India sees the launch of a new TLD this year. .IN.NET, the newest extension launched by The Directi Group will be open for general availability from 1st August 2013.
Ms. Neha Naik, Sr. Manager, Strategic Partnerships, .IN.NET discussed the new TLD and the impact it is going to have on the Indian domain market in a session titled “.IN.NET: The newest TLD to hit the Indian market” at WHD.India 2013.
Kicking things off with brief overview of the domain landscape in India, Ms. Neha mentioned how even after ranking 3rd in the number of Internet users around the globe (US and China being No. 1 & 2 respectively), India has an Internet penetration rate of just 11%.
The need for .IN.NET stems from the fact that 65% of search results by users looking for a .COM of their choice fail, said Ms. Neha. She also cited Wakefield research which showed that:
- 49% of the US domain users are not happy with the domains they have.
- 49% said they compromised on the domain name as they didn’t get one of their choice.
- 52% said that they’re willing to change their domain name, provided they’ve good alternatives available.
Also, catering to concerns of those who might be skeptical in adopting a third level TLD, she pointed out how many of the big organizations have successfully adopted third level domains; some of them being avon.uk.com, sketch.uk.com and wasabi.uk.com.
.IN.NET has launched an India specific PR campaign, which has major news papers of India running write-ups on .IN.NET and aggressive social media promotions as well. .IN.NET is also providing resellers with banners, emailers and other material they need to ensure proper exposure of the new TLD.
.IN.NET’s Landrush Period & TM Claims will begin from 17th June’13 and will be open till 30th July’13. Those who want to register short, generic and premium names in .IN.NET can do so during this period. Domain names will not be allocated on a first-come first-served system during this period. Those which receive multiple applications will proceed to an auction, with the highest bidder getting a hold of them.
.IN.NET will be open for general availability from 1st August 2013. The allocation after this will be done on a first come-first serve basis.
Ms. Neha cited availability, affordability and the unrestrictedness as three main reasons why organizations should go for .IN.NET for their businesses.
.IN.NET is a Directi initiative and has CentralNic operating as the registry back-end service. Registrars like BigRock, LogicBoxes and ResellerClub are already offering .IN.NET.
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