Starting today businesses and individuals in the UK will be able to register a new national web address ‘.uk’ and drop their existing ‘.co.uk’ or ‘.com’ suffix in favour of a shorter and snappier domain name.
The latest move is described by many as one of the biggest shake-ups in the internet in 30 years. The entire process along with the transition is being overseen by private yet not-for-profit organisation Nominet.
‘The new ‘.uk’ is for people who want a short, memorable domain with a popular and trusted ending. We know this combination appeals to our tech-savvy, digitally-engaged population”, said Nominet’s chief operating officer, Eleanor Bradley.
Nominet and affiliated registrars have already started notifying existing customers with a ‘.co.uk’ domain of their chance to adopt a ‘.uk’ domain. Nominet will reserve all ‘.uk’ domain names, which already have a ‘.co.uk’ counterparts, for the next five years offering registrants the chance to adopt the new domain and to keep cyber squatters at bay.
Further, Nominet is also advertising this new development through world’s largest sign that reads “welcometothe.uk” near the main runway at London Heathrow. The sign is visible from as high as 35,000 feet.
Individuals and businesses can sign up for new ‘.uk’ domains through any of the domain name registrars. The price for a single domain is as low as £5 for two years; however, some domain registrars could have set a higher retail price.
