$185,000 application fee to apply for a new gTLD, plus maybe some auctions for gTLDs that multiple entities wanted, resulted in just under $60 million for ICANN.[2]
Apparently Google and Amazon were the most prolific appliers, with 101 and 76 applications respectively.[3]
I don't really think ownership of these top-level domains is about getting end-users to type .honda or .disney, it's more about ensuring end-users don't end up at porn.honda or naked.disney/characters
ICANN has protections in place to prevent malicious use of domains like that. They (should) prevent applications of that nature. The applicant must hold a trademark for the brand.
I can tell you there are some registrars where they sell more .xxx and .sucks domains to SMBs, defensively, than to actual porn or troll sites. I guess just flat out buying a tld is a solution to the never ending extortion racket
$185,000 application fee to apply for a new gTLD, plus maybe some auctions for gTLDs that multiple entities wanted, resulted in just under $60 million for ICANN.[2]
Apparently Google and Amazon were the most prolific appliers, with 101 and 76 applications respectively.[3]
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICANN#TLD_expansion_and_concer...
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2015/04/17/icann_gltd_auction_mo...
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generic_top-level_domain#Expan...