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Postal System and Domain Names
July 23rd, 2007 by 
Jay Westerdal
We all know the Postal System can deliver mail to a famous person based on just their name as as the recipient address. So why not send postal mail using just a domain name as the recipient address? Every year kids write to Santa Claus. If someone writes, “The President” as recipient address the postal system will figure it out and deliver the letter. If someone writes, “Madonna” as the recipient address it will make it to the singer named Madonna. You can literally write anything you want on the recipient address and the post office will figure out how to deliver it.
The problem with mail in the US right now is that we use real addresses. If you change addresses and you fail to update someone who knew your old address then you might lose your mail. If you change your address they force you to update everyone that knows where you are. It is really backwards if you think about it because on the Internet we give out Domain Names. A domain name can be routed to any physical IP address in the world and the DNS will tell the user where the domain is. The domain can change its IP address several times and the web browser always figures out where the new server is. So why in the US do we give out real addresses; why don’t we give out a unique ID? A domain is unique, so why not use a domain name? If I change my address I would only need to tell one person, my Registrar. The post office can then deliver the mail to my address. If I had a magazine subscription or other mail I would not need to contact each company that sends me stuff. I would just give them my domain name for delivery of postal mail.
So here is my solution: Why not write down the domain name of the recipient on the letter? If this catches on, everyone will use domain names as a layer in front of their real postal address. A baby could be given a domain name at birth and as that child grows up and moves out all they need to do is update their whois record for their own domain name. The Postal Domain would allow mail to be delivered to the new address. People could choose to give out different domain names for different types of mail. JayWesterdal.com
would always find where I live. NameIntelligence.com would always find where my office is. Imagine knowing the Postal Domain for friends in your Second Grade Class. Those addresses would still be valid. Currently I have no way of finding anyone from my second grade class. People move away and addresses change, if we had a Postal Domain back then it would be so easy to track down people from your past. The postal system should use domain names in front of real addresses!
If we all do it, the Post Office will be forced to adapt. They will be forced to do a whois lookup and figure out the address. Let’s try it out, send me a letter or a postcard and I will post a picture of every letter that makes it to me. Don’t put a return address on the envelope, the post office will likely be lazy and just return it. But if there is no return address I bet they will do the work and figure out where I live based just on the domain name. Better yet, put your domain name in the return address area. 
As I receive the letters I will post them on this blog and tag every blog article with the tag “Postal Domain”. Now I wonder if this will work internationally too? Someone from outside the US, please try this too.
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32 Comments »
July 23rd, 2007 at 10:57 pm
This is a great idea.
Imagine the red tape it would take though to get this done?
July 23rd, 2007 at 11:13 pm
This is a terrible idea.
The concept seems okay, until you realize that one typo in the domain name, or a failure to update whois info, or an expired domain registration would quickly make mail undeliverable.
There are just too many points of failure for this to be practical.
UPDATE BY JAY: Terrible seems a bit strong. What about a typo in a phone number? What about a typo in a postal address? I don’t buy the typo argument.
If your domain expires your mail would stop working. So you would get a clue real fast you should renew your Postal Domain. You have 30 days after expiration to renew your domain so should cover the no mail situation. You will be able to correct situation prior to the domain being lost permanently. After all, active websites never forget to renew their domain because their DNS stops working and the traffic stops. Same thing would happen with Postal Domains. Millions of people have domain names and figure out how to renew them.
I know this idea will have nah sayers, all new ideas have skeptics.
July 24th, 2007 at 1:18 am
Sometimes the USPS can’t even deliver to my full street address. >8-O
One flaw in this idea is that those ISPs/registrars that provide Whois privacy services are going to become inundated with their customer’s mail.
Other than that, I like the idea.
UPDATE BY JAY: Privacy is a choice. It is not required. Domains with Privacy would have three routes:
Mail would not work for them
The Registrar may reveal the correct address to the USPS
The Registrar would forward the mail
I would assume if someone wants their postal mail to work with their domain name that they would publish their address in their whois. Option 2 and 3 get tricky because their would need to be some work at ICANN and the USPS to accommodate for this addressing technology.
Think of Postal Domains as having Offline DNS. We all rely on DNS everyday, there is no reason that an Offline DNS protocol or technology could not exist.
July 24th, 2007 at 1:59 am
The Domain expiration issue can be resolved by the postal system giving away for free a domain name for life at birth.
I’m not clear when the person dies; should the name be recycled!
Related: No 2 persons can have the same name.
July 24th, 2007 at 2:34 am
I don’t like this idea since most domain name owners doesn’t know anything about whois and they don’t know they need to change address in the whois databases when they change address. Also some web hosting companies register the domain names on themselves instead of their customers to make sure the customers can’t move to another hosting company. I don’t like this idea at all, use normal addresses for normal mail and domain names for WWW and email.
/Andreas
UPDATE BY JAY: Domains should be registered under the owners name. ICANN has warnings about hosting companies that do this.
If someone doesn’t know how to use a domain name, they don’t need to give people their domain name as their address. They can use their IP Physical address instead. There would be a lot more education about domain names if this was possible. And a lot more people would own them as well. The easy of use would also become easier as more people did it.
July 24th, 2007 at 5:40 am
For several reasons (millions w/the same name, learning curve many won’t want any part of, “discrimination” claims, etc) I don’t think it’ll ever happen, Jay, but I do like the idea of others being able to slap SteveMorsa.com
on their letters to me…and for me to be able to use it in the return address corner…
Would also boost website visits and business…especially for those companies sending out large volumes of mail on a regular basis.
With the various WhoIs challenges/problems others have stated above, one approach would be for the post office to just store the physical addresses of everyone corresponding to everyone’s own choice of domains…which eliminates the “millions w/the same name” problem. In this way, people could still keep their WhoIs private…with the result that our mail would be more private than it is now.
Such a system would be able to deliver mail even w/domains like S49TX.com
…talk about privacy.
Until such a day, though, any mail sent w/only a domain for an address…w/no return address…will simply be routed to the dead letter section…waiting for someone at the post office to open it and try to figure out where it should go (if there’s any enclosure in the letter).
By the way; any domain selection news for the auction?
July 24th, 2007 at 8:12 am
Jay, the ICANN Board approved contract negotiations some time ago with the Universal Postal Union for the operation of a .POST TLD. The latest letter has been posted in Correspondence (http://www.icann.org/correspondence/twomey-to-dayan-01jun07.pdf).
UPDATE BY JAY: We do not need a special TLD to operate Offline DNS. We just need the postal system accessing the whois. Perhaps some XML formating and everything would be automated. The .POST TLD seems like a farce. Here is a quote from their application to ICANN, “The .post registrars will be charged: (1) $1,000 to $10,000 application fee, (2) $500 to $5,000 annual fee, and (3) $15 fee for a two-year domain name registration. The initial target market is the 189 members of the UPU.” Seems limited to me.
Any domain name will work in granted that the TLD has accessible Whois.
July 24th, 2007 at 9:38 am
Jay, I think this is an interesting experiment (one in which I will gladly donate 39 cents to participate). I do think the postal service might be more inclined to initiate a system of delivering mail based on unique domain name if they somehow controlled the whois for said addresses. Obviously, this would not be possible for top level domains (e.g. JayWesterdal.com
) but it would be feasible if the Post Office offered every person with a mailbox the option of using a subdomain under the Post Office’s domain hierarchy (e.g. YOURNAME.USPS.COM
). Of course, a whole new tld like .POST would probably be easier and more feasible for lookup on DomainTools… as I’m sure you realized already. Do you have a patent pending on this idea, Jay? Sure hope so because the cat’s out of the bag now. 
UPDATE BY JAY: Thanks, I look forward to your letter. Don’t forget, they raise the rates again. It is now 41 cents to mail something.
Yes, the Post Office could run a whois server for third level domains under their own domain. That would allow the Postal System to give everyone a free domain name if their customers didn’t want to buy one from the commercial sector.
I can easily see someone providing the USPS with a system to automatically fetch the addresses and resolve the final address of delivery. DNS has a thing called the Time To Live. This is how long someone caches the answer to a DNS query. I could see the Postal system using a TTL of 15 or 30 days. I am not saying we would run a system like that, not that it would be hard. I am sure the postal service would just build the service themselves.
I don’t expect I will make a dime off my idea. But it would improve everyone’s lives and that is worth sharing an idea for free.
July 24th, 2007 at 9:51 am
TO ADD: Jay, I see the rush for postal domains has already started. I wonder who registered this one?
(http://whois.domaintools.com/postaldomain.com)
UPDATE BY JAY: Yes, I registered the domain name, after all I coined the word.
July 24th, 2007 at 9:54 am
I have already bought two domains for my granddaughter, who is now two, one with her full name, and one with her first name: Rhia.biz
. The short one has some pics and some texts, the full name one (a dot-com) is still on a construction site. When she’s old enough to be aware of such things, I’ll help her develop the Rhia.biz
into something special and possibly monetizing ;=)
Of course, she may end up being more savvy than I and might be able to teach granny a few things about domaining and other computer matters.
But before I release her full name to her (after age 18, depending on her maturity level), we’ll have to talk seriously about internet security.
Her last name is a common one, so for the dot-com I had to include her middle name.
But, Jay, you make a good point about domain names being the new identifier; in the future, babies won’t be able to leave the hospital without a birth certificate and a domain name, and I predict that “new” first names will be created as domain names become scarce. Also, wealthy parents will negotiate for aftermarket names for their progeny and pay the big $$$ for the high level dot-com names. Domain names could be passed down through the generations. Talk about virtual real estate!
Internet policies regarding identity will begin with an aging Gen X working with a youngish Gen Y; you are truly the first internet generations to fully embrace the net with ease. We boomers changed the world in other ways, but we have been slow to jump on the net band wagon. I am amazed at how many of my peers are barely computer literate; perhaps if my job as a college teacher didn’t require some computer skills, I’d be among them.
I also predict that the U.S.P.S. will eventually become irrelevant as more letters and bills (and, indeed, spam) are delivered electronically. The postal service will end up competing with FedEx, UPS, etc. for delivering goods.
Therefore, JayWesterdal.com
and other name domains are more likely likely to become truncated electronic identifiers (thus, no more Jay(at)JayWesterdal.com
).
Best, jss
July 24th, 2007 at 12:32 pm
Jay, thanks for the reminder about the new rates going up to 41 cents (Shows how much I use the postal service these days)… and congrats on having the foresight to register a great domain name (PostalDomain.com
) around this idea. Of course you have every right to own that domain name, but I’d be careful about claiming that you “coined the word” for several reasons.
1) that’s generally difficult to prove, and in this case, a quick check of Google and will show a number of previous mentions of the term before your post today (http://www.google.com/search?q=postal+domain)
2) your claim is unnecessary because the term “Postal Domain” is generic in nature, and therefore no one should be able to claim exclusive rights to the term anyway — unless they have a registered trademark, or are operating under a similar business name., and even in those cases, they may still not have legitimate rights to your domain name.
Bottom line: Your claim seemed to overreach and therefore has the unintended effect of lending credence to arguments of would be “reverse hijackers” looking to wrestle away domain names from legitimate registrants like you and me. Of course, you shouldn’t have to defend yourself every time you register a domain name, but if you do, try not to use narratives that reinforce the notion that domain speculating is inherently bad (as I’m sure you don’t believe that).
UPDATE BY JAY: Two words can appear on the same web page and I am sure Google will find results for it. I just looked at those pages and no one referencing the term the way I am using it. Either way, Anyone is free to challenge if I used the term first. I am just making the claim I did. Just like I made the claim I coined the term “Domain Tasting”.
July 24th, 2007 at 1:49 pm
I mailed one off to you today (07/23/2007). Interested to see what happens and I put my return domain name on it. Chris
July 24th, 2007 at 10:47 pm
it’s a great idea. not sure if domain names are the right solution, but the abstracted method of lookup solves lots of issues including identity theft. why couldn’t you do the same with your SS#? Phone number? Credit card number?
July 25th, 2007 at 9:01 am
1. I do believe that I was saying “domain tasting” before you did
?” My mother has an account there, so I’d like it to go to her, please.
2. Who gets a postal letter addressed to “Earthlink.net
UPDATE BY JAY: Chris, Perhaps you did… I remember the day in May 2004 when the craziness started. The zonefile delta changes started to grow. At first we thought something was wrong at Verisign. But we soon discovered that someone had found a loophole and was mining for Gold.
2. Earthlink.net
would go to the corporate people at Earthlink. If your mom wants mail too, she should register, MotherOfChrisAmbler.com
. Or should should get the free domain from the post office. MotherofChrisAmbler.usps.gov
.
July 25th, 2007 at 9:41 am
What the heck, I sent off one in the mail today addressed to your domain. Hope it works
UPDATE BY JAY: I can’t wait! My mailman is going to be scratching his head when he sees this.
July 25th, 2007 at 10:03 am
By the way, Jay, can you add a link to the blog in the domaintools.com
header (or footer) navigation? Sometimes I’m on a different page of the domaintools.com
site (like the live auction page) and I have to go back to the homepage to read the blog.
UPDATE BY JAY: Sure, we can put a link in the footer.
July 25th, 2007 at 10:58 am
Hi Jay its a workable idea if the Postal Service does it as a OPT IN offer which it can do it would be very possible to add to the postal database and would save them money and time for address changes and for misdirected mail but it might confuse the domain issue even more with people and companies being named the same in different localities so it would cause big biz to really crack down on so called infringements. i think we need REAL DOMAIN LEGISLATION that protects DOMAINERS as well as Mega and Baby business FIRST BEFORE ANY NEW concepts.Lets
not put the cart before the horse or we may not like what we get.
UPDATE BY JAY: Domains are unique. So multiple business with the same name is not a problem for domain names. It is the guy who owns the domain that gets the mail. Just another reason to keep your whois address updated. Hopefully the horse can catch this cart.
July 25th, 2007 at 11:46 am
This would make it a lot easier to receive snail-mail SPAM. SPAMers could just start taking random domains and printing them on envelopes and putting SPAM flyers or w/e inside. I’d even be possible to automate the process.
But, I think the Mail People would just be like WTF? and throw it in the nearest garbage.
UPDATE BY JAY: The postal service gets to charge people money for mail. So I think they would love it. If only I got 20 cents for every spam I received. I would be a reach man.
The post office has a duty to never throw mail away. It is a federal crime not to deliver mail. So I have faith they will figure it out at the local post office.
July 25th, 2007 at 1:17 pm
interesting… very interesting. it’s been a while since i last used the postal service, but i’m sending you a postcard or something, from india. as soon as i figure out where the post office is. or if anyone knows of one in my neighbourhood.
is redundant…
is redundant. I actually don’t even have mail at that address or even an MX record. I would think Me (at) JayWesterdal.com
would seem clear. But the best answer is, own Westerdal.com
. Which I do. Then the answer is clear.
my last postal attempt was to send a letter, with only my last name and pin code (that’s zip code to you) on it. it reached. it helps that i have an unusual last name.
to counter speedboxer: physical spam would increase, but not drastically. you wouldn’t get hundreds of them every day, as spammers would have to pay per spam. they’d think twice. which means no stock quotes, lottery prizes or enlargements. and definitely no widows of deposed rulers. that lot would still stick to the internets.
on a not-so-related note: what’s the ideal email address to have if you have a full-name domain? i always thought something like jay(at)jaywesterdal.com
UPDATE BY JAY: Yes, Jay (at) JayWesterdal.com
If I get mail from India via this trick I am going to be very impressed. The last letter I got from India was all beaten up. It would be amusing to mail a Plexiglas container with a video camera on a motion detector inside. Then I could watch the whole trip when I get the package.
July 25th, 2007 at 7:19 pm
Even better, the OpenID service could include information on your physical address and it would be much easier for users to change when necessary. It also avoids the centralized concepts of having the Postal Service give them out or getting a domain name at birth (joke or not).
UPDATE BY JAY: Yes, OpenID could do this as well. I love it.
July 26th, 2007 at 8:29 am
Jay, I sent my letter to you today; my return addy (NOT my name, a new domain I just set up two days ago) will lead you to a webpage that I set up on 7/26. The Whois will reveal to you my real name (same as “alias”) and the address of my college.
If you don’t receive my letter after two weeks, I’ll give you the domain name information. I’m sure you have the domain tools to ferret it out on your own, but don’t you want to be surprised?
Best, jss
P.S. I hope I don’t get arrested ;=)
UPDATE BY JAY: Sounds exciting.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:03 pm
Don’t worry, Jay. It’s just a letter. I was just worried (slightly) about how the P.O. might view having to deal with something outside their (mail) box.
Best, jss
August 13th, 2007 at 10:47 am
hi, a postal card just been sent to you from vietnam
August 27th, 2007 at 3:26 pm
Jay, I’m curious. Have you received any of the domain addressed letters?
I’d put money on “no.” I suspect all our letters and cards ended up in the dead letter file.
;=)
jss
UPDATE BY JAY: I have been thinking about them. However, the answer is NO. They post office can’t seem to figure out how to deliver them. I have not heard anything about them. It is sort of disappointing.
August 27th, 2007 at 11:05 pm
Even though I was dubious, I was hoping that the P.O. would come through.
September 10th, 2007 at 1:29 pm
Sigh, evidently the post office did not deliver the domain name letters to Jay, at least not mine.
Jay, you can see what I sent you at
AddyDomain (dot) com
Ms Domainer
UPDATE BY JAY: Yep, I never received a thing. I guess the post office can’t figure it out.
April 22nd, 2009 at 11:02 pm
*
It is now April 23, 2009, and it looks as though the new .tel TLD could fulfill Jay’s prophesy.
*
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