.africa to market continent through technology
By Farai Diza
The .africa domain name is expected to be launched towards the end of this year, making it possible for businesses and other organisations to register domain names ending in .africa for the first time in internet history.
Donvay Wergierski, director of Werksmans attorneys said that the .africa domain was created by Africans for Africans and marked Africa’s strides in growth and development.
“It will present an opportunity to identify the African continent online for the first time. We expect many existing and new companies across the continent to take up the .africa domain to show to the world where they are from,” he explained.
The procedure to register the .africa domain is yet to be formally disclosed.
However, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is the coordinator of the launch of the new domain names.
“We expect the .africa domain to launch in two phases – first the sunrise phase and second the laundress phase,” Wergierski added.
During the Sunrise phase, trade mark owners have priority to register .africa domains incorporating their trade marks for a certain period of time. Trade mark owners will be required to validate their trade marks at the Trade Mark Clearing House (TMCH) as only trade mark owners with TMCH validation can take advantage of the Sunrise period.
It is only possible for the TMCH to only validate registered trademarks and therefore only proprietors of registered trademarks will have preference.
The Laundress phase will open thereafter and domains can be registered on a first come first serve basis. The .africa domain will be managed by Uniforum SA, trading as ZA Central Registry.
Internet access is particularly important in emerging economies as it helps bridge divides such as language, culture, religion and education across countries and continents.
By Farai Diza
The .africa domain name is expected to be launched towards the end of this year, making it possible for businesses and other organisations to register domain names ending in .africa for the first time in internet history.
Donvay Wergierski, director of Werksmans attorneys said that the .africa domain was created by Africans for Africans and marked Africa’s strides in growth and development.
“It will present an opportunity to identify the African continent online for the first time. We expect many existing and new companies across the continent to take up the .africa domain to show to the world where they are from,” he explained.
The procedure to register the .africa domain is yet to be formally disclosed.
However, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is the coordinator of the launch of the new domain names.
“We expect the .africa domain to launch in two phases – first the sunrise phase and second the laundress phase,” Wergierski added.
During the Sunrise phase, trade mark owners have priority to register .africa domains incorporating their trade marks for a certain period of time. Trade mark owners will be required to validate their trade marks at the Trade Mark Clearing House (TMCH) as only trade mark owners with TMCH validation can take advantage of the Sunrise period.
It is only possible for the TMCH to only validate registered trademarks and therefore only proprietors of registered trademarks will have preference.
The Laundress phase will open thereafter and domains can be registered on a first come first serve basis. The .africa domain will be managed by Uniforum SA, trading as ZA Central Registry.
Internet access is particularly important in emerging economies as it helps bridge divides such as language, culture, religion and education across countries and continents.
