At the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) Annual General Meeting yesterday delegates approve plans to open up the creation of thousands of new domain names. With the final details to be worked out the new domain names are due to be issued sometime in 2009.

The new rules will allow for a departure from the current 240 country and territory domains and the 20 generic names such as .com .net and .aero and open up the way for many more new ones such as .sex, a hot contender for popularity and even names such as .bank or .car and the many brand names. It has also given approval for domain names to be released in languages such as Arabic or Chinese Mandarin.

This set to change the way we see the Internet with many new and imaginative names set to appear next year.