London Announces Plans to Apply for dot London Web Domain

The City of London could soon have its own unique web addresses if a bid for the dot London domain is approved.

Londoners not content with the regular, old .co.uk web domain could have their own dot London web address if the city's official promotional agency, London & Partners, is successful in its application for an official London web domain. London & Partners just recently announced plans to apply for the dot London domain, but its not alone; New York, Paris, Sydney, Rome and Berlin have also expressed interest in a city-specific web address. The window for submitting such applications to ICANN is from January 12 to April 12, 2012, but consultations can take anywhere from nine to 20 months after that deadline has passed.

London & Partners last week said that it had just begun initial analysis, working with the Mayor of London to determine the benefits dot London could bring to the city; analyse operational, funding and revenue models; consult with London boroughs and city services, brands and commercial organisations regarding the uses of second-level dot London domains; and engage with community and potential customer groups.

"Ownership of the dot London domain could offer a tremendous opportunity to reinforce London’s position as a global centre for digital innovation, generate revenue and bring about new employment opportunities," said Kulveer Ranger, Digital Advisor to the Mayor commented. "There is great potential for engaging with Londoners and the Mayor is interested to understand better what people think this opportunity would mean to them, as well as the marketing opportunities and the business benefit for the capital as a whole."

Gordon Innes, CEO, London & Partners added that London has always been at the forefront of digital innovation and the city's interest in applying for this new top level domain is a demonstration of the its commitment to maintaining this reputation.

"We believe that owning the dot London gTLD will not only generate increased opportunities for the promotion of the capital, but will achieve benefits for businesses and organisations across the capital."