nyancrimew replies:
ok so .io is a "fun" lesson in colonialism and technology, like all two letter top level domains (yes all of them) it's a country domain belonging to a country, io being the british indian oceans territory, an archipelago in the indian ocean. .io domains became so trendy because they're easily marketable to tech people (io can stand for input/output), it looks kinda cool and at the time domains with .io were highly available with not many websites being created on the islands.

however .io is not like other small islands with highly wanted tlds such as .ai or .to, where the islands make millions off of domain sales and can rely on them as a big pillar of their economy. all profits from .io sales go to the UK, and despite a fight to get control over their tld the islands get nothing, not only did the native population get displaced in land deals and colonialism but their colonizer also heavily profits off of the territories sudden (indirect) trendyness with tech startups.

don't buy .io domains, don't support the british empire.

[End of transcript]

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[–] RandomStickman@fedia.io 240 points 2 months ago (4 children)

I looked up the Wikipedia page.

The only inhabitants are British and United States military personnel, and associated contractors

Oh, ok. That's not too bad actually.

The forced removal of Chagossians from the Chagos Archipelago occurred between 1968 and 1973.

Oh.

Today, the Chagossians are still trying to return, but the UK government has repeatedly denied them the right of return despite calls from numerous human rights organisations to let them.

Ooohhh....

On 3 November 2022, it was announced that the UK and Mauritius had decided to begin negotiations on sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory, taking into account the international legal proceedings.

Ok, getting better...

However, in December 2023, it was reported that the UK government was planning to discontinue the talks.

Oh, it's worse, actually.

[–] pyre@lemmy.world 62 points 2 months ago (16 children)

i can't believe the country whose biggest exhibit is of all the artifacts it's stolen from other cultures would be so inconsiderate to other cultures.

[–] Zementid@feddit.nl 15 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

....and changed for the absolute worst in recent years.

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[–] filcuk@lemmy.zip 19 points 2 months ago (1 children)

What is the actual reason for this?
That's disgraceful, to say the least.

[–] shasta@lemm.ee 22 points 2 months ago (1 children)

The island is probably a good location for a military naval base in the Pacific.

[–] glaber@lemm.ee 16 points 2 months ago

Surprisingly, the British Indian Ocean Territory is not in the Pacific ocean, but the Indian Ocean.

Being serious though, yeah, it's a really good strategic location

[–] Graphy@lemmy.world 10 points 2 months ago (1 children)

There’s a behind the bastards two parter on this topic

https://youtu.be/efzS1Jc7TX0

[–] fleet@lemmy.ca 3 points 2 months ago

Omg I never knew BtB was on YouTube. I've listened to the podcast so much, feels surreal to see them talking.

[–] josie@vegantheoryclub.org 6 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Fuck the Biscuit Empire.

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[–] itslilith@lemmy.blahaj.zone 125 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Same for .nu, the TLD for Niue, which is used by businesses in the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden, where "nu" means "now". It's been taken over by a Swedish company, and they, backed by the Swedish government, refuse to give it back or share the profits, saying it's "essential for Swedish internet infrastructure". Colonialism at it's finest.

And just for context: Niue has about 1500-2000 inhabitants, and it is estimated that they missed out on about $150 million in revenue since 2013. That's $100000 per capita, and a revenue stream that's more than their entire GDP.

[–] todd_bonzalez@lemm.ee 107 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Look, not defending colonialism, but the British Indian Ocean Territory doesn't have a native population anymore. 100% of those living on the island are UK and US military personnel. For the past 50 years it's been a military base.

The largest chunk of the revenue from .io domain sales go to Name.com, who owns the ccTLD, with only a small portion going to the UK government after ICANN et al takes their piece. There are only 270K registered .io domains, averaging $36/year in registration fees each, so the whole pie is less than $10M annually.

The circumstances leading to this arrangement are completely indefensible, and there is a movement to grant the right of return to the surviving Chagossians and their families, including a 2021 UN resolution rejecting the sovereignty of the UK over the islands.

If you actually want to support the surviving Chagossian people, get involved in international political activism and fight for their right to return to their homeland. If they should succeed, they will be entitled to their own ccTLD that they can profit from freely like other small countries, and the .io ccTLD could face termination as result of BIOT no longer being a legal territory - though, not strictly, the Soviet Union's .su ccTLD still exists today, and it could be beneficial to transfer ownership of the ccTLD to the Chagossians, but that can only happen after they are able to reclaim their territory.

[–] idegenszavak@sh.itjust.works 67 points 2 months ago (1 children)

[–] aido@lemmy.world 45 points 2 months ago (2 children)

Did you, perhaps, finish reading the comment?

[–] burgersc12@mander.xyz 34 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Why read when you can just post meme instead??

[–] idegenszavak@sh.itjust.works 11 points 2 months ago

I read the comment, it was more like targeted generally to the topic, I didn't wanted to sound personal.

[–] Dasnap@lemmy.world 64 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (4 children)

Always interesting to see the remnants of the old empires. Countries like the UK and France still having little splatters of control across the world like the last bits of black mould you can't reach.

I'm curious, are places like Hawai'i seeing similar movements? I know that area has a bit of an odd history.

[–] li10@feddit.uk 24 points 2 months ago (3 children)

Don’t a lot of these smaller territories actually want to be part of Britain though?

While it may not be perfect, if you’re a very small territory then having Britain as security is probably a good thing at this point.

As much as people like to rag on Britain, it’s really not that bad in the modern day.

[–] Skua@kbin.earth 19 points 2 months ago

Several do, yes, but this isn't one of them. The BIOT is a particularly grim case and a stain on our country to this day

[–] Dasnap@lemmy.world 17 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

I'd imagine EU or NATO style relationships are probably healthier. I know there have been some pushes for a 'Commonwealth EU' in the past that haven't gotten far for a myriad of reasons.

There's also the fact that I'm sure even the citizens of these countries can't agree on the matter.

[–] PoopDelivery@sh.itjust.works 2 points 2 months ago

They'll squash a threat to Bitian and it's reputation but I doubt they give a shit about the islands inhabitants, if they did they wouldn't keep all of the money from .Io domains. I don't know that potential security over having your own government is preferable. I'd say this is a great example of how British colonialism is still bad in the modern day.

[–] grue@lemmy.world 21 points 2 months ago

I’m curious, are places like Hawai’i seeing similar movements?

Yes, but I don't think it's very large right now. IIRC it might be growing, though, because of how high real estate prices are squeezing native Hawaiians out of land ownership (and the program to allow them to reclaim land is, unsurprisingly, failing).

[–] rand_alpha19@moist.catsweat.com 16 points 2 months ago (2 children)

Hawaii isn't its own country, it's a US state (and not a territory like Puerto Rico, for example), so it's been integrated into the American empire and independence isn't likely. I don't know if it could survive as an independent nation or if residents want to try though.

[–] _stranger_@lemmy.world 11 points 2 months ago (1 children)

It would very quickly become the de facto property of one or a cadre of billionaires, assuming complete economic and political separation from the U.S.

[–] theneverfox@pawb.social 7 points 2 months ago

No, no... That's how they got into statehood in the first place, you can't be taken over by billionaires if they already own everything. And there was nothing defacto about it, I'm pretty sure Dole kidnapped a princess and everything

[–] RebekahWSD@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago

I knew a native Hawaiian man, and I know at least one person who'd love if America fucked off and they got to be their own country again. Being said, unsure if would be possible for them. I know America won't let it fly.

[–] AnarchistArtificer@slrpnk.net 7 points 2 months ago

If you like video essays, Dr Fatima on YouTube has a brilliant video about colonialism in astronomy which covers some recent Hawaiian protest movements

[–] daniskarma@lemmy.dbzer0.com 30 points 2 months ago

It's not like a internet domain is a natural resource of any territory.

They are just made up by icann.

[–] bane_killgrind@slrpnk.net 21 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Oof interesting.

I own a patriotic .ca myself.

[–] JoeBigelow@lemmy.ca 30 points 2 months ago

But you don't post from a lemmy.ca handle! Bring out the boiling syrup

[–] h3mlocke@lemm.ee 17 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Wow, colonist.io (the catan clone) seems a bit ironic now

[–] nicknonya@lemmy.blahaj.zone 8 points 2 months ago

oof

[–] Cagi@lemmy.ca 16 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Is this true of .ai? Anguilla owns it and is a British territory.

[–] Skua@kbin.earth 29 points 2 months ago

The government of Anguilla collects those ones. The situation in the BIOT is beyond "just" that it got colonised. In the 60s, Britain kicked out the entire population to make room for naval infrastructure, so there is not an actual local government left there. Those people and their descendents mostly live in the UK and Mauritius now. They have been fighting in court to get their islands back, though without success yet. Mauritius also claims the islands, as they were part of British Mauritius up until Mauritian independence

[–] ByteOnBikes@slrpnk.net 13 points 2 months ago (1 children)

If you buy cute domains, be prepared that it can go to shit.

.AF was owned by the Taliban.

https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/12/24071036/queer-af-mastodon-taliban-shut-down-afghanistan

[–] uienia@lemmy.world 4 points 2 months ago

And more relevant to lemmy .ml

[–] anonymous111@lemmy.world 13 points 2 months ago

Map Men did a good video on this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cD4hxKkqR4E

Map Men. Map Men. Map Men Men Men Men

[–] grue@lemmy.world 12 points 2 months ago (2 children)

I'm not sure .io should even exist. Why would the Chagossians call themselves anything that would abbreviate to "IO" to begin with?

[–] itslilith@lemmy.blahaj.zone 7 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Because it's the British Indian Ocean Territory and the British colonizers called them that. Fuck them.

[–] grue@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago

Exactly my point: .io should never have existed because BIOT itself should never have existed.

[–] Skua@kbin.earth 5 points 2 months ago

.ch and .cg are already taken, so maybe .cs would fit? Still, with .io being as popular as it is, I think it'd be well worth keeping around if the proceeds from it could go towards the Chagossians

[–] Scribbd@feddit.nl 9 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

I am kind of puzzled that I am not finding that many .it domain names for tech.

EDIT: I looked it up. I forgot it is only available for EU entities. I am one, and got one of them registered for my personal projects a while back. Now I remember sending a document id with the registration to the registrar.

[–] Loki@discuss.tchncs.de 6 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I'll be honest, I'm aware that IT stands for information technology but... I don't think I would ever associate a website with .it with anything other than Italy. Maybe other people think the same and that's why it's less popular?

Or maybe it's because you can get even weirder ones now, like .tech, .online, .art etc.

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[–] Fredthefishlord@lemmy.blahaj.zone 9 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Io games still exist. Stuff like gats.io, diep.io, or evades.io still have small but loyal player bases

[–] littlecolt@lemm.ee 8 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Fun fact: I used to work as a fraud analyst for aajor telecom company. British Indian Ocean territory islands were extremely high fraud destinations for telecom fraud. I always assumed the people there were basically making ends meet through fraud. (Usually hacking corporate PBX systems and directing phone traffic to premium rate service lines there) But I think it's more likely that the phone companies there aren't so much committing the fraud, but facilitate it with their PRS lines where they surely keep some of the revenue generated.

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