Hostway News & Events

Hostway urges professionals to go .Pro - Registration rules relaxed for .Pro domain name

London, 8th September, 2008: Hostway is encouraging individuals and companies to register for the .Pro domain name as the registry effectively relaunches itself today.

Following ICANN’s announcement regarding the relaxation of regulations around registering for the .Pro domain name, all professional individuals and companies can now register for a second-level .Pro domain name (e.g. domain.pro). Previously, the domain name was limited to four groups of professionals and strict checking procedures were in place. The domain name is now open to all professional groups and categories, from accountants to zoologists.

“When the domain name was launched in 2004, it was limited to the medical, legal, accounting and engineering professions,” said Thomas Herbert, product manager, Hostway. “The companies or individuals had to be licensed in the United States, Canada, Germany or the United Kingdom and rigorous checks were required to ensure that professionals were properly accredited. Furthermore, these groups could only register a Second Level name (mydomain.pro) once they had already successfully registered a Third Level name (e.g mydomain.law.pro for certified Lawyers, or mydomain.med.pro for Doctors and Physicians). A lot of that has changed now - all professionals are now eligible for a standard second level .Pro name.”

The .Pro domain name allows professionals to distinguish their website or online identity from any other kind of domain name, and offers an interesting alternative to the now rather stock .com and .co.uk names. “.Pro still feels untapped as an address I believe, and remains a fresh, unique proposition for professionals looking to stand out from the crowd” added Mr Herbert.

The .Pro live registration opens today - the 8th September, and competition is likely to increase over the next few weeks for the most popular names. Registrants order .Pro names in the same way as any other domain, but they must still self-certify their eligibility by supplying their professional information within 44 days of placing their orders. A full FAQ is available on the Hostway site.

Another barrier to .Pro adoption has also been lifted - and that is the price of a .Pro name. Previously over sixty pounds per year, Hostway is now offering discounted .Pro registrations at £11.95+VAT for the first year, and £19.95+VAT for any additional years thereafter - making it far more financially viable for most people. The special promotional pricing applies domains registered between September 8th 2008 and January 1st, 2010.

Further information can be found on Hostway’s website at: http://www.hostway.co.uk/dotpro

About Hostway Corporation

Hostway (Worldwide)
Founded in 1998, Hostway Corporation (www.hostway.co.uk) is one of the three largest web hosting companies in the world with a direct presence in 11 countries, 15 worldwide operation centres, and more than 700 employees. Serving customers both small and large, Hostway combines best of breed hosting infrastructure with innovative online tools that help customers broaden their reach and grow their businesses online. Hostway offers a wide range of managed hosting services ranging from Windows and Linux based shared hosting plans, to complete dedicated server and Enterprise managed solutions to now over 600,000 customers worldwide.

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