TWO LETTER .ie internet domains, such as hp.ieor bt.ie, could be auctioned off to raise money for "internet good causes" according to the IE Domain Registry (IEDR), which manages the Irish internet address space.
National domain registries have long resisted issuing two-letter domains for fear of causing potential confusion with two-letter country domains such as .ie, .uk and .de.
David Curtin, chief executive of the IEDR, confirmed two-letter domains would shortly be introduced and said he “would like to have an auction for the popular domain names, to show people the value that is in them”.
However, Mr Curtin said the IEDR would consult representatives of the local industry before proceeding.
“We won’t do it if there is an industry consensus not to,” said Mr Curtin.
He said the funds could be used for projects such as its Optimise fund, which provides funding of up to €10,000 for small businesses to enhance their e-commerce facilities and was re-launched this week.
Introduced last year, 10 companies received €10,000 worth of consultation, training and e-commerce development support services and this year’s fund will have a similar value.
“That model seems to work better than giving a small business a cheque,” said Mr Curtin. “Even if they are well intentioned it invariably gets spent on the next bill that comes in the door, particularly in the current environment.”
The Optimise fund is open to Irish companies which are classified as a small business under the European Commission’s definition, which already have a website, and which are using an .ie internet address.
Irish businesses, particularly smaller ones, have been slow to embrace the benefits of ecommerce.
A Visa Europe survey carried out by iReach last May found that Irish shoppers spent almost €3 billion on ecommerce but Irish firms got just €356 million of this.
“With Optimise we are trying to help companies who have a website to get to the next stage,” said Mr Curtin said. “We want them to come in in the morning and there are orders in their in-box waiting for them.”
There are now almost 180,000 .ie domains registered, according to the most recent data from IEDR.
A total of 9,398 domains were registered during the first quarter of the year, up 12.2 per cent on the last quarter of 2011.
