Overview
In simple terms, a domain name registrar is a service provided to officially register desired website domain name so that it is unique to you, and no one else can claim it. Besides the processing of registration of new domain names, the domain name registrars also do renewals, transfers, and other requests on behalf of people registering domain names. It started with only one company that could register domain names, but now there are literally hundreds of domain name registrars. All information appertaining to domain names are stored in the Whois database.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is the licensing body that accredits legitimate domain registrars. It is a private, non-profit corporation that has been given the responsibility of allocating IP addresses and managing the Domain Name System (DNS).
The Domain Name System
The domain name is what we use to identify and locate computers and resources connected to the Internet. Each domain name is unique and no two organizations can have the same domain name. The domain name of an organization serves as their registered on-line identity or name that clients can use to access the organization’s on-line services such as the organization’s website or email system.
Domain Name Registrar Accreditation
To be able to handle the registration of gTLDs (generic top-level domains) such as those with .com, .net, and .org extensions, the domain name registrar must be accredited with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).
On the other hand, ccTLDs (country code top-level domains) are two-letter domain extensions that represent a specific country, such as .ca, .in, and .uk. ccTLDs are accredited by national ccTLD authorities, and each ccTLDs follow their own set of rules. Many domain name registrars are accredited by both ICANN and national ccTLDs authorities so that they can handle both gTLDs and ccTLDs.
Domain Name Registration
Organizations and companies can go directly to an accredited domain name registrar to register your domain name. However, it is now a common practice by many web hosting providers to register the domain as part of their web hosting package. This is a more economical option than registering you domain name independently and then choosing a web hosting company, as that often would require payment of a transfer fee.
Domain Name Resellers
An individual or organization that resells domain names through a domain name registrar reseller program is known as domain name reseller. The domains are still registered through the domain name registrar, but resellers offer the domain registration services at their websites and earn a profit from each domain name registered.
Most of web hosting providers are domain resellers. The web hosting provider offer domain name registration as part of the web hosting package they offer to web hosting clients.
Drop Catcher
Drop catcher is the term used for domain name registrars who offer a special service of registering a domain name for you as soon as it becomes available, somewhat like catching a dropped name. This condition arises when the current owner of the domain name does not want the name anymore, or because they have not renewed the name before it expires.
