HARD to believe it is more than a quarter of a century since the .com suffix was introduced.

It has been more than 25 years of innovation and change, driven by technology touching almost every aspect of the way we live.

Hard to imagine, too, how the need for a web presence would drive so many organisations, businesses and individuals to change the way they interact with others, be they customers or friends.

Back then, I doubt there was anyone who could predict with any degree of accuracy the scale of the impact that the technology would have.

And it’s still quite hard to appreciate the global scale. A fresh perspective has been provided by an outfit called the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (Icann). It has voted to allow new website domain suffixes in what it is calling the biggest change in the online world for years.

Icann’s plans are driven by demand. It has agreed to a big increase in the number of domain endings from the current 22.

Internet address names will end with almost any word and be in any language. The commercial opportunities here are immense. Imagine the marketing potential for many multi-nationals who have already invested billions in establishing their global brands. Now here comes another opportunity. Those with a fondness for a famous fizzy drink, for example, could go to “drinkmore.coke”.

It is an indication of theŠ huge new market being opened by Icann.

And if the consumer brands are keen to examine the potential, Icann are positively rubbing their collective, corporate hands with glee. They propose charging about £114,000 to apply for new suffixes from next January.

The money, Icann says, will be used to cover costs in developing these new Top Level Domains and in scrutinising the many thousands of applications they expect.

Interestingly, Icann also anticipates the need for a large pot to cover legal costs incurred in handling challenges from parties who fail to get the domains they want.

The Icann announcement – which has itself been subject to a six-year consultation process – is about to extend the boundaries still further.

For those with an eye on the future and the development of their businesses, new cyber territory beckons.