The .asia Domain Hits Sunrise

Beginning today, companies and governments can register with the .asia suffix, which will go live next March.

As of today, you can begin to register the .asia domain.   Well, you can if you’re a government or a company with a trademark and you want to reserve a domain name during what’s known as the sunrise period for this new suffix. The rest of us will have to wait until February next year before we can register domains with the suffix.   The domain stretches farther than you might imagine, going all the way from Australia to the Middle East. It gained approval last year and should go live next March.   However, .asia comes with a twist. When the DotAsia Registry finds that a domain name is in demand, they will auction it off – no first come, first served here.   The now domain will be the second specific regional offering, following .eu, which opened for business last year. Others are expected to follow. But to begin, at least, .asia domains will use the Latin alphabet, although the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICAAN, is beginning a trial that will let names be written in other alphabets, including, Arabic, simplified Chinese and several more.