My husband Jerry and I had the pleasure of speaking with Lori Anne Wardi, Director of Marketing, and Juan Diego Calle, CEO of .CO Internet. It appears there are exciting new opportunities facing the domaining community. Many of us have attended conferences and read pointers for the industry stressing the importance of development only to hear frustration from individuals who felt they entered the industry just a little too late to get a “gem” in the form of a generic domain.

“.CO Internet S.A.S. (www.COinternet.co), a new company formed by Arcelandia S.A., a wholly-owned Columbian company, and the U.S. company Neustar, Inc., launched the .CO domain name extension. .CO offers enterprises and individuals a global, recognizable, and credible option in branding their Internet presence,” according to a recent press release. The organization is now accepting applications for .CO domains from eligible trademark holders through their “global Sunrise period” and will continue to accept them until June 10, 2010.

It appears the idea is catching on. The .CO domain extension has recently been publicized on forbes.com. Lori Anne also stated they have started receiving applications from entrepreneurs, small business owners and Fortune 500 companies who see the potential of owning the .CO extension.

According to a recent press release, the following describes the specifics of how an individual who wants to get involved in this ground floor opportunity can do so:

“A multi-phase Launch Plan will protect the rights of trademark holders and ensure the stable and orderly distribution of .CO domain names.

• A global Sunrise will take place from April 26 through June 10, allowing eligible trademark holders the right to apply for the .CO domain names corresponding to their marks before registration is open to the general public.
• Landrush will occur from June 21 through July 13, and will be open to anyone interested in registering certain high priority domain names.
• General availability will begin on July 20, opening the .CO domain for registrations on a first-come, first-served basis around the world.”

The .CO Founders Program

Starting March 9, 2010, early adopters can gain a true first mover advantage by applying to be included in the .CO Founders Program, an initiative designed to help qualified “first movers” to proactively develop and maintain domains with the .CO extension prior to the public launch in July. The .CO Founders Program is open to all interested applicants from individuals to businesses and big brands. Applicants must plan to develop names; and for those who already have ownership of a .COM domain, they want to see a unique twist for how you plan to use the .CO extension as the global presence that it was intended. Individuals are encouraged to have a business plan that will display what they are planning to do with the name they are applying for.

“The .CO Founders Program provides an excellent opportunity for early adopters to secure short and memorable domain names and truly help shape the .CO name space,” said Juan Diego Calle, CEO of .CO Internet. “Participants in the program will benefit by potentially being featured in an aggressive .CO Internet advertising and marketing program; likewise they will be expected to actively promote their domain to benefit the broader .COmmunity,” added Calle.” Another great part of this program is that the registration is waived for a two year period so that marketing dollars can be put directly into building a pristine site on the prime real estate of your choice. The application period is open until June 15, 2010 at which time the “.CO Founder’s Program” will conclude.

For more information on this exciting new opportunity please contact Lori Anne Wardi directly at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit www.cointernet.co.