Top Level Domain Names Will Change Search

Search engine optimization (SEO) will change dramatically within the next few years as a result of the Internet transitioning from 23 top-level domain names (TLD) to more than 1,409 strings.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, a nonprofit corporation that oversees the use of Internet domain names, will send internationalized domain names (IDNs) live this summer. The generic names bought by companies like Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and others will start rolling out by the end of 2013. Jennifer Wolfe, president of Wolfe Domain, speaking at the MediaPost Search Insider Summit, understands it may seem like a potential threat to search experts, but she said marketers need to look at the millions of dollar companies invested and assume they're not doing it without a plan.