.BIZ One- and Two-Character Domain Names Approved by ICANN for Public Availability

Businesses Now Able to Submit Proposals or Bid at Auction to Secure Unique Web Addresses, Says Registry Operator NeuStar

June 2, 2009; 07:42 AM

STERLING, Va., June 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NeuStar, Inc. (NYSE: NSR) , a provider of market-leading and innovative services that enable trusted communication across networks, applications, and enterprises around the world, announced today that it has received approval from the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to make one- and two-character .BIZ domain names (such as www.i.biz, www.my.biz and www.3.biz) available to the public.

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In a phased rollout, NeuStar will now make these highly desirable domain names available to the global business community through a Request for Proposal (RFP) process, followed by an offering at auction of those domains not allocated to RFP respondents. Specifically, NeuStar will begin accepting RFP responses for the 36 one-character letters and numbers on June 1, 2009, with a response deadline of July 30, 2009. Once the one-character RFP round is concluded, NeuStar will proceed to an auction phase for those names and will begin accepting RFP responses for the two-character domains. Proceeds from the auction of the remaining one- and two-character domains will be used to further promote the .BIZ brand for the benefit of all .BIZ domain users.

"The decision by ICANN to approve NeuStar's one- and two-character marketing effort within the .BIZ domain represents an important opportunity for the .BIZ registry to generate greater brand recognition in today's TLD marketplace, particularly among the global business community," said Tim Switzer, NeuStar's vice president of Registry Services. "Through the initial RFP round, we will identify the candidates who present plans that best exemplify innovation, creativity, brand recognition and financial commitment."

"The hyper-competitive domain name sector is far from commoditized, with some bits of DNS real estate having far greater values than others," said Daniel Golding, vice president and research director at Tier1 Research. "It isn't very often that precious one- and two-letter domain names become available. Tier1 anticipates heavy demand among content providers, software-as-a-service vendors, entertainment and social networking companies, retailers, and numerous others."

According to VML, one of the top digital marketing agencies in the United States, the new .BIZ domain names present a unique opportunity for businesses to build their brands and open new revenue streams online.

"At VML, we increasingly employ innovative domain names as key ingredients for inspired digital marketing," said Jon Cook, president of VML. "Single and double-character .biz domains open entirely new avenues for our creative process and the digital programs we deliver for our clients, which include many of the top global brands."

The 1,332 one-and two-character domain names in .BIZ were reserved for use when the .BIZ top-level domain (TLD) was launched in 2001. Today, the .BIZ TLD has grown to over two million names and remains focused on small and mid-sized businesses around the world. For more information on NeuStar's planned release of one- and two-character .BIZ domain names - including the list of domains, timing and the Request for Proposals - please visit www.neustarregistry.biz/announcements/announcement.

About NeuStar

NeuStar (NYSE: NSR) provides market-leading and innovative services that enable trusted communication across networks, applications, and enterprises around the world. For more information, visit www.neustar.biz.

Source: www.prnewswire.com