Nominet releases planning for launch 1 and 2 character .uk names

A while ago we already posted an article about the fact that Nominet (.uk registry) was going to release 1 and 2 character .uk names. Now they have given some more information about this release. The lauch of those domain names will happen in several phases.

The release will start with a ‘Registered Right Sunrise’. This sunrise will begin on December 1st 2010 and will end on January 17th 2011. During this sunrise period owners of a registered trade mark can file an application to register a domain name. Attention: You need to meet the following conditions:

• the domain name you wish to register needs to match your registered trade mark exactly
• your registered trademark needs to be valid in the UK
• your registered trade mark needed to be active before January 1st 2008
• you need to provide evidence of doing business in the UK before January 1st 2008 using this registered trade mark

Only if you meet those 4 conditions, you will be able to file an application for a domain name during this sunrise period. If 2 or more persons apply for the same name and those applications are considered as valid than the domain name will be sold during an auction at the highest bidder. Only people who filed a valid application can participated in the auction.

This sunrise will be followed by an ‘Unregistered Rigths Sunrise’. This period will start during 2011, an exact date isn’t yet known. During this period both owners of a registered trade mark who missed the deadline of the previous sunrise and owners of ‘other rights’ (for instance a company name,…) can file an application to register a domain name. You still need to meet the following conditions:

• the domain name you wish to register needs to match your registered trade mark or ‘other right’ exactly
• your registered trademark or ‘other right’ needs to be valid in the UK
• your registered trade mark or ‘other right’ needed to be active before January 1st 2008
• you need to provide evidence of doing business in the UK before January 1st 2008 using this registered trade mark or ‘other right’

Both those sunrise phases will be followed by a landrush in the course of 2011. During this landrush everyone who wishes to do so can register a 1 or 2 character .uk name which hasn’t yet been registered during one of the previous sunrise periods.

At the moment, bNamed.net accepts pre-registrations for the first sunrise period.