A uniform resource locator (URL) may typically contain a large number of characters. A uses may want to shorten a URL for a number of reasons. For example, some web sites allow a user to post messages but limit the quantity of characters in the message. If the user wants to include a URL in the message, the URL may take up a considerable amount of space in the message.
A URL shortening service can shorten the URL into a shorter URL. The shorter URL typically contains a subset of characters contained in the original URL.