Nominet: First .Cymru and .Wales Website Go Live in Digital Milestone for Wales
The first .Cymru and .Wales website will go live today ,marking a historic event in Wales’ digital history.
You can read the announcement after the jump :
“Today, the first .cymru and .wales websites will go live when Wales’ First Minister and the National Assembly’s Presiding Officer officially switch over the first tranche of websites to their new internet domains, marking a historic day in Wales’ digital history.
Those wanting to express their Welsh identity online will be able to do so through two new .cymru and .wales domain names. One of the first to go live will be the National Assembly for Wales, who were amongst the first to declare their support for the new internet domains and today they will officially adopt their new assembly.wales and cynulliad.cymru web addresses.
Commenting on this historic event, Ieuan Evans MBE, Chair of Nominet’s Wales Advisory Group said, “Today heralds a new era for Wales in the digital world. The first group of websites going live today marks only the beginning of this new and innovative venture for Wales. In the next phase of the project, this opportunity will be extended to all businesses and individuals. We can’t wait to share these new domains with everyone in Wales.”
Joining the National Assembly in making the switch will be Media Wales, with their online outlets Wales Online and Daily Post switching over to the new domains, the Welsh Rugby Union, the Millennium Stadium, Golwg360, Bloc, Gwalia, Atlantic PLC, Orchard and Portmeirion. Welcoming the new domain names, Presiding Officer, Dame Rosemary Butler AM said “Brand recognition is essential for organisations and businesses to successfully promote their work and interests. A .wales /.cymru brand will be an enormous help to Welsh organisations as they strive to make their voice heard around the world.”
“This is an exciting and positive development for Wales. I am pleased that the National Assembly for Wales has taken a leading role in this initiative, by agreeing to be one of the ‘early adopters’ of the new domain names.”
“I encourage everyone who has an online presence in or about Wales to consider adopting the new .cymru / .wales, as part of their future.”
From November the window will open for all businesses trading in Wales to get their new domains ahead of wider availability for the public in March 2015. With over 8,000 new businesses set up in Wales annually, the new domain names provide the perfect opportunity for them to demonstrate their Welsh credentials online and show they’re proud to be part of Wales’ growing online community.
Baroness Rennie Fritchie, Chair of Nominet UK, the company behind .cymru and .wales, said: “After 25 years of the world wide web, Wales is making history by getting its own home online. We are proud to be part of the .cymru/.wales project, excited by the interest it’s generated, and look forward to seeing the Welsh community develop and grow online.””
Check out EuroDNS here to register your .Cymru domain name and .Wales domain name.
.NZ Launches Second Level Registrations On 30 September
From 13:00 New Zealand time on 30 September, second level registrations became available for the country’s ccTLD .nz.
The change means shorter, simpler, more representative names directly under .nz can now be registered – for example, anyname.nz. This is in addition to, for example, .co.nz, .org.nz, .maori.nz, etc.
For existing registrants, most will be able to get the shorter version of their name before anyone else and take advantage of a six-month period of time – called the Preferential Registration Eligibility (PRE) period – to register or reserve the shorter version.
Other .nz domain name holders may find their name is ‘conflicted’ – which means they may have the .co.nz version, while others may have .org.nz, .net.nz, or other versions. In cases like these, an online tool is available for those involved to lodge a preference for who might get the new, shorter version of the name.
The anyname.nz website is where .nz domain name holders can go to check their eligibility. Those with preferential eligibility can reserve for free for up to two years the shorter version of their name. Or, if their name is conflicted, use the conflicted names tool.
Holders of .nz domain name holders who aren’t interested should know that the change will have no effect on their existing .nz name and their name will continue to work as it always has.
Domain Name Commissioner Debbie Monahan says today’s change allowing registrations directly at the second level is a watershed day for the .nz domain name space and is the biggest change since the introduction of the competitive d Registry System in 2002.
“The introduction of this new type of .nz name means people can now opt for a more representative .nz option. This option will appeal to all sorts of people, from individuals to businesses, to anyone who wants to represent themselves online with .nz.
“The important thing is that anybody who already has a .nz domain name goes to anyname.nz to check out their options and, if they’ve got preferential eligibility or a conflicted name, to know that they can take action from 1pm today.”
For more information visit anyname.nz.
Melbourne Joins Cities With Own gTLD – Landrush Starts 1 October
The new gTLD for Australia’s second largest city, Melbourne, becomes available for businesses and brands in the state of Victoria to apply for from 10:00 Australian time on 1 October.
In addition, a number of iconic businesses have signed up to become ambassadors for the new gTLD. Some of these include the Flower Drum restaurant, the Melbourne Festival and Bank of Melbourne.
.melbourne ambassadors showcase businesses big and small that have recognised the opportunity presented by this digital innovation. They will serve as inspiration, and help get the word out, for the rest of the community to take advantage of this new marketing opportunity.
Melbourne joins cities and regions such as Berlin, Paris, London, Saarland, New York, Vienna and soon Sydney, among many others, to have their own gTLD.
To start, there will be a Landrush period for businesses and brands. The new gTLD offers opportunities for businesses, and the Bank of Melbourne’s Head of Brand & Marketing, Jac Phillips said the bank snapped up the chance to own bank.melbourne.
“Bank of Melbourne are proud to be one of the first in the city to get a .melbourne domain name. We are Melbourne’s local bank, with our call centre, our branches, our head office and of course our customers all here in Melbourne. Melbourne is our place of business, so the domain name is a natural fit.”
Another ambassador of a .melbourne web address is biketours.melbourne, a micro business operated by passionate Melburnian, Michelle Brown which offers sightseeing tours around the city.
Successful candidates who apply for a .melbourne domain name during Landrush will be notified between 9 and 12 November and will join Melbourne Festival and other first-to-market businesses to use a .melbourne domain. Melbourne Festival Executive Director, Katie McLeish said their new .melbourne web address would further emphasise the festival as a key event on the city’s calendar.
“Melbourne Festival is thrilled to be an ambassador of the .melbourne initiative. Each Festival brings an array of dance, theatre, music, visual arts and outdoor events from renowned and upcoming Australian and International companies to Melbourne. Our new online address, festival.melbourne, will help us to better promote the Festival and cement our place as the city’s leading performing arts event.”
Similarly, the Marriner Group’s General Manager Glenn McGuinness hoped their new web address would help better promote the many world-class theatre shows they attract to the city.
“As the custodian of prized heritage venues such as the Regent and Princess theatres, Marriner Group play host to many of the biggest shows of the entertainment world, like Once, The Lion King and Grease. There will be no better promotional tool to showcase theatre in Melbourne than our new theatre.melbourne web address.”
Other businesses to become ambassadors of a .melbourne web address include Eureka Skydeck, Destination Melbourne and the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant.
Following the landrush application period during October, .melbourne web addresses become available on a first-come first-served basis from 10:00am on Wednesday 12 November. There will be a premium for .melbourne domains, in part to deter cybersquatters. Prices are expected to start from approximately $65 depending on registrar and services provided.
Adrian Kinderis, CEO of ARI Registry Services – the Melbourne-based technology company managing .melbourne – said the milestone would mark one of the most significant technology infrastructure projects in the State.
“A .melbourne web address will allow Victorian businesses and individuals to show an online affiliation to the city and increase geographical relevance to their target audience. There is also potential for businesses to be rewarded with added search engine optimisation benefits.”
Sedo to Hold Premium Auction .JETZT Next Week
Sedo will be hosting next week the Premium .Jetzt auction. The auction starts October 9,2014 and will end seven days later, on October 16,2014.
The auction features 45 .jetzt domain names with different price ranges.
Some interesting domain names included in the auction are:
Immobilien.jetzt
Geschenke.jetzt
Auktion.jetzt
Bestellen.jetzt
Cash.jetzt
Chat.jetzt
Filme.jetzt
Gutschein.jetzt
Karriere.jetzt
Kaufen.jetzt
Reise.jetzt
Smartphones.jetzt
Sport.jetzt
Taxi.jetzt
You can see the entire inventory and place your bids here.
ICANN : ICG Considering Future Meeting Requests from Community
The IANA Stewardship Coordination Group has announced that it is currently in the process of scheduling side meetings at ICANN 51 with GAC and ALAC community representatives after receiving explicit requests from these communities.
In an effort to continue this broader community engagement, the ICG today announces that it will accept and consider meeting invitations from additional interested parties at both ICANN 51 and beyond. Review and approval will be on a case-by-case basis, subject to resources and consensus within the group. Requests should be sent in by email at
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All meetings will be public with transcripts and translations made available to the extent possible.
To follow ICG activities, visit www.icann.org/stewardship.
