---
title: What’s with the name LBRY?
category: LBRY 101
order: 4
---
The very first question of newcomers is often, “How do you pronounce it?” Answer: library.

“Is it an acronym?” No.

“Then why confuse people with the all-caps and no vowels?”

First and foremost, LBRY is an internet protocol, just like HTTP. Content on LBRY is served to users via “LBRY names,” which look like this: lbry://itsawonderfullife. Very similar to the URL you type into your internet browser. LBRY is not just our branded name, but the character string we’ve chosen to lead our URIs (Uniform Resource Identifier).

It also serves as a truncated form of “library,” which reflects our mission: every film, song, book, and app ever made – available anywhere. Our vision for LBRY is to create a massive media repository for the 21st century that is built on a decentralized network controlled by its users. LBRY is to a traditional library what Amazon is to a department store.

Is it an odd name? Perhaps. But we would kindly point to the success of brands like Hulu, Yahoo!, Etsy, Skype, Tumblr, and Zillow. In the end, a good company with a strong user base will be remembered regardless of its name. And a company with a brand as straightforward as Pets.com can still fail.

LBRY is working well as a brand so far. SEO is a top consideration for startup branding, and LBRY already dominates the search results for our brand name.
