Nominet flies high with .uk launch

British domain name registry Nominet will begin selling shorter .uk addresses from tomorrow, June 10.

The organisation offers domains such as “example.co.uk” and “example.org.uk”, but will sell names directly under the top-level .uk domain. Under the new system, for example, Facebook could register “Facebook.uk”.

To mark the launch, TV presenter Stephen Fry has bought the first .uk domain, while a 10,000 square feet sign at Heathrow airport with the message “welcometothe.uk” will be unveiled.

Nominet, which claimed 75 percent of British internet users prefer sites ending in .uk when searching or buying online, said businesses can take advantage of a more succinct suffix like .de in Germany and .fr in France.

Eleanor Bradley, chief operating officer of Nominet, said: “The new .uk is for people who want a short, memorable domain with the popular and trusted .uk ending. We know this combination appeals to our tech-savvy, digitally-engaged population.

“The UK is the world's most internet-based major economy and it's certainly one of the most active and fast-changing too—67 percent of our current registrations are less than five years old,” she added.

“We can't wait to deliver this addition to the UK namespace and continue to build its contribution to the UK’s digital economy.”

There are more than 10 million existing Nominet customers, all of whom will be given five years to decide whether to freely register an equivalent .uk address. They can use the new domain either in addition to or instead of their current address.

The registry will charge an annual wholesale price of £3.50 ($5.88) for single-year .uk registrations and £2.50 ($4.20) for multi-year registrations. Both prices match current fees for a current .co.uk domain.

A blog post on the topic from Marques is available here.