EuroDNS Blog

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LUXEMBOURG, Jan. 23, 2008 - EuroDNS (http://v2.eurodns.com) a leading .FR Registrar is delighted to see the .FR Registry (l'Association Française pour le Nommage Internet en Coopération reaching one million Domain Names registrations in the French country code top-level domain (ccTLD). BlogArtDeco.fr, the millionth domain was entered into the AFNIC database on January 11, 2008. AFNIC (http://www.afnic.fr/_en) is a nonprofit association that acts as Registry for the database of .FR domain names, used by organizations and people within the country of France. "This is a significant milestone for French e-commerce," said Frederick Schiwek, EVP International Business Development, "The fact that the millionth .Fr Domain Name is a generic term is also of particular interest: it shows that French Internet users get the importance of easy-to-remember domain names and that a name does not need to be a trademark to be useful." Since June 2006, when .FR was open for the very first time to individuals residing in France, Registrations by private persons have grown to represent 30 percent of total registrations. It is therefore no surprise that the 1 000,000,000 .FR was registered by a French young lady passionate about in-house design. Participating in several AFNIC Working Groups – including Legal and Marketing – to help promote the .FR image, EuroDNS is proud to be part of this ongoing evolution towards openness. "A survey carried out for AFINC found that 72 percent of respondents were more favorably inclined toward companies that advertised an Internet address bearing a .fr domain name," said Schiwek. "France is one of the largest countries within the European Union, so business entities and individuals have the potential to attract a substantial customer base or online community." As a registry, AFNIC does not sell domain names itself. Instead, Registrars such as EuroDNS are authorised to act as intermediaries and charge fees to eligible applicants that transfer or order domains. EuroDNS charges an annual fee of 18 euros for each domain name and facilitates registration and setup for no extra charge. Registrants interested to get a .FR domain must be either a company with a main place of business in France or a French resident aged 18 or over. Interested parties can find more information or sign up for .FR domains at http://v2.eurodns.com. About EuroDNS EuroDNS is a Domain name Registrar specialized in International Domain extensions. Based in Luxembourg with branch offices in Europe, the USA and Asia, EuroDNS serves a large variety of clients ranging from SMEs to some of the world’s largest Domain Investors and offers dedicated naming solutions to Trademark holders. By strongly participating in leading industry forums including ICANN and the International Trademark Association, EuroDNS seeks to promote e-Commerce and wider Internet adoption. www.eurodns.com Contact: Melanie Delannoy DCL Group 2, Rue Léon laval 3372 Leudelange, Luxembourg Phone: +352 261916312 mdelannoy@dclux.com

Auctions to watch: "iphone.asia", "levis.asia", "power.asia" and more!

Hong Kong, 25 January 2008 – DotAsia Organization is pleased to announce today the historical smooth completion of the first batch of domain auctions for the .Asia "Sunrise" (i.e. priority registration period intended for intellectual property rights owners). The auctions proved to be a massive success in contrast to previous chaotic rushes for domain names that leave brand owners frustrated. The average winning price for the first batch of contended auctions netted over US$1500.00 per domain, with high bids for domain names reaching beyond a few ten-thousand dollars, signifying great interest from companies to invest into the new .Asia cyberspace. A total of over 600 domain names received more than one application during the first phase of Sunrise (Sunrise 2a) which totaled around 15,000 applications. The remaining phases of the .Asia Sunrise is currently ongoing and is scheduled to close on January 31, 2008. This is the last chance for trademark owners around the world and registered companies in Asia to protect their names in .Asia before open public registrations ("Landrush") begin on February 20, 2008. Mr. Edmon Chung, CEO of DotAsia said, "This is the first time ever an auction system is being used to resolve contention of domain name applications during the startup of a global top level domain registry. Unlike in the past where companies have to cram and rush in a chaotic race for the domains they want, the auction process allows a more rational, fair and calm approach. Companies are showing a great interest and willingness to retain the domain name of their choice." Some of the highlights of the auction action in the first week include www.tyco.asia's bidding price which reached a surprising US$7600.00, whereas "extra.asia" closed at an equally surprising price of just US$10.00. Still ongoing auctions include "parliament.asia" with a current bid at US$5,200.00, and "next.asia" at US$1050.00. Other names "to watch" that will go into auction include well known brands such as "levis.asia" and "iphone.asia". A live auction ticker is located on DotAsia's website: www.registry.asia. "As anticipated, some of the really good names may go for a very small price, along with other surprises. The launch of .Asia truly opens up the chance for companies and domain investors alike to enter the rapidly growing Asia market." Chung added, "It is not too late to make your investment in the most prestigious cyber real estate in Asia, and the land of opportunities that await your exploitation seldom come much better than this."

About DotAsia Organisation: DotAsia Organisation (www.dotasia.org) is the Sponsoring Organisation and Registry Operator for the .Asia Sponsored Generic Top Level Domain. DotAsia is a not-for-profit, community-based organisation incorporated in Hong Kong. Asia has developed into a global force in the international commercial, political and cultural network. The .Asia domain aspires to embrace this dynamism in the Asia Century to become a nucleus, intersection and breeding ground for Internet activity and development in the region. To learn more about DotAsia, please visit: http://www.registry.asia.


Media Enquiries: For press enquiries, please contact Pavan Budhrani at +852.3741.0015 (pavan@registry.asia)

Did you know that you can even apply for generic terms now?
The so-called Sunrise 2B has started, which means that Trademarks applied for, on or before Dec 6, 2006 from around the world are now accepted. For example, if you created trademarks especially for the .eu Sunrise, you can use them now again, since the country in which the Trademark is registered does not matter.
And now the special is coming: Register your Mark in combination of a Generic Word describing your business, the DotAsia Registry allow this in their rules. So if you are in Realestate business and your Trademark is ABC you are allowed to register ABCRealesate.asia or ABC-Realestate.asia or RealestateABC.asia or what ever the registry accept... Even combination of 2 or more Marks is possible.
Also, if you operate a Registered Entitiy in Asia such as a company or an organization you are allowed to apply for the name as well, but the entity must be located somewhere in the asian Region.
If you trademarked your domain name with the Top Level Domain (ie EuroDNS.com) you are now allowed to register the name itself, omitting the TLD (eurodns.asia).
At EuroDNS and AsiaDNS we understand that protecting your brand and online identity is important. Please be aware that .asia TLD just started and the asia versions of your new domain name might still available for registration. If you want to learn more about .asia please follow this link to the information PDF or go directly to www.asiadns.com to register your .asia Domain. Information PDF:http://v2.eurodns.com/files/asiadns.pdf

Trademark holders who have not yet registered domains for the new .ASIA identity are risking the possibility of cybersquatting, advised Frederick Schiwek, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing at EuroDNS (http://v2.eurodns.com), parent company of AsiaDNS (http://www.asiadns.com). Cybersquatting is the practice of registering and using a domain name containing someone’s trade name or a similar-sounding name with the intent of selling it back to the owner of the trademark or brand name at an inflated price.

“Basically, a cybersquatter holds your domain name hostage, and you usually have to pay that person quite a significant sum of money,” said Schiwek. “Complainants have legal recourse in some cases, but that also means headaches as well as financial pain. This is why Trademark holders should act now and register while they benefit from the head-start given by Sunrise Periods: It is safer and more cost-effective to head off cybersquatters by going through the domain registration process.” .ASIA is the new top-level domain that allows for domain names encompassing the entire Asia/Pacific region, from Turkey to Japan. The next phase of the “Sunrise” (SR) early registration process, the SR2b, SR2c and SR3 periods, launched on November 13, 2007. “Asia represents 60 percent of the world population and 45 percent of Internet users,” said Schiwek. “So these new domains provide the opportunity to reach millions of people in booming economies.” Interested parties can visit AsiaDNS.com or the recently redesigned EuroDNS Web site to determine if their preferred domains are still available. Applying for Sunrise validation involves a nonrefundable fee of 90 euros, while the annual fee for a .asia domain is 18 euros. Through a partnership with the discount travel site Asia.com, EuroDNS/AsiaDNS will also provide successful applicants with .asia.com third-level domains at no extra cost until the landrush phase of the Sunrise registration. “Almost two years ago, we witnessed an enormous run on .eu domains when they became available, and the same thing is happening right now with .asia.com domains,” said Schiwek. “Many trademark holders have protected their brand and business names by taking advantage of the ‘Sunrise’ registration period for the new .ASIA identity to claim appropriate top-level domains, but other businesses may find their rightful domains in competitors’ hands if they don’t act fast.” Potential registrants can sign up for their domains at http://www.asiadns.com or http://v2.eurodns.com. More information on the Sunrise phases can be found at http://v2.eurodns.com/documents/ASIA-Registration-Rules