[5] The development of the .app domain name began in 2012 after ICANN announced its "New gTLD Program".

[2] The program's goal is to expand the current variety of namespaces by an almost unlimited quantity of new entries.

On 25 February 2015 Google won the ICANN Auction of Last Resort for the .app gTLD, via their Charleston Road Registry Inc. company, paying US$25 million.

[7] The .app gTLD would allow users to easily recognize a Web site dedicated to an application or related product or service, which has benefits in terms of brandability.

"[8] This is accomplished by including the .app top-level domain on the HSTS preload list, making HTTPS required on all connections to .app websites.