(The Hosting News) –  Hostway today announced pre registration for the .co domain. With general availability for .co domain names starting on the 20th of July Hostway is urging businesses to pre-register to avoid the rush and protect their brand equity.

“The .co domain extension has until now been the country domain name for Colombia, but it is now being opened up to businesses and individuals across the globe, without restrictions. For businesses this creates an opportunity as .co is globally recognisable and credible, in a very similar way to .com has been. In fact, terms such as ‘company’ and ‘corporation’ are widely associated with .co, making it a natural domain name for many businesses,” said Thomas Herbert, product manager, Hostway.

Research carried out on behalf of .CO Internet S.A.S, the registry operators for .co top level domain name, showed that the .co domain is easy to remember, simple to use and easy to understand. The study of 600 past and prospective domain registrants, carried out by Penn, Schon and Berland, a global market research firm, showed that more than 75% of people associate .co with ‘company’, ‘corporation’, or other commercial endeavours.

“As ever when a new domain name comes out, companies need to carefully think about protecting their brand equity, otherwise they could find themselves falling foul to cybersquatters. Cybersquatting can cost brands thousands in lost sales, reputation and legal battles. They must ensure they get the right advice on how to effectively manage their domain portfolios to not only protect themselves but also to ensure that their web presence is optimised,” Herbert concluded.

Businesses and consumers can pre-register for their chosen .co domain names by visiting the following web page (http://www.hostway.co.uk/small-business/web-solutions/domain-names/dot-co.php). The cost of a .co name during the General Availability Pre-registration period is US$39.

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