.museum
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox top level domain
.museum is a sponsored top-level domain (sTLD) in the Domain Name System of the Internet used exclusively by museums, museum associations, and individual members of the museum profession, as these groups are defined by the International Council of Museums (ICOM).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In joint action with the J. Paul Getty Trust, ICOM established the Museum Domain Management Association (MuseDoma), headed by Cary Karp, for the purpose of submitting an application to ICANN for the creation of the new generic top-level domain (gTLD), and to operate a registry.<ref>The .museum Sponsorship Agreement, ICANN.</ref> The Template:Mono domain was entered into the DNS root on 20 October 2001, and was the first sponsored top-level domain to be instituted through ICANN's action.
The purpose of this domain is to reserve a segment of the DNS name space reserved for the use of museums; a name space whose conventions are defined by the museum community. The Template:Mono TLD grants users a quick and intuitive way to verify the authenticity of a museum site. Conversely, since it is a type of formal third-party certification, museums using this name space obtain a way to assure visitors of the site's validity.
One of the initial ideas with the Template:Mono tld was to create a network of official museum websites, and operate a central indexing tool to make all of their hosted content searchable, discoverable.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In addition to the eligibility requirements specified in the Template:Mono charter, naming conventions apply to the labeling of subdomains. Extensive support is also being introduced for internationalized domain names, as described at Template:Mono.<ref>Internationalized domain names (IDNs) in .museum – Introduction Template:Webarchive, about.museum.</ref>
Registrations are processed via accredited registrars.<ref>List of .museum accredited registrars</ref>