Airbnb, the travel home rental giant: An analysis of its official website domain name management and brand protection.

Airbnb, short for AirBed and Breakfast, is a service-oriented website connecting travelers with homeowners with available rooms, offering users a wide variety of accommodation options. In 2011, Airbnb experienced an incredible 800% growth.

Founded in August 2008 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, Airbnb is a travel home rental community where users can list, search, and book vacation rentals online via the web or mobile app. According to its official website and media reports, its community platform offers travelers millions of accommodation options in 191 countries and 65,000 cities, ranging from apartments and villas to castles and treehouses. Time magazine dubbed Airbnb the "EBay of housing." On August 19, 2020, Airbnb announced that it had filed for an IPO.

I. Introduction to Airbnb, the American Travel Home Rental Company

Airbnb is a website for renting accommodations and homes, offering short-term rentals of homes or rooms. It allows travelers to discover and book unique properties around the world online or through their mobile phones. It is a representative example of the recent growth of the sharing economy. Founded in August 2008, the company is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and is privately held and managed by Airbnb, Inc. Currently, Airbnb has 4 million hosts and over 3 million listings in 65,000 cities across 191 countries.

The company's brand name in China, Aibiying, stands for "Let Love Welcome Each Other." Upon its release, the name was criticized as "unpleasant" and "sexually suggestive."

Users must register an internet account to use the website. Each accommodation is linked to a host, whose profile includes recommendations from other users, customer reviews, feedback, and a private messaging system.

II. Domain Name and Brand Protection for Airbnb, a US travel home rental company

Airbnb prioritizes domain name protection, safeguarding its brand image and online interests through core domain registration, defensive domain registration, and legal action. The details are as follows:

Core Domain Registration: Airbnb uses airbnb.com as its official domain name for international travel accommodations. This domain, registered in August 2008, directly corresponds to the brand name. Airbnb.cn, also registered in February 2009, serves as its official domain name for China. Airbnb.com.cn is set as a redirect link to direct users to the official website, strengthening the brand's consistent online presence across different regions.

Defensive Domain Registration: Airbnb has registered a series of brand-related defensive domain names, including the pinyin-related domain names for "爱Airbnb" (i.e., "爱Airbnb"). It even protects the easily misspelled domain name "aibiyin.cn" to prevent others from misleading users by using similar domain names.

Company Name: Airbnb.

Official domain name: airbnb.com.

Domain created: August 5, 2008.

Country: United States.

Headquarters: San Francisco, USA.

Founded: 2008.