Businesses, organizations, and individuals based in London may soon have another option for their online presence. Starting spring of 2014, they will have another domain suffix option aside from the ".co.uk" they are using at the moment as the International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has awarded the capital of UK the rights to own the ".london" suffix.
London will be among the first cities to have its own domain extension. Other major cities such as Paris, Berlin, and New York have also applied for their own suffixes. ICANN is trying to make the Internet more globally inclusive with new top-level domain names representing different regions and cultures. In October, it introduced domain extensions that use words found in Arabic and Chinese scripts.
"Adopting the .london suffix will enable organisations to more closely associate themselves with our great city's powerful global brand. This is also an excellent opportunity to expand London's digital presence, which in turn is set to generate funds to invest back into the city," said London mayor Boris Johnson in an interview with The Guardian.
"By acquiring a .london address businesses, museums, shops, theatres and galleries will receive a domain name that is easy to remember and instantly identifies them as being located in London. Local businesses are also expected to benefit from consumers looking for services from London-based providers helping to attract more customers," a statement by London & Partners said.
The city-specific domain suffix will be offered by Dot London Domains Limited operating under the umbrella of London & Partners, the promotional body of the city. According to reports, Carnaby Street, Selfridges along with tens of thousands of brands have already expressed interest in buying a ".london" domain.
"When we have talked to London businesses and organizations about this, they're extremely excited about the opportunities .london presents. We are already seeing huge interest - not just from London's most prestigious stores and visitor attractions, but also from local businesses and trades people," said London & Partners chief executive Gordon Innes.
London & Partners filed the application for the ".london" domain in 2012.
In the U.S., New York City was the first to get its own domain extension with ".nyc" introduced in June.
