Google launches .app domains: easy to remember, affordable and safer

After the company from Mountain View got this new website extension through an auction in which the company put 25 million dollars on the table (more than 21 million euros at today's exchange rate), the giant has finally opened the registration of .app domains. Through a page created for this purpose, it is now possible to check if the address a company needs to launch its apps in web format is available.

Price of Google's domains

One of the advantages of this new website extension in Google's hands is its price: the company set itself the goal of making app domains affordable, with their price ranging between 10 and 20 euros, depending on whether they are purchased wholesale or retail.

In any case, the price or the ease of remembering domains for web apps are not their main advantages. In the wake of the giant's commitment to safe searches, the .app extension is yet another step in the fight against cybercrime. Not surprisingly, this new TLD (top-level domain) brings with it a requirement imposed by Google on web app developers.

Specifically, the company is requiring web apps with the .app extension to use https secure encryption. It's not optional, but mandatory for all the sites that want to use the new extension. This way, the internet giant is making sure that all the web apps contained in this extension are certified in terms of cybersecurity, which should put users' minds at ease.

Specifically, the https encryption that Google has decided to impose on all companies and developers that rely on the .app extension will make it impossible to intercept communications between the server and user when sending confidential data and information.

This, together with the fact that it's the first web extension to require a specific encryption for the page to work, is a guarantee that both companies and customers will appreciate: a project in development is bound to be more reliable knowing that any cybersecurity problems will be minimal. It could also attract more users and customers. Not surprisingly, knowing that you can rest easy while browsing a specific browser app can tilt the balance in the number of visits toward those with a domain that has an .app extension.

Beyond the corporate approach of this launch (with Google's clear commitment to an extension that will boost the company's revenue), the availability of .app to register new domains brings another general aspect to the table: the importance of analysing each and every aspect involved in the development and publication of the mobile apps through which companies are investing in mobility.

In addition to the design and usability issues and the different testing strategies available, deciding whether to opt for a web app or go with a mobile app exclusively from those available in markets such as Google Play or App Store is another important step that precedes the development of the tool itself.

With Google's latest news (which it announced in early May, with registration opening this month), doubts about which model to adopt are growing. The .app extension now makes it much easier for users to remember the address of a web application: they will only have to remember the name, without fear of putting .com or .es by mistake later. If it's an app, it should be .app. In addition, the fact that the extension itself requires specific encryption puts an end to another weak point in this type of platform: its security.