Domains will be easier to register and open to people outside of Asia.
Currently, registrants need to provide a regional contact or ID (essentially, a contact in Asia) before a .Asia domain can be registered. That will change on July 15 when the Charter Eligibility Requirement Policies are updated.
The new policy will eliminate the need for the local presence check during the registration process, so it will be possible to register a .Asia domain without jumping through hoops.
Currently, many domain name registrars offer a free or low-cost proxy in Asia for .Asia registrants. But some registrars, including GoDaddy, follow stringent requirements for registrations.
There are over 200,000 registered .Asia domain names.
“…GoDaddy, follow stringent requirements…”
The current registration and auction transfer process for .Asia at GoDaddy is just horrible and doesn’t appear to follow the posted rules laid out by Dot.Asia. GoDaddy contact info forms force the Registrant address to be one of the Asia countries, for example. The Registrant contact info currently does not have to be one of the Asia countries. GoDaddy to date has just ignored my complaints about this and has offered no answer as to why. Anyone have an opinion as to why or can confirm this issue with GoDaddy? I hope this change will prompt GoDaddy to quickly fix their .Asia process flow.
Thanks, John.
As stated above, GoDaddy doesn’t offer a proxy service for .asia customers. However, we plan on supporting this change when it rolls out.
@Tommy Ho
A proxy service is for those with no Asia address available for the 4 contacts: Registrant, Administrative, Technical, Billing. I have both an Asia address and a USA address. GoDaddy forces me to use the Asia address for the Registrant contact info. This is not what the FAQ for dotAsia nor the policy says. Can you please confirm this and answer the question why does GoDaddy’s system force it? I would like my USA address to be the Registrant and my Asia address to be the Administrative or Technical contact for example. The Registrant is the legal owner while the Asia contact establishes nexus and accepts complaints at that location. It’s no different than incorporating in Delaware for example and hiring a registered agent there. I don’t need a proxy service. I need a Registrant contact info form that allows me to enter a USA address. GoDaddy should change their validation check to look at all four “Country” contact fields per the dotAsia policy. And offer a drop down selector to enable the moving of the CED as needed between the four contacts. If you are not familiar with this issue then I would like to ask that you go ahead and try to register a dotAsia domain name using a USA address as the Registrant. Later try to change the CED from say Technical to Registrant. I bet you can’t do it. Thanks for listening.
I’d say they are desperate to get volume. An extension like this with no real “place” is very exposed to the same declines ntlds face,
http://www.registrarstats.com/TLDHistoryChart.aspx?TLDName=ASIA
@snoopy
The “opening up” looks to be about “nexus” policy clarification and registrar logistics and is not about volume. I tried to re-read the policy a bit and I don’t think it’s even an opening up. If anyone wants to read the policy please comment. It looks like they are adding a checkbox saying “I can prove nexus…or…I’m working on it.” Verification upon request is still required.
“…By accepting the Registration Agreement and be subject to the CEDRP, the Registrant identifies that it is an entity that have “established, seeking or have nexus relationship and presence within the Sponsor Community…”
“Any request for information or documentary evidence must be submitted within the time period specified by the .ASIA Registry, which shall be no less than 7 calendar days.”
I see it as trying to make it easier for the likes of GoDaddy who can’t seem to handle a simple 5th contact info field. Ten years later I can’t switch the CED contact between Registrant, Administrator, or Technical for example. A simple drop down selector would work.
“…very exposed to the same declines ntlds face…” I think this is the incorrect way to think about dotAsia and unfortunately many Eastern domain consultants out there keep bashing it. XYZ is meaningless to me yet has volume. Asia means something to me. There are good examples of dotAsia usage out there now and I hope to see more come out soon.
Here’s one example, I just took a quick look, let’s not over analyze this one.
https://www.itgovernance.asia/
After ten years , is there any .asia developed?
site:.asia
Drop that into google and look around. Some forward, some have a nice multi-language site set up. I dropped a link above for itgovernance dot asia.
@AF, @Snoopy, @John, we see .Asia domains used and promoted most frequently within the region. From cross border e-businesses such http://www.SnapCart.asia and http://www.ezshop.asia (with more than 134k followers on Facebook), to brands such as http://www.RalphLauren.asia, to online game series such as WorldOfTanks.asia.
This crucial policy update, or the “opening up”, will allow individuals and companies who do not already have established presence, but are looking to connect with the region virtually to register a .Asia domain. We are opening up the opportunity for more people to register .Asia domain names naturally without compromising the integrity of the TLD namespace.
@leona
Thanks for contributing those links. Can you please explain how this policy is crucial. For example, the current policy says you can be an Asian living anywhere in the world (Passport ID number for CED), or, establish a proxy agent with an Asian address for the CED. What is changing exactly that people are calling it an Opening Up?
@John
For sure, the Charter Eligibility Requirement Policies reform will be our biggest policy update since launch. This change, in plain terms will enable, for example a Pan-Asia restaurant located in Austin, Texas to register http://www.Gourmet.Asia without having to provide an Asia based address or ID, and it will be able to continue to operate this website without ever having a regional address or business ID.
In essence, here at .Asia, we are opening up and paving way for more individuals and companies to register .Asia domains as long as their business or website has something, anything to do with the Asia Pacific region, even if they are not physically located in Asia.
We are happy to say that we have received commitments from multiple registrars, including GoDaddy (above), that they will support this change.