What GMO REGISTRY does

GMO Registry, Inc. is a Tokyo-based domain name registry operator founded in July 2009 as a subsidiary of GMO Internet Group, Inc. The company operates a portfolio of top-level domains (TLDs) including the proprietary new gTLD .shop, several Japanese geographic TLDs (.tokyo, .nagoya, .yokohama, .okinawa, .ryukyu, .kyoto), and provides backend registry services for over 40 corporate brand TLDs (.canon, .hitachi, .toshiba, .jcb, .otsuka, .nhk, .sony, .panasonic) and country-code TLDs (.id for Indonesia, .mm for Myanmar, formerly .so for Somalia). Its technical platform provides DNS registry infrastructure with DNSSEC implementation, Internationalized Domain Name (IDN) support compliant with IDNA2008 standards across multiple scripts (Japanese, Chinese, Korean, French, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish), a restricted Searchable Whois Service (SWS), and integrated billing, collection, and data backup systems.

The company monetizes through three primary revenue streams: recurring domain registration and renewal fees across owned TLDs (sold via ICANN-accredited registrars), managed backend registry services for third-party TLD operators, and professional services for brand TLD application consulting and ongoing policy/operational management. Its customer base is bifurcated between enterprise B2B relationships with Japanese corporations (Canon, Hitachi, JCB, Otsuka, Nissan, Sony, Panasonic, Toyota, Honda, Suzuki, NHK) and government entities (Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Yokohama City, Nagoya City, Indonesia, Myanmar), and a long-tail consumer market reached through registrar partners for .shop, .tokyo, .nagoya, .yokohama domain registrations. Notable achievements include winning .shop at ICANN's record-breaking auction in January 2016 for USD 41.5 million, .shop reaching 10 million cumulative registrations by July 2025, and ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certification (IS 646274) for its registry business operations.

Despite the breadth of its TLD portfolio, GMO Registry operates with only 1–10 employees, leveraging the broader GMO Internet Group infrastructure (including Onamae.com registrar) for distribution, billing, and shared services. The lean operating model, combined with parent-group backing, has enabled the company to scale to a globally distributed registry operation while maintaining ISO 27001 compliance and ICANN accreditation.

Name

GMO REGISTRY

Legal name

GMO Registry, Inc.

Website

https://gmoregistry.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

GMO Registry, Inc. is a Tokyo-based ICANN-accredited domain registry operator and subsidiary of GMO Internet Group that operates the .shop gTLD, Japanese geographic TLDs (.tokyo, .nagoya, .yokohama), and provides backend registry services for over 40 corporate brand TLDs (.canon, .hitachi, .jcb) and country-code TLDs (.id, .mm) globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Domain Name Registration Fees: Revenue from domain name registrations across owned TLDs including .shop, .tokyo, .nagoya, .yokohama. Fees collected from registrars and end customers for domain registration, renewal, and transfer.
2. Backend Registry Services: Technical and operational support services for TLDs operated on behalf of brand clients and geographic TLD operators. Includes system development, operation, marketing support, and administrative tasks.
3. Brand TLD Consulting and Management: Consulting for brand TLD application, management support services, registry system building and management, policy development, and domain name registration management services for corporate brand TLDs.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

GMO Registry, Inc. operates top-level domain registry services for its owned TLDs (including the .shop gTLD and the .tokyo, .nagoya, .yokohama Japanese GeoTLDs) and provides backend registry services, technical operations, and consulting for brand TLDs (.canon, .hitachi, etc.) and country-code TLDs (.id, .mm, .so) on behalf of corporate and government clients. The company operates the DNS registry infrastructure, billing, and collection systems while making registrations available globally through ICANN-accredited registrars.

Product overview

GMO Registry, Inc. operates a portfolio of top-level domain (TLD) registry services, comprising proprietary gTLDs (.shop) and geographic TLDs (.tokyo, .nagoya, .yokohama, .okinawa, .ryukyu, .kyoto), as well as backend registry services for over 40 brand TLDs (.canon, .hitachi, .toshiba, .jcb, etc.) and country-code TLDs (.id, .mm, and former .so). The company functions as a domain name registry operator, providing technical registry operations, DNS management, DNSSEC, IDN support, WHOIS services, and marketing/registry system operational support to TLD applicants and operators. Services are not a unified platform product but consist of separately operated TLD offerings and modular backend services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• .shop: A new gTLD (generic Top Level Domain) specifically representing shops, e-commerce sites, brick-and-mortar stores, and service providers. Won at ICANN auction for USD 41.5 million in 2016.
• .tokyo .nagoya .yokohama
• .okinawa .ryukyu .kyoto
• Brand TLD Services

Products and services

• .shop A generic top-level domain (gTLD) designed for e-commerce, online shops, brick-and-mortar stores, and service providers. GMO Registry acquired the registry rights in 2016 for USD 41.5 million and operates it globally and in China.
• .tokyo A geographic TLD representing Tokyo, Japan. Suitable for businesses with headquarters or branches in Tokyo, and open to individuals and organizations globally.
• .nagoya A geographic TLD representing Nagoya, Japan. Suitable for businesses located in or related to Nagoya city.
• .yokohama A geographic TLD representing Yokohama, Japan. Open to anyone for personal or business use.
• .okinawa A geographic TLD for the Okinawa region, supported by GMO Registry for backend registry operations.
• .ryukyu A geographic TLD for the Ryukyu islands region, supported by GMO Registry for backend registry operations.
• .kyoto A geographic TLD for Kyoto city, part of GMO Registry's regional TLD portfolio supported with backend operations.
• Brand TLD Backend Registry Services Comprehensive backend registry services for brand TLD operators, including ICANN application support, registry system development and operation, DNS/DNSSEC, IDN, billing and collection systems, marketing support, policy development, and domain registration management. Supports 40+ Japanese corporate brand TLDs (e.g., .canon, .hitachi, .toshiba, .jcb, .otsuka, .nissan, .datsun, .toyota, .honda, .lexus, .hyundai, .kia, .mitsubishi, .sony, .panasonic, .sharp, .fujitsu, .nec, .epson, .brother, .ricoh, .nikon, .nhk, .suzuki, .kddi, .nico, .goo, .yodobashi, .goldpoint, .mtpc, .dnp, .gmo).
• ccTLD Backend Registry Services (.id and .mm) Backend registry operation and support services for country-code TLDs, including Indonesia (.id, contracted September 2011) and Myanmar (.mm, contract awarded August 2019), covering registry system build-out, technical operations, billing, and IDN support.

Quantifiable outcome

• .shop reached 10 million cumulative registrations in July 2025, 8 years and 10 months after opening
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and flagship.

• Myanmar (ccTLD .mm)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 August 2019Awarded service contract in August 2019 to set up ccTLD (.mm) registry for Myanmar (PTD Awards Service Contract).
• GMO Brights Consulting, Inc.coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 December 2015Partnership formed in December 2015 with Brights Consulting to provide backend registry services to their TLD clients, expanding GMO Registry's customer base.
• Yokohama CitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2012Yokohama City officially supported GMO Registry to operate .yokohama TLD, selected in March 2012.
• Nagoya CitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2012Nagoya City officially supported GMO Registry to operate .nagoya TLD, selected in March 2012.
• Hitachi, Ltd.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2012Hitachi operates nic.hitachi brand TLD with backend support from GMO Registry.
• Tokyo Metropolitan GovernmentflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2011Tokyo Metropolitan Government officially supported GMO Registry as the operator for .tokyo TLD in November 2011, after a formal selection process. This was the first major city TLD partnership in Japan.
• Republic of Indonesia (ccTLD .id)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 September 2011Contracted in September 2011 to provide backend registry operation and support services for Indonesia's country-code TLD .id. GMO Registry supports registry operations using expertise from GMO Internet Group's domain registration services.
• Canon, Inc.flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2010Canon partnered with GMO Registry in May 2010 to provide ICANN new gTLD application and operation support for .canon, making it one of the world's first brand TLD applications. Canon became the pioneer for brand TLD adoption globally.
• Federal Republic of Somalia (ccTLD .so)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 April 2010Contracted in April 2010 to provide backend registry operation and support services for Somalia's .so domain. This was GMO Registry's first international registry operation project, supporting Somalia's national recovery. Services concluded in July 2015.
• JCB Co., Ltd.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJCB operates global.jcb brand TLD for international payments and services.
• Otsuka Pharmaceutical (リリアム大塚)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOtsuka operates lilium.otsuka brand TLD for pharmaceutical operations.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Afilias (now part of Identity Digital): Afilias was a major registry backend services provider (now merged into Identity Digital) serving multiple TLDs including .info, .org (formerly), and brand TLDs. Directly comparable to GMO Registry's brand TLD backend services offering pre-merger.
• GoDaddy Registry: GoDaddy Registry operates multiple new gTLDs and provides backend registry services to brand TLD operators globally. It is a direct competitor to GMO Registry's brand TLD and ccTLD backend services business, with comparable technology stack (SRS, DNSSEC, IDN).
• Radix Registry: Radix is a registry operator for multiple new gTLDs including .online, .store, .tech, .site, .press. It competes with GMO Registry's .shop in the e-commerce-focused gTLD category and offers comparable backend services.
• CentralNic Group: CentralNic operates a portfolio of new gTLD registries (including .xyz, .site, .online) and provides registry backend services. It is a direct peer in both proprietary gTLD operation and backend services to brand and geo TLDs.
• Public Interest Registry (PIR): PIR operates .org, one of the largest legacy gTLDs, providing registry backend infrastructure and policy management comparable to GMO Registry's offerings. While not a new gTLD operator, it is a directly comparable registry services business at scale.
• Tucows: Tucows is both a registrar and a registry services provider, operating the .mobi gTLD and providing wholesale registry/registrar backend services. Comparable to GMO Registry across the registrar-channel-distributed gTLD business model.
• Identity Digital: Identity Digital is the largest new-gTLD registry operator, formed from the merger of Donuts and Afilias. It directly competes with GMO Registry in operating multiple proprietary gTLDs and providing registry backend services, and also acts as the backend registry for many of the same brand TLDs in the new gTLD program.

Regional players

• Nominet: Nominet operates the .uk country-code TLD and provides registry services to the UK market. It is comparable to GMO Registry in operating national/geo TLDs (similar to GMO's .tokyo/.nagoya/.yokohama and .id operations) but is geographically focused on the UK.

Broad incumbents

• Verisign: Verisign operates .com and .net, the dominant legacy gTLDs that .shop and other new gTLDs compete against for share. As the established incumbent in domain registry infrastructure, Verisign represents the structural benchmark against which GMO Registry's .shop must compete for relevance.

Others

• ICANN (as ecosystem regulator): ICANN is the global coordinator of the DNS namespace and accredits registries and registrars. While not a commercial competitor, ICANN is the regulatory ecosystem in which GMO Registry and all its peers operate and obtain their core competitive moats (registry rights, accreditation).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/gmoregistry
• Facebookfacebook.com/share.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gmoregistry.com%2Fen%2F

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about GMO REGISTRY