.KIWI Sunrise Commences With NZ Rugby League Kicking Off Early
The Sunrise period for .kiwi domains has opened, but don’t expect a rush of registrants given to take advantage of the Sunrise period one has to have registered their trademark in the Trademark Clearinghouse.
The Sunrise period ends on 17 March. Domains with only one application will be immediately allocated the domain, but where there is more than applicant, an auction will take place. And in mid-March the public will be able to register .kiwi domains.
One organisation registering a .kiwi domain name during Sunrise is the New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL). The NZRL have been proactive about registering their trademark with the TMCH, leaving them free to register a .kiwi domain name during Sunrise.
For more information, see the news release below:
Trademark holders have a month to get first dibs on .kiwi domain names
After more than two years of planning, Dot Kiwi Ltd. (Dot Kiwi) has opened up its exclusive registration period for trademark holders, known as the Sunrise period, today.
Trademark holders have until March 17 to secure their trademark as a .kiwi domain name. Following this date Dot Kiwi will review the applications, and for domain names with only one valid applicant Dot Kiwi will immediately register the domain name. If there are multiple trademark holding applicants for the same domain name, all parties will be invited to bid for the domain name.
.kiwi is one of the hundreds of new domain names, known as generic top level domain names (gTLDs), launching online. In mid-March .kiwi will become one of the first in the world to officially launch to the public, meaning all New Zealanders will be able to register .kiwi domain names and immediately activate them.
Tim Johnson, CEO of Dot Kiwi, says individuals and businesses are getting excited to activate .kiwi domain names in the coming months and the Sunrise period is designed specifically to protect the rights of trademark holders.
“We know New Zealand businesses around the globe have been waiting to purchase .kiwi domain names, which means in some instances more than one trademark holder might exist for a certain name. The Sunrise period gives everyone a level playing field to make sure they can get the domain names they want,” says Johnson.
To qualify for the Sunrise period, companies need to register their trademark with the Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH), an international entity created by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to protect the rights of trademark holders during and after the launch of new domain names such as .kiwi.
One organisation registering a .kiwi domain name during Sunrise is the New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL). The NZRL have been proactive about registering their trademark with the TMCH, leaving them free to register a .kiwi domain name during Sunrise.
Sarah Lewis, General Manager – Commercial of the New Zealand Rugby League, says “A .kiwi domain names is a great fit for our organisation. It helps us express who we are as an organisation and it connects to our national identity. It says much more about our organisation than our existing domain names.
“We’re in the process of developing our strategy for how we’re going to make the most out of the .kiwi domain name, but the first step for us was taking advantage of the Sunrise period,” says Lewis.
Robert Rolls, Commercial and Finance Director of Digiweb, welcomes the introduction of further choice for businesses and consumers in New Zealand and globally with the launch of this exciting new domain name.
“The Sunrise period is a critical phase for trademark owners to head off any potential cybersquatting risk when .kiwi domains become more widely available during the General Availability phase,” says Rolls.
For trademark holders wanting to take advantage of the Sunrise period they should visit https://dot-kiwi.com/sunrise or www.trademark-clearinghouse.com.
Information for trademark holders:
1. All trademark holder have until the 17th of March 2014 to register their trademark as a .kiwi domain name before sales to the general public begin
2. In order to register before the general public can, trademark holders need to register their trademark with the Trademark Clearinghouse
3. Visit www.dot-kiwi.com/sunrise to find out how to register with the Trademark Clearinghouse – it’s quick and easy
4. For domain names with only one applicant, after the 17th of March 2014 Dot Kiwi will immediately register the domain name
5. If there are multiple trademark holding applicants for the same domain name, all parties will be invited to bid for it after the 17th of March 2014.
About the Trademark Clearinghouse:
The Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH) is a centralised database of verified trademarks created to protect intellectual property rights during, and after the launch, of new generic Top Level Domains (gTLDs) to the global marketplace. To register a trademark with the TMCH trademark holders should visit https://dot-kiwi.com/sunrise or www.trademark-clearinghouse.com.
About Dot Kiwi:
Dot Kiwi will bring a completely new option to the market for customers wishing to be associated with New Zealand on the Internet, or via their email address. The .kiwi domain will offer New Zealand organisations and individuals greater choice, branding creativity and the opportunity to differentiate themselves from competitors, providing them an exciting way of proclaiming their identity online
Dot Kiwi is the brainchild of a group of ex-pat New Zealanders living in Vancouver, Canada and is a registered New Zealand company, led by seven highly experienced and reputable New Zealand-born directors, together with one Canadian with specialist ICT experience.
More information about Dot Kiwi can be found at www.dot-kiwi.com or via email to
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More information about the ICANN gTLD programme can be found at its website: newgtlds.icann.org/en/.
About Digiweb Group:
Digiweb is a leading provider of Cloud hosting, Domain Name Services and e-Commerce Payment services across New Zealand, Australia and wider Australasia via www.digiweb.co.nz and www.discountdomains.co.nz. For more information please refer to www.digiweb.co.nz/company-overview.
