.kiwi
| Status: | Proposed |
| country: | New Zealand Community |
| Manager: | Dot Kiwi |
| Registry Provider: | Minds + Machines |
| Type: | Niche/Community |
| Community TLD: | Unknown if Community app |
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.kiwi is a proposed gTLD within ICANN's new gTLD program. The TLD plays off a self-identifying title used by New Zealanders, and is intended for use by New Zealand identifying companies and individuals. A company, Dot Kiwi, has been created by a group of expatriate businessmen living in Canada and intends to apply for the domain. Dot Kiwi has teamed up with Minds + Machines to apply for the domain and manage the possible registry. Minds + Machines famously brought on New Zelander, and former ICANN Chairman, Peter Dengate Thrush after his tenure as an ICANN director ended following the approval of the new gTLD program at ICANN 41.
The TLD is particularly interesting given that it is trying to reinvent the country code top level domain (ccTLD) as a national identifier. That is, it is setting itself up to directly compete with New Zealand's ccTLD, .nz, to act as the top level national identifier. .nz's manager, the non-profit InternetNZ, has not ruled out that his organization will also apply for the .kwi TLD.
Dot Kiwi has already began discussing setting up a fund to help victims of the Christchurch earthquake through its potential revenue.[1]