.London shows solid numbers upon launch.

The .London top level domain name launched with much fanfare yesterday.

According to the DomainIncite Pro zone file reports, .London added 12,421 domain names to the zone file in the first partial day to reach 34,968.

If you asked me a few months ago if .London reaching 35,000 on day one would be a strong number, I’d say yes. That said, I raised my expectations a bit after its very strong landrush period. Perhaps the landrush just pulled demand forward.

I’m convinced that .city domains have the best opportunity for quick organic growth. In a concentrated area, it just takes a few store owners posting their .london domain names on the front window or in TV commercials to really take off.

It’s also interesting to consider if you can infer anything about .NYC’s upcoming launch from .London’s numbers. It’s really hard to say. .NYC is perhaps a better worldwide “brand”, but it is launching with closed registration policies that won’t let anyone who doesn’t live or work in New York register a domain.