.baidu
| Status: | Delegated |
| Registry Provider: | Afilias |
| Type: | Brand TLD |
More information: 
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.baidu is a Brand TLD delegated in ICANN's New gTLD Program. Baidu, Inc., China's equivalent to Google, applied for the string and succeeded. The TLD was delegated to the Root Zone on 05 January 2016.[1] [2]
Application Details edit
The following is excerpted from the applicant's response to question #18:
"Baidu was founded in 2000 by Internet pioneer Robin Li, creator of visionary search technology Hyperlink Analysis, with the mission of providing the best way for people to find what they’re looking for online.
Baidu’s name was inspired by a poem written more than 800 years ago during the Song Dynasty. ʺ…hundreds and thousands of times, for her I searched in chaos, suddenly, I turned by chance, to where the lights were waning, and there she stood.ʺ Baidu, whose literal meaning is “hundreds of times”, represents a persistent search for the ideal.
Baidu provides their users with many channels to find and share information. In addition to their core web search product, they power many popular community-based products, such as Baidu PostBar, the world’s first and largest Chinese-language query-based searchable online community platform, Baidu Knows, the world’s largest Chinese-language interactive knowledge-sharing platform, and Baidu Encyclopedia, the world’s largest user-generated Chinese-language encyclopedia, to name but a few. Beyond these marquee products they also offer dozens of helpful vertical search-based products, such as Maps, Image Search, Video Search, News Search, and many more.
Baidu also serves as a media platform for online marketing customers which is mainly based on a performance-oriented marketing platform for businesses to cost effectively reach relevant Internet users through both Baidu organic websites and their affiliated websites (their Union business). The majority of their revenue is derived from performance-based online marketing services and their customers pay on a cost per click basis – that is, their customers only pay when their paid-link is clicked through and they get the “lead”.
With the world’s largest Internet user population – 477 million as of mid-2011 , China’s Internet is growing in both influence and sophistication. And as more and more Chinese come online, Baidu continues to innovate to meet their increasingly diverse tastes and look forward to a robust future.
All available second-level strings of .BAIDU (e.g. example .BAIDU) will be initially allocated only to limited number of eligible registrants and for internal corporate business purposes. BAIDU plans to adopt this approach and expects to maintain it for 3 years from the launch of the “.BAIDU” registry service. Such approach will be regularly evaluated and adjusted if appropriate and necessary. Depending a various internal and external factors, including market demand and user expectation, BAIDU may consider a phased roll-out approach for a broader commercial marketplace but will do so after the conclusion of the initial 3-year period. This defensive and conservative approach shall meet the purpose of trademark protection, minimize potential technological, marketing and operational risks, and allow ample time for BAIDU’s management to evaluate best possible and long-term strategy of utilizing .BAIDU TLD prominently."[3]