ICANN accredited domain name registrar DomainPeople is urging people to preregister their .tel domain names. I can figure out virtually no circumstances where buying a .tel domain would be a reasonable investment, other than for the purpose of securing your brand. That will not stop some, however, from buying into the concept.

The .tel gTLD is unique in that it (and here's the general marketing idea) comes with a hosted website. Unlike traditional domains, though, .tel stores contact information directly in the domain name system (DNS), so contact information can be provided much faster than a traditional website. One single management and publishing point for "internet communication" services and the establishment of providing a global contacts directory service by housing all types of contact information make for a strangely compelling idea. Let's see if it works. Below you can see a screen shot of what a .tel would actually look like.

Registration for trademark owners officially opened on December 3, 2008 and ends February 2, 2009. This sunrise period gives trademark owners first rights to register the exact name of their trademark, protecting their identity and brand from the competition. The landrush phase opens February 3, 2009 to the general public, but registrations carry a premium price, as the domain names registered during this phase are likely to be highly valuable. General, ongoing registration for .tel begins March 24, 2009.