.jp

.jp is the Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Japan. It was established in 1986 and is administered by the Japan Registry Services.
History
At the establishment of the .jp domain, the domain was administered by the JPNIC, as part of their role as an overseeing technical body for the Internet in Japan. It was originally proposed by Jun Murai for the Information Sciences Institute at the University of Southern California on August 5, 1986. Handling of the domain was first managed within the "junet-admin" admin group, which was responsible for the operations of JUNET, an early computer network in which Murai was a part of.
In April 1989, the junet-admin group began formally registering .jp domain names. However, due to the growing importance and size of the .jp registry, it was decided at the 11th General Meeting of JPNIC in December 2000 to create a new corporation that would manage the .jp domain. Thus, the Japan Registry Service was created, and on June 30, 2003, officially assumed the duties of the .jp registry.
.jp registrations are only allowed if the registrant has a physical address in Japan. Registrations are processed via accredited registrars and domain names with Japanese characters (kanji, hiragana or katakana) may be registered at the second level.
Second-level domains
While any party with a Japanese mailing address can get a second-level domain (example.jp) there are several restricted-use second-level domains, listed below.
ac.jp: higher level academic institutions, such as universities
ad.jp: JPNIC members
co.jp: most forms of incorporated companies, including foreign companies registered in Japan
ed.jp: educational institutions for individuals under 18
go.jp: Japanese government ministries and their endeavours
gr.jp: groups of two or more people, or groups of registered companies
lg.jp: local government authorities
ne.jp: network service providers
or.jp: registered organizations and non-profit organizations
Geographical type jp domain names
(organization).(cityname).(prefecturename).jp
Domains listed below are reserved for the local governments in Japan:
metro.tokyo.jp: reserved for the government of Tokyo Metropolis
pref.(prefecturename).jp: reserved for the prefectural government
city.(cityname).jp: reserved for cities designated by government ordinance
city.(cityname).(prefecturename).jp: reserved for non-designated cities and, wards and cities within Tokyo
town.(townname).(prefecturename).jp: reserved for towns
vill.(villagename).(prefecturename).jp: reserved for villages
Internationalized top-level domains
Japan has considered registering an internationalized country code top-level domain, .日本.
In 2008, a preliminary application was made.
no such domain has been registered.
Private companies have registered the following internationalized generic top-level domains using Japanese script:
, the most used Japanese script top-level domain
Cities or regions in Japan have registered these geographic top-level domains:
.kyoto (Kyoto)
.nagoya (Nagoya)
.okinawa (Okinawa)
.osaka (Osaka)
.ryukyu (Ryukyu, a former kingdom, often used as a traditional alias of Okinawa)
.tokyo (Tokyo)
.yokohama (Yokohama)
See also
Domain Name System
Country code top-level domain
References
External links
IANA .jp whois information
JPRS website
JPNIC website
.jp accredited registrars (in Japanese only)
Internet properties established in 1986
Council of European National Top Level Domain Registries members
Country code top-level domains
Internet in Japan
Domain names of Japan
Computer-related introductions in 1986
1986 establishments in Japan