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What ICANN revealed on Reveal Day
ICANN published the 2026 round’s application information, including the primary strings applicants sought, the applying entities, applicable variant or replacement strings, and preliminary contention sets. ICANN’s announcement describes the release as application disclosure; it does not report bid amounts or auction outcomes. ICANN’s 7 October 2026 announcement also said the final number and types of applications would be confirmed on String Confirmation Day.
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ICANN President and CEO Kurtis Lindqvist called the milestone significant for the next expansion of the Domain Name System. His statement appeared in that same announcement: “Reveal Day marks an important milestone for the next expansion of the Domain Name System.”
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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Why the headline’s “bids” wording is misleading
In this context, a bid is not the same as an application. Reveal Day made application information public; it did not disclose what applicants might offer in an auction. The 2026 Round Applicant Guidebook, Module 5, describes contention-set resolution as a later process that can evolve as applications are evaluated. A contention set identifies strings that may need resolution; it is not an auction result.
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Nor does an application mean that a string has been approved, delegated into the Domain Name System or made available for registration. Those outcomes are not established by the 7 October announcement.
What the published string information means
| Item | Meaning as of 7 October 2026 |
|---|---|
| Primary applied-for string | The top-level domain string an applicant initially sought. Its publication is not approval. |
| Replacement string | An eligible alternative an applicant may elect to use under the program’s rules. A switch is not automatic, and the alternative may later face contention. |
| Preliminary contention set | A grouping of applications or strings that may require resolution. It is preliminary, can change as the process proceeds, and does not identify a winner. |
The application information is a dated snapshot: ICANN said the final number and types of applications would be confirmed on String Confirmation Day, rather than treating the Reveal Day publication as final.
What happens after Reveal Day
- Replacement Period, 8 October 00:01 UTC through 21 October 23:59 UTC, 2026: Eligible applicants that named a second-choice replacement string may elect to switch, subject to eligibility rules. The choice is optional, not automatic.
- String Confirmation Day, 17 November 2026: ICANN scheduled publication of the final applied-for string list and an updated list of contention sets.
- Community Input and Objections Period, 17 November 2026 through 16 March 2027: ICANN scheduled a period for public and community input, including application comments and objections.
These dates are scheduled milestones, not completed outcomes. As of the 7 October announcement, the November confirmation and the 2027 period were still in the future. ICANN had previously announced the milestone schedule on 29 September 2026: ICANN’s 2026 round milestones announcement.
How to read claims about new domain extensions
- “Applied for” means an application was published; it does not mean “approved,” “live” or “available to register.”
- “In contention” means a string may require resolution under the program’s rules; it does not establish who will prevail or whether an auction will decide the matter.
- “Auction bids revealed” is not an accurate description of the 7 October release: the cited announcement disclosed application information, not bid amounts or winners.
Historical context: the 2012 round
ICANN said the 2012 round resulted in the addition of more than 1,200 unique new gTLDs, including names in non-Latin scripts. That is historical context reported by ICANN in 2026, not a forecast of how many extensions the 2026 round will produce.
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