download separate software to perform these actions. Since the .tel registry offers the possibility to programmers to create open source software, many additional applications will certainly soon be available for your .tel domain names.
Please find below a few live examples for you to test and experience the power of the .tel.
- LargeCo.tel shows how a large company can easily route customers to multiple locations and departments.
- SmallCo.tel shows how a small company can have an online presence to publish their contact information and keywords and increase their search engine discoverability.
- My-Idol.tel shows how the .tel can be used as an online voting platform.
- Celebrity.tel shows how customers can be routed to storefront services.
All of these examples offer an extremely fast viewing experience, especially from mobile devices such as the BlackBerry or iPhone.