The team behind the dog-themed memecoin Shiba Inu (SHIB) has applied for a “.shib” domain that functions on the internet’s domain name system (DNS).
“We’re partnering with @ShibToken to apply for and obtain the .shib Top-Level Domain (TLD),” revealed internet domain firm D3 in a Dec. 19 X (formerly Twitter) post. D3 specifically focuses on next-generation domains that enable interoperability between Web2 and Web3.
We're partnering with @ShibToken to apply for and obtain the .shib Top-Level Domain (TLD)
— D3 (@D3inc) December 19, 2023
Learn more here https://t.co/ZBWtO4ubtA pic.twitter.com/zO3rZPavWi
According to D3’s website, current Web3 names such as “.crypto” and “.eth” don’t work natively with commonly used internet tools like web browsers and email because it don’t operate on the DNS.
On the other hand, Web2 domains such as “.com” and “.net” operate on the DNS but don’t work natively with Web3 tools like wallets and digital identity solutions.
If approved, holders of the Shiba Inu memecoin would be able to create email addresses with the “.shib” suffix attached. It would be compatible with ordinary email applications, D3 states.
Related: Bitcoin ecosystem reinvigorated by memecoins, new protocols
D3 must apply to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, which is the United States-based nonprofit organization that creates and enforces policy on the internet’s identifiers.
To truly understand why today's announcement is so important, one must ask...what is Web 3?
— Shytoshi Kusama™ (@ShytoshiKusama) December 19, 2023
I guess a better question is... what is the **promise** of Web 3? pic.twitter.com/Eam8Zh4OBe
The internet domain firm also plans to unveil “name tokens” for SHIB users, which will allow users to send digital assets to various blockchains without the need for long, alphanumeric wallet addresses.
SHIB’s price didn’t respond to the news — falling less than 1% since D3 shared the announcement, per CoinGecko data.
In other news, Shiba Inu’s new layer-2 blockchain, the Shibarium network, reached 1 million users in September. The blockchain is still in private mode, but the Shiba Inu team expressed an intention to make it public in the coming months.
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