Organisations based in the capital could be using a .london domain name for their websites, it has been revealed.

Research is currently being carried out to assess the benefits of owning a top-level domain name. The research will also evaluate how much it will cost and what, if any, interest there is from commercial businesses.

Organisations will be able to access these domains from January, this follows the Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers allowing less controlled name construction.

At present only 22 domain name suffixes exist, including .com and .gov, along with approximately 200 country codes, for example .co.uk. This amount could soon be increasing dramatically when the new – less stringent – rules begin in January.

London has always been a city that leads with new ideas, and as the pioneering capital applies for the .london domain – it proves that it is once again leading the future of digital innovation.

Profits made from organisations that buy the domain will be put back into promotion of the city.

The primary cost is likely to be considerable, as much as £260,000 for the application process for a ten-year license.

It has been reported that Scotland has also applied for registration of a .scot top-level domain.