Vatican nears approval for 'dot-Catholic' domain name in Chinese

December 20, 2012

The Vatican is close to securing a top-level domain name, “.catholic,” written in Chinese characters, which could be used to identify internet sites qualifying for the Holy See’s approval.

ICANN, the international body that controls internet domains, has awarded the Vatican first place in a competition for new top-level domains. The Vatican’s application is likely to be approved next year. The Vatican has also approved for approval of the same domain extension, as written in other alphabets.

If approved, the Vatican’s application would allow Church officials to screen all candidates for the “dot-Catholic” domain extension, ensuring that the sites were genuinely Catholic. “This is a way to give a coherence and authentication to our presence in the digital arena,” Msgr. Paul Tighe, an official of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, told the Reuters news service.

ICANN approval for the “dot-Catholic” domain spelled in Chinese characters would have a special significance because the Beijing regime has contests the Holy See’s authority over the Church in China.

 

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Further information:

• Vatican takes first spot in Internet domain name draw (Reuters)
• Vatican seeks ".catholic" internet domain (CWN, 6/13)