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Automattic applied for the .wordpress top-level domain in ICANN’s 2026 new generic top-level domain (gTLD) round, according to a report based on ICANN’s published application data. The report found no competing application for .wordpress. That does not mean ICANN has approved the application, that the domain is available, or that Automattic has announced who could use it.
What the .wordpress application does—and does not—establish
A 9 October 2026 report says Automattic applied for 16 strings, including .wordpress, and that no other applicant sought .wordpress in the 2026 round. The report says it based those findings on ICANN’s application export and contention-set data published on Reveal Day. ICANN’s application portal is the official place to check the record and its current status: ICANN’s 2026-round application publication system. Application details and statuses can change.
The report also says ICANN’s data did not mark .wordpress as a brand application. That label alone does not determine trademark ownership, rights, or the application’s eventual treatment. The available sources do not establish why Automattic applied, whether it will choose a replacement string, or who would be eligible to register names if .wordpress is approved.
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“No rival application” is not the same as “closed generic”
In this report, “closed” can mean that no other applicant was identified for the same string. ICANN’s term closed generic refers to a separate policy category: an application for exclusive use of a generic string. ICANN says closed-generic applications will not be approved unless and until it has an approved methodology and criteria for assessing whether a proposed closed generic serves the public interest. The sources cited here do not establish that ICANN has formally classified .wordpress as a closed generic. See ICANN’s explanation of closed generics.
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These concepts answer different questions. String contention concerns whether multiple applicants seek the same TLD; the closed-generic policy concerns how a generic string may be used. The reported absence of a .wordpress rival does not settle the policy question.
Where the application sits in ICANN’s process
An application is a request under evaluation, not a delegation. A TLD is delegated only after it has been added to the DNS root; the application sources do not establish that .wordpress has reached that stage. Nor do they establish approval, a launch date, or future registration rules.
ICANN published the 2026-round applications on 7 October 2026. Applicants with an eligible replacement string had two weeks to elect to switch from their primary string, according to ICANN’s Reveal Day announcement. The published schedule lists the Replacement Period as 8–21 October and String Confirmation Day as 17 November 2026. ICANN plans to publish the final list of applied-for strings and begin the Community Input and Objections Period on String Confirmation Day; see the ICANN Governmental Advisory Committee’s next-round schedule. These milestones mean the string shown in an application publication may not be the final one.
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The 2026 round is ICANN’s first new gTLD application round since 2012. ICANN says the 2012 round resulted in more than 1,200 new gTLDs. For 2026, ICANN reported 1,663 submitted applications and later confirmed that 1,616 were proceeding. Those numbers describe different stages and measures: the first is a count of new gTLDs resulting from the 2012 round, while the latter two count 2026 applications. Neither predicts how many 2026 applications will ultimately be delegated or launched.
ICANN’s background on the program and the 2012-round outcome is available in its 30 April 2026 application-window announcement. The 2026 totals are in ICANN’s 22 September 2026 update on applications proceeding.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What to watch next
- Application record: Check ICANN’s portal for the current .wordpress entry and status.
- Final string list: The scheduled 17 November String Confirmation Day is intended to establish the final list after the replacement period.
- Evaluation and objections: Publication of a final applied-for string is not approval; later evaluation and any objections can affect the outcome.
- Access rules: The available sources do not say whether future .wordpress names would be open to public registration, limited to particular users, or allocated under another policy.
ICANN CEO Kurtis Lindqvist described the application pool as a whole as showing organizations “innovating new ways to build trusted online identities, serve their communities, and connect with Internet users,” in a quotation reported by TechRadar Pro on 8 October 2026. The statement concerned the round collectively, not Automattic’s reason for applying or the .wordpress proposal specifically.
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