Company Overview
Donuts is one of the world's largest domain registries, co-founded by Paul Stahura, Daniel Schindler, Jonathon Nevett, Richard Tindal, and Mason Cole in 2011, headquartered in Bellevue, Washington, USA. Donuts operates over 200 new generic top-level domains (ngTLDs), including .lol, .guru, .cafe, .life, .world, .email, and many more, making it one of the largest applicants and operators in ICANN's new gTLD program. In 2021, Donuts rebranded to Identity Digital to better reflect its strategic focus on digital identity management.
Related providers: Donuts Domain Registry Services
Key Milestones
- 2011：Paul Stahura, Daniel Schindler, Jonathon Nevett, and others co-founded Donuts in Bellevue, Washington
- 2012：Donuts submitted 307 TLD applications in ICANN's new gTLD program, becoming the largest applicant
- 2014：First new gTLDs (.guru, .singles, .photography) opened for general registration
- 2016：Donuts surpassed 100 TLDs under management, becoming the world's second-largest domain registry
- 2018：Launched Brand TLD services, enabling enterprises to manage digital assets under their own top-level domain
- 2020：Exceeded 200 TLDs under management, covering millions of registered domains globally
- 2021：Rebranded to Identity Digital, emphasizing digital identity strategy
- 2023：Launched upgraded domain marketplace and premium name trading platform
- 2026：Identity Digital continues expanding TLD portfolio, driving next-generation domain use cases
Product Matrix
🌐 Domain Registry & Operations
| Product | Description |
|---|---|
| Donuts TLD Registry | New gTLD registry operating 200+ TLDs (.lol, .guru, .cafe, .world, etc.) |
| Donuts Premium Names | Premium domain marketplace for high-value short and keyword domains |
| Donuts Domain Marketplace | Domain trading platform supporting buying, selling, and auction |
🏢 Brand Protection
| Product | Description |
|---|---|
| Donuts Brand TLDs | Brand TLD services enabling enterprises to operate their own top-level domain |
| Donuts Brand Protection | Brand protection solutions monitoring and preventing domain abuse and typo-squatting |
🔧 Infrastructure
| Product | Description |
|---|---|
| Donuts Whois | WHOIS lookup service for all operated TLDs, supporting domain information and registration status queries |
| Donuts DNS | Authoritative DNS resolution service providing reliable DNS infrastructure for registered domains |
| Donuts API | RESTful API for domain registration queries, TLD information retrieval, and automated management |
Core Strengths
Largest TLD Portfolio: Operating 200+ new TLDs, globally leading in TLD portfolio size and diversity
Brand Protection Leadership: Pioneered Brand TLD solutions, enabling enterprises to leverage TLDs as core digital brand assets
Deep ICANN Engagement: Actively involved in ICANN policy and gTLD rule-making, driving domain industry innovation
Global Channel Network: Partnerships with thousands of domain registrars worldwide for comprehensive distribution
Digital Identity Strategy: Evolved from domain registry to digital identity management platform, expanding brand TLD and digital asset protection
Market Position & Competitors
Donuts (Identity Digital) holds a leading position in the global domain registry market, competing with the following organizations:
- Verisign: World's largest domain registry operator, managing .com and .net gTLDs, with market influence far exceeding other registries
- Afilias: Major new gTLD registry operating .info, .org (technical operations), and other large TLDs
- CentralNIC: Well-known new gTLD registry and domain services provider operating multiple generic and new TLDs
- Neustar (TransUnion): Operates .us, .biz, and other TLDs, offering registry services and DNS security solutions
- Radix: Emerging new gTLD registry operating popular TLDs including .online, .site, .store, .tech
- Top Level Design: New gTLD innovator operating .wiki, .design, .ink, .gift, and other thematic domains
