.bb

.bb

Introduced	3 September 1991
TLD type	Country code top-level domain
Status	Active
Registry	Telecoms Unit
Sponsor	Government of Barbados
Intended use	Entities connected with   Barbados
Actual use	Gets some use in Barbados
Registration restrictions	Limited to residents of Barbados and companies registered there
Structure	Registrations permitted at second level and at third level beneath various second-level labels
Documents	.bb domain registration form , Policies and agreement
Registry website	whois .telecoms .gov .bb

.bb is the Internet country code top-level domain ( ccTLD ) for Barbados .

History [ edit ]

The .bb top-level domain has been maintained by several administrators since its creation, the first of which being the University of Puerto Rico.

In 1996, the Government of Barbados sought the relegation of .bb to the incumbent local exchange carrier , Cable & Wireless (BARTEL) Ltd .

A 2001 Memorandum of Understanding was then later signed between the Government of Barbados and both Cable & Wireless (Bartel) Ltd. and its sister company Cable & Wireless (BET) Ltd., to continue the administration of the ".bb" domains until the government selected alternate directives. ^{[ citation needed ]}

In November 2007, .bb was again relegated to the Telecoms Unit within the Government of Barbados. ^[1]

The Government has indicated that the government's policy will be to maintain a semi-restricted domain. Legal issues regarding domains are to be handled by the Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office (CAIPO) arm of the Government. ^{[ citation needed ]}

The fee for Barbados' main ccTLD and all of the second and third-level domains is BBD $120 annually. ^[2] This pricing is significantly higher than most other domains, which has discouraged its use. ^{[ citation needed ]} At present the .bb namespace does not allow for commercial licenses to entities without some connection to Barbados. ^{[ citation needed ]}

At present, any person desirous of registering a ".bb" domain is required to fill out Form TU052 and send it the Telecommunications Unit for review. ^[3]

Second-level domains [ edit ]

• .co.bb - general use (usually commercial)
• .com.bb - commercial entities
• .net.bb - network providers
• .org.bb - general use (usually for not-for-profit organisations)
• .gov.bb - Barbadian government organisations
• .edu.bb - Barbadian educational organisations
• .info.bb - general use
• .store.bb - general use
• .tv.bb - general use
• .biz.bb - general use

Timeline [ edit ]

• 1991-09 ? University of Puerto Rico is delegated the .bb domain.
• 1996 ? The .bb ccTLD becomes re-delegated from Univ. of Puerto Rico to Cable & Wireless.
• 2001-10-16 ? The Government of Barbados and Cable & Wireless sign a MOU for the later to maintain interim-administration of the .bb ccTLD.
• 2007-11 ? The Government of Barbados assumes total administration and control of the .bb ccTLD from C&W. ^[1]

See also [ edit ]

• Internet in Barbados
• ISO 3166-2:BB
• List of Internet top-level domains

References [ edit ]

External links [ edit ]

• IANA .bb whois information
• Redelegation of the .BB Top-Level Domain November 2007
• The Min. of Finance, Investment, Telecommunications and Energy (MFIE)
  • Whois search tool for registered .bb ccTLDs