The self-regulatory body that controls Australian web addresses, auDA, is determining how geographical place names, like bathurst.com.au, should be allocated.

Geographical place names are currently unavailable, with localities having to turn to other options like American domain names (such as bathurst.com).

But if a Bathurst submission is successful, every city, town and village in Australia will take ownership of its name.

Rodney Swansborough, a founding member of the One City - One Site (OCOS) Working Party, said the OCOS submission resulted from discussions with former Bathurst Chamber of Commerce president Ken Sharp.

The eight members of the group have put in 1000 hours over about 20 meetings in the last nine months.

Members include the NSW Deputy Surveyor General Paul Harcombe, and representatives from Charles Sturt University and Bathurst City Council.

Mr Swansorough said the OCOS proposal identified that each geographic location and its name belonged solely to that community.

"No one can take the community name away, or use it in a way that the community may not want," he said. "What concerns us is the real possibility that every Australian community's geographic place name will be simply handed out to anyone at all for use on the Internet."

To account for towns with the same name, OCOS proposes that each community's web address be based on its state. For example, www.bathurst.nsw.au, www.townsville.qld.au or www.alicesprings.nt.au

"This is a radical, revolutionary but sensible proposal," Mr Swansborough said.

Any community could be found by typing in its geographical place name, the State abbreviation and the abbreviation "au".