Up until now you could not register a 1 or 2 letter .ie domain name. Over the past few months the IEDR and its policy advisory committee, which I sit on, have been working on updating that policy. It has now been changed based on our work and a round of public consultation.
This morning the “sunrise” for 1 and 2 letter .ie domain names opened.
The “sunrise” runs from 16th November until 16th December 2015 and is for trademark holders who have a trademark that is an exact match of either a 1 or 2 letter .ie domain.
So, for example, if we wanted to register bk.ie during sunrise we would need to have a trademark for “bk”. You wouldn’t qualify if your trademark was for “bks” or anything else. (We don’t, so this is just an example!)
If there are more than one valid applications for the same domain name they’ll go to auction in January 2016.
From 21st February to 22nd March 2016 there will be a “landrush” period, which is basically “first come, first served” at a slightly higher price.
Again, multiple contending applications for the same domain will trigger an auction.
If there any 1 and 2 letter domains left over they’ll be available to the general public at our standard registration price from 19th April 2016 onwards.
Bear in mind that the number of domain names involved here is not gigantic, as there are only 26 letters in the alphabet! After you exclude the reserved domains you’re left with 702 2 letter combinations and single letter domain names.
Also it’s worth noting that apart from the trademark rights all applicants for one and two letter .ie domain names will need to meet the IEDR’s registration criteria and establish a clear link with Ireland.
You can apply for your one or two letter .ie domain name via our site here
If you have any queries about registering one and two letter .ie domain names or need any assistance with your business’ domain name strategy our sales team would love to talk to you.