.CO Domain Hits 500,000 Registrations Milestone

MIAMI, Sept. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- .CO Internet S.A.S. (www.COinternet.co) announced that as of today it has officially taken registrations for more than a half a million .CO domain names. Hitting this major milestone less than two months from the public launch of the .CO extension reinforces the high consumer demand and global nature of the .CO domain.

As of today, companies, web developers, agencies, entrepreneurs and individuals from nearly 200 countries around the world have registered .CO domains. While nearly 37% of current registrations have come from inside of the United States, the domain is growing in popularity in many other countries. The top ten countries in terms of .CO registrations are listed below.

"In passing the half-million registrations mark so quickly, the Internet and business communities have voiced their desire for new and better options in branding their online presence," said Juan Diego Calle, CEO of .CO Internet S.A.S. "The strong demand for .CO domains validates our business strategy and the work we have done to bring .CO to market. We are extremely pleased with our results to date – and look forward to continued growth in the coming months and years."

A key factor contributing to the success of the .CO launch has been the strong distribution network the .CO Registry has formed by partnering with many of the world's leading registrars and domain resellers, including, among others, GoDaddy.com, OpenSRS, Network Solutions, eNom, Inc. and 1&1 Internet AG.

"With a global domain launch of this magnitude, the .CO Registry needed a state-of-the-art back-end registry provider that's been proven to be secure, reliable and robust," said Tim Switzer, Vice President of Domain Name Registry Services, Neustar. "We are proud to say that Neustar's global registry platform provides the technical infrastructure to seamlessly power the operation of the .CO domain."

Currently, the .CO registry is engaged in settling via auction more than 2,500 .CO domains that had multiple bidders during the pre-launch "Landrush" period. Some recent notable auction sales include: Mesothelioma.co for $76,000; Insure.co for $60,000; DuiAttorney.co for $44,500; Slots.co for $41,000; Aspen.co for $22,500; Vehicles.co for $18,500, Sites.co for $15,500 and UsedCars.co for $14,000, to name a few.

The .CO Registry plans to auction single-letter and other premium domains in the coming months.

About .CO Internet S.A.S.

.CO Internet S.A.S. is the Registry Operator for the .CO top-level domain. The .CO domain offers individuals and businesses a truly global, recognizable and credible option in branding their online presence. Thanks to leading-edge technology, enhanced security and unprecedented rights protections for brand owners, the .CO domain is poised to become the world's next premier web address. For additional information about the .CO Registry, please visit www.COinternet.co and www.Opportunity.co. You can also find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/COinternet or follow us on Twitter @dotCO.

About Neustar, Inc.

Neustar, Inc. (NYSE: NSR) provides innovative and global services enabling trusted communication across networks, applications, and enterprises. Neustar Domain Name Registry Services operates the global registry for .US and .BIZ as well as back-end registry services for .co, .tel and .travel, internationalized domain names (IDNs), and full registry services to New Top Level Domains. For more information, visit www.neustar.biz and www.neustarregistry.biz.

SOURCE .CO Internet S.A.S.