NEW YORK—Thousands of New York City residents have preregistered for .nyc domain names, just more than two weeks after the application period opened.
Preregistration runs from August 4 through October 3, and during this time only people and businesses with physical addresses inside the five boroughs are eligible to apply for a domain.
Mike McLaughlin, Senior Vice President of Domains at GoDaddy, the world’s largest domain registrar, said they had received thousands of preregistrations for .nyc addresses, but it was against company policy to release exact figures.
“From our standpoint, we are watching it very closely and we are very excited, because it’s so targeted for our small business owners—what better way to brand yourself,” he said.
Since February, when the new generic top-level domain program opened to the public, 1.9 million websites with the new extensions have been purchased from domain registrars, McLaughlin said, adding that .guru sold 68,000 addresses industry-wide.
.nyc
Preregistration for a .nyc domain costs around $30 for a regular application, or $70 for a Landrush one, but an application does not guarantee the domain will be awarded. If more than one party applies for a particular address via a Landrush application the domain will go to auction after Oct. 6.
An opening bid will be required from each applicant before the auction opens. Although the auction will be held within a specified time frame, it will be extended for five minutes at the end each time a new bid is received.
Preregistration simply means the domain registrar will attempt to process the domain for applicant as soon as possible on Oct. 8 when all NYC residents can register instantly online on a “first-come, first served basis.” The domains will be available for use immediately after purchase. Depending on the domain registrar used, a certain portion of the purchase price may be non-refundable.
Since the opening of preregistration, HelloDotNYC, one of the official domain registration services, has received more than 1400 applications.
Gerardo Aristizabal, managing director at HelloDotNYC, said the applications were evenly split between Landrush and regular pre-registration requests.
“We expect an important increase in the numbers as awareness rises, and as the early application phase approaches closure,” Aristizabal said.
On Oct. 6, Landrush applicants will find out if they were the only applicant and thus won their domain.
Small Businesses
Maria Torres-Springer, Commissioner of the New York City Department of Small Business Services encouraged NYC’s businesses to preregister to “own it.”
“A strong online presence is critical for success in today’s digital world, and the .nyc domain allows businesses in New York City to leverage New York City’s world class identity and let buyers from markets around the globe know that they call New York City home,” Torres-Springer said in an emailed statement.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) approved the city’s request for the .nyc top-level domain last July.
Other new generic top-level domain extensions include .wiki, .bid, .trade, .menu, .berlin, and .webcam. .london is also in its preregistration phase.
