Edmon Chung, CEO of DotAsia Organisation Ltd. Edmond Tang

If all top-level domain (TLD) names were created equal, surely none has surpassed ".com" in popularity. We add ".com" without thinking when typing a hyperlink, not realizing it's wrong until an unrelated web page popped up. Non-commercial entities are trying to register a ".com" address, too, even though ".com" stands for "company". ".com" has become so representative to the Internet that we say "dotcom bubble", instead of "IT bubble". Still, ".com" is just one constituent of the Internet address system when stripped to the core.

"Domain names are very interesting things. People take it for granted. When you type in 'www.something.com', you expect to go where you think you're going," said Edmon Chung, CEO of DotAsia Organisation Ltd.

The domain name system has been invented, so Internet users don't have to memorize the numeric IP addresses of websites. Rather than "203.186.129.11", people can input the much more meaningful "www.yahoo.com".

The last part of a domain name is known as a TLD name, or a first-level domain name. There are two kinds of TLDs: the generic TLDs and the country code TLDs. Like ".edu" or ".gov", ".com" comes under the generic category. The generic TLDs have at least three characters, while the country code TLDs, such as ".cn" for China and ".hk" for Hong Kong, are of two characters. So far, there are about 250 country code TLDs and 20 generic TLDs.

".asia" is the newest addition to the generic TLDs and the only one based in Asia, said Chung. DotAsia Organisation, a non-profit company incorporated in Hong Kong, is its registry operator.

Cyber storefronts

The introduction of ".asia" is not just a recognition of Asia's surging power in global economic, political and cultural network, there is a genuine market need for a common online identity, said Chung.

Currently, Internet users in the Asia Pacific region have the option of using a generic TLD or a country code TLD. While the country code TLDs are intended for local use, the generic TLDs have been dominated by US and European individuals and businesses. According to VeriSign Global Registry Services, merely 11 percent of registrants of ".com" and ".net" - the two largest generic TLDs - hail from Asia.

For the general public, ".asia" is a way to navigate the Asia-related websites more easily. "Today's Internet is very much about relevance. Finding relevant information has become a main challenge for the users," Chung said.

The traditional way to go to Nike's Asian website, for instance, will be keying in "www.nike.com" and clicking through several links until the right webpage comes up. With ".asia", web surfers could simply type "www.nike.asia".

".asia" presents a golden branding opportunity. For instance, Scotch whisky brand Johnny Walker has booked the "keepwalking.asia" domain name for its classic "keep walking" promotion campaign, Chung said.

It will also benefit small and medium enterprises wanting to expand to the Asian market, whether they are located in or outside the region. "'.asia' provides an address, a platform to introduce their business to the whole of Asia online," Chung said.

Investing in domain names is like investing in cyber real estate. Domain names are able to create natural traffic since Internet users often type in a domain name in their web browser rather than doing a search through search engines. "In the physical world, you have multiple outlets to draw people to your store. In the Internet world, you have the domain names. Each domain name is like a retail storefront that attracts visitors," Chung said.

"Often people make the mistake of thinking 'one website, one domain'. I think we're really beyond that," he said.

A website could have many domain names, each acting a passageway to the main website and increasing footprint. "That's the real estate future for the Internet," Chung said.

The best program

The discussion of establishing a TLD for Asia started in 2000. Unlike ".eu", the regional TLD actively promoted by the European Union, adding ".asia" is a "bottom-up, industry-led" initiative, said Chung.

"DotAsia is like a consortium of country code TLD organizations," he said. Twenty-four country code TLD registry operators have participated in the creation of ".asia". The operators for ".cn" (for China), ".jp" (for Japan) and ".kr" (for South Korean) are on the company board.

Singapore, Macao and Kuala Lumpur have been considered as the base for ".asia" registry but Hong Kong eventually wins for its infrastructure, legal framework, free information flow and political neutrality.

DotAsia spent one year in preparing for the launch, talking with governments, trademark or intellectual property rights (IPR) owners and registered businesses. These are offered the priority to register domain names in the so-called Sunrise Period, which started in October last year and closed on January 31. Over 30,000 domain applications were received during the period.

Sunrise was followed by Landrush from February 20 to March 12, when everyone can file applications. Different from conventional open registration that is first-come-first-served, the Landrush of ".asia" treats all applications during the period as received at the same time. If there are more than one applications, the domain name goes under the hammer.

The first-come-first-served process tends to be tension-ridden, since all try to grab the desired domain names the first second the registration begins, explained Chung.

There's no need to rush with DotAsia's Landrush process. And the fear that the auction would cause sky-high prices turned out to be "not completely true," Chung said.

The biggest concern of trademark and IPR owners is infringement. "Sometimes they don't want to use a domain name... They grab it and put it aside," Chung said.

DotAsia's Landrush allows bidders to see who the other bidders are. Many back out once they see the rival bidder is a company planning to use the domain for legitimate business. "A lot of domain names go for US$10 or US$20," Chung said.

Benefiting from the experience of previous domain registrations, "we believe we have the best program so far," said Chung. Usually following the launch of a new TLD, there are thousands of disputes, DotAsia has none. In a survey by the IPR Management magazine, IPR practitioners rate the ".asia" registration as 100 percent satisfactory.

Chung, however, fervently hopes that ".asia" will one day become a part of a global brand. "Today you hear about yahoo.com, ebay.com or amazon.com. It's always .com... In future, a new brand will emerge: something.asia," he said. "That will be the day signifying the growing up of '.asia'."

(HK Edition 05/21/2008 page4)