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DotAfrica Internet Domain Popular With Trademark Owners

DotAfrica Internet Domain Popular With Trademark Owners

The new dotAfrica top-level internet domain appears to be very popular among trademark owners, as it has attracted just short of a thousand registrations during the initial registrations period, known as the sunrise phase.

The top-level domain has been through its sunrise phase, is now in its landrush phase, and will be available to the general public from July 4, but already dotAfrica is showing why it has been much-anticipated.

The heavy initial interest in the dotAfrica domain places it in the top 10 worldwide for the number of domain name reservations during the sunrise phase of a launch process, according to TechCentral.

DotAfrica recorded 981 domain registrations by trademark owners over the 60 days from April 4, with the ZA Central Registry, which administers the domain, revealing its place in the top 10.

The ZA Central Registry has monitored interest from intellectual property owners that submitted marks through the global Trade Mark Clearing House as well as the ZA Central Registry’s own Mark Validation System, as is normal practice with regards to registries.

“The long journey to delegate the rights to administer .africa to the ZACR has clearly created a tremendous amount of pent-up demand for Africa’s new home on the web,” ZA Central Registry CEO Lucky Masilela said, according to ITWebAfrica.

“All good things come to those who wait, Africans have certainly waited, and it’s been worth the wait,” he added.

DotAfrica internet domain in demand

During the sunrise period, brand and intellectual property owners across Africa were urged to apply for the dotAfrica domain names that matched their registered or validated intellectual property.

This is done to ensure the protection of priority rights before the public is able to register any available dotAfrica domains, with brands in particular interested in ensuring that their trademark is protected and in their own hands.

This enables individuals, brands and businesses to showcase their brands while establishing a home for Africa-specific products and services, according to Telecomspaper.

The dotAfrica initiative is fully endorsed by the African Union Commission (AUC) and has great support across the continent, with African governments, the business sector, civil society and the technical community all in favor of the new top-level domain.