Proposal: Why don't we make domain names more like names on the App Store? Here's how it would work.<p>If you go to x.com, you'll visit the actual x.com, which literally just shows an x. However, you'll see a suggestion for the top companies that are "secondarily registered" (for free) to that domain, in order of popularity and some other metrics. You can make one of those secondary x.com's the default, so that when you visit x.com, you visit their alternative website instead.<p>There are some issues to sort out with that system, such as whether secondary registration (or at least the auto-suggest) should be allowed for the likes of Facebook and other established, popular, trademarked brands. Another question would be that, if x.com is parked by a squatter, should the more visited x.com's be able to bid for your domain?<p>Here's how bidding would work. Only established companies with a name that corresponds to the domain name would be able to bid. Bidding would only be open for a pre-specified time frame. The domain name owner would be free to notify everyone with an established company that goes by that name to get in on the bidding action. Users would be able to flag websites operated by dead/zombie companies, and an independent committee would convene (digitally) to vote on whether bidding should be re-opened.<p>Naming is actually an issue with startups. We should reduce friction as much as possible for entrepreneurs because it's already hard to start a company as it is. It would be great if you can just pick the best name that isn't taken by a major brand and move on to more important matters. Down the line, you can give customers a small reward for defaulting your version of the domain.