Availability
The dotMobi bundle of keywords and Chinese-language .mobi domains will be available in a special sunrise period beginning at 4 a.m. UTC (8 am EST) on October 29, 2009, and will finish at 4 a.m. UTC on November 28, 2009 for trademarks registered in China, Taiwan, Hongkong and Macau. Immediately after on November 28, 2009, general registration will commence, and the keyword / Chinese-language .mobi domain bundle will be available at standard prices.
Announcement
dotMobi, the company behind the .mobi top-level Internet domain, today announced the availability of its one-of-a-kind mobile keyword and .mobi domain bundle for Chinese brands and businesses.
Currently, more than 50% of China's 1.3 billion citizens are estimated to be mobile subscribers- a figure that will quickly grow with the advent of 3G networks, which are just now arriving in China. And as with other countries, 3G mobile network speeds will drive the growth of mobile Web use. dotMobi's unique mobile keyword and .mobi domain bundle is designed to meet the needs of businesses in that burgeoning mobile Web environment.
Trey Harvin, CEO of dotMobi, said, "The packaging of mobile keywords and .mobi domains is a global first. This gives Chinese site owners the flexibility of using the .mobi domain to help ensure successful discovery by search engines, while using both the .mobi domain and matching keyword in advertising efforts."
Keywords -- memorable words that a user can type into a mobile phone instead of a number-- are very popular in China. And specific to the Chinese market, dotMobi will offer Web addresses in Chinese characters. These addresses in non-standard language characters are known as Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs). The use of Chinese-character IDNs will allow Chinese-language mobile Web sites to be found more easily by search engines. According to Analysys International, more than 270 million Web searches were performed on mobile phones in China in the second quarter of 2009--double the figure from a year earlier, which highlights the importance of search for the Chinese mobile Web.
dotMobi, the company behind .mobi -- the first and only Internet
address designed specifically for mobile phones -- announced that it is making
approximately 650 city names available to city governments.
Until today, dotMobi has kept these names on reserve to ensure that they
would be available for cities to develop relevant content for locals and for
tourists. But with more than 600,000 names registered in .mobi, the registry
has decided to make 650 city names available to organizations with the backing
of city governments.
According to the Dotmobi registry: "dotMobi gives consumers low-cost access
to information they need, where and how they need it. Cities will be able
to use their .mobi sites to provide important city-related information to
local citizens. These sites will also be able to provide compelling local
information for visitors and help increase local tourist dollars."
The first city to trial the process was Helsinki, Finland. Helsinki's investment
promotion agency, Greater Helsinki Promotion, created Helsinki.mobi
and is also responsible for its continued development and marketing.
Ismo Rantala of Greater Helsinki Promotion said, "Helsinki.mobi has driven
traffic and recognition to Helsinki. We are using Helsinki.mobi both as a
service for visitors to Helsinki as well as a platform for mobile creativity
for our residents and businesses."
Micah Gland, also of Greater Helsinki Promotion, said, "The launch of Helsinki.mobi
was held in conjunction with the 52nd edition of the Eurovision Song Contest
in May 2007. Being able to promote a site like Helsinki.mobi while thousands
of visitors were in the city proved to be a good way to encourage use of the
site and was reflected in the strong number of 'hits' that Helsinki.mobi received.
Even better, the number of visitors to the site has remained steady since
then."
City names are being made available for local governments or their designees
for an initial period of two years with provisions for renewing the names.
A .mobi site can provide an ideal forum to share local news, business updates
and civic information plus culture and events listings with an increasingly
active resident population. It can also provide a gateway for visitors to
access local services, shopping, attractions, transportation and other valuable
resources.
To apply, qualified entities submit a short proposal that discusses how
the planned domain use provides the mobile community with new features, services
and local content. The proposal must also address marketing and promotion
plans.
Cities commit to putting live content behind the name within 60 days of
their being awarded their domain and agree that content will compliant with
dotMobi standards, as based on a 5/5 score on the http://ready.mobi report,
to ensure a good user experience. Expected marketing -- such as launch events,
public relations and local marketing efforts -- are outlined in the application
process documentation at city.mobi
application process
dotMobi will evaluate all proposals, and successful applicants will enter
into a contract with dotMobi. The application process opens August 20, 2007,
and continues indefinitely.
The full list of available .mobi city name domains plus proposal process
information for review at List
of available city.mobi names.
