The Ethereum Name Service (ENS) allows users to register .eth domain names, which can be used natively in some browsers and all Ethereum wallets. It provides a solution to long crypto addresses with a human-friendly format, analogous to DNS domain names that point to IP addresses. There are now 1.1 million registered domains on ENS.

Nick Johnson, Lead Developer of ENS, was last on the show 5 years ago when ENS had just been created. We had him back on to give us an update on how the project had evolved and to chat about the kinds of content ENS domains point to, the ENS token airdrop, the governance of the platform, and the road ahead, particularly with respect to scaling solutions and spiralling Ethereum gas costs.

Topics covered in this episode:

• What is Domain Name Service (DNS)?
• How do you register a top level domain?
• The relevance of ICANN (The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers)
• The kinds of content ENS domains point to and some use cases
• The fees associated with .eth domains
• The ENS token airdrop
• Governance - how the process of using delegates worked
• The kinds of decisions delegates have made so far
• Trading ENS tokens
• Nick's views on the major challenges facing the ethereum ecosystem today

Episode links:

• Episode 183 - ENS – A Global Naming System for Ethereum
• ICANN
• ENS
• ENS Governance
• ENS on Twitter
• Nick on Twitter

Sponsors:

• ParaSwap: ParaSwap aggregates all major DEXs and makes sure you beat the market price at every single swap and with the lowest slippage - paraswap.io/epicenter
• Chorus One: Chorus One runs validators on cutting edge Proof of Stake networks such as Cosmos, Solana, Celo, Polkadot and Oasis. - https://epicenter.rocks/chorusone

This episode is hosted by Friederike Ernst. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/445