Corporate Backgrounder
Afilias Limited is headquartered
in Dublin, Ireland with U.S. headquarters near Philadelphia, PA and a
sales office in London, UK. Afilias is the registry for the new .INFO
domain, the first new unrestricted top-level domain (TLD) in over 17 years.
Afilias was formed in September of 2000 in recognition of the need for
increased competition in the domain name space at the registry level.
Afilias was the first of the seven new TLD operators selected by ICANN
in November of 2000 to launch a new registry system using a thick registry
model based on the new EPP standard.
As a registry-services provider, Afilias is also a partner of AusRegistry Pty. Ltd. in the creation and operation of the new registry for the .AU country code top-level domain (ccTLD). Afilias partnered with AusRegistry in the development of the winning proposal that secured the team the rights to operate the registry and is a participant in the creation of the overall infrastructure to manage the new registry.
About .INFO
Afilias' distinguishing product is .INFO - the first new and completely unrestricted TLD since .COM. .INFO is also the first truly global domain suffix. With an informational and educational feel, .INFO is the most intuitive place for Internet users to seek information. .INFO is also a popular alternative for international audiences that do not connect with the US-centric .COM legacy. Currently over 50% of .INFO's customer base is in Europe, with Germany alone accounting for 20% of global registrations. This is a sharp contrast to the current .COM market, where over 69% of registrations are from US companies.
Distinguishing Capabilities
- Global Representation - Afilias is a global company with operations in both Europe and North America through its Dublin, London and US offices, providing Afilias the infrastructure to roll out new TLDs on a worldwide basis.
- Industry Experience - Afilias was the first to launch one of the new seven TLDs chosen as part of ICANN's "proof of concept" for the expansion of the registry market. Its partnerships in other registry projects, such as the .AU ccTLD, in addition to its global representation, well positions Afilias as a leading registry-services company.
- Thick WHOIS - Afilias was the first to adopted a thick registry model based on the new Extensible Provisioning Protocol (EPP) to store the registration information for all .INFO domain names. This is fast becoming a world standard as new and old registries migrate to this standard to allow for more flexibility and security of data. With the thick registry, the centralization of data at the registry level ensures stability and consistency among all .INFO domain name registrations.
- Real-Time Resolution - Afilias' EPP based- thick registry model also surpasses the legacy systems by enabling .INFO registrations to resolve in near real-time. Currently in with the legacy RRP system used for .COM, .NET and .ORG, updates to WHOIS information can take from 24 hours to 7 days to propagate worldwide. With the .INFO registry, these changes can be updated worldwide in only 15 minutes to 1 hour - saving valuable time for those in need of keeping Web sites and other Internet data centers up to date around the globe.
Mission
Afilias' mission is to expand the Internet as a global resource that fosters communication, commerce, and community for the people of the world. Through the introduction of .INFO, Afilias will endeavor to transform the Internet into a truly global marketplace. Afilias is committed to enhancing the domain name system while maintaining the stability of the Internet.
Background
In November 2000, Afilias was awarded the right to operate the .INFO registry, following its application to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). On May 15, 2001 Afilias finalized its agreement with ICANN and began authorizing domain name registrars to register names in the .INFO domain. On June 27, 2001, the U.S. Department of Commerce, which oversees ICANN and the domain name system, authorized the entrance of the .INFO TLD into the root, enabling .INFO to become live. Afilias was the first of the seven newly authorized domain to launch, beginning registrations for .INFO with its Sunrise Period for trademark holders in July of 2001. Afilias then opened registration to the general public in September 2001, and by the end of October became the fastest growing TLD to date by reaching over half a million registrations in under two months.
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For more information about Afilias or .INFO, please visit the Afilias Web site at http://www.afilias.info
