Top Level Domain Holdings Limited ("TLDH" or the "Company"): Peter Dengate Thrush Appointed as Chairman

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Jul 18, 2011, 08:00 ET

LONDON, July 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

The Directors of Top Level Domain Holdings Limited (AIM: TLDH.L), the only publicly traded company focused exclusively on acquiring and operating new generic top-level domains ("gTLD"), are delighted to announce that Mr Peter Dengate Thrush has been appointed Executive Chairman of the Company with immediate effect. Mr Dengate Thrush was until recently the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers ("ICANN"), where in June 2011 he led the ICANN Board to approve the programme to create new gTLDs.

Antony Van Couvering, CEO of TLDH, said:

"Peter will be an outstanding asset to TLDH. Peter and I have worked together as ICANN participants since its inception, and I am very pleased to welcome him as our Executive Chairman. Peter championed successfully the approval of the new gTLD programme at the highest levels and with Peter on board I have every confidence we will achieve the same success at TLDH. I can't think of a better addition to our team - Peter is a superstar in our field, and we are delighted to have him at the helm."

New Chairman Peter Dengate Thrush said:

"I am delighted to be welcomed to this first-class team, which has had an extensive and productive involvement with the new gTLD programme and which has stood out as innovative, bold, and effective. New gTLDs represent a major opportunity for the Company and its investors, for TLD applicants and for the Internet community, and I welcome the chance to make a contribution."

"The new gTLD programme is a very significant evolution in how we understand and navigate the Internet and as a result, the creation of every web site will involve a real choice of top-level domain, and every email sent will reinforce that choice. I am delighted to join a company that understands that opportunity."

Former Chairman of TLDH Fred Krueger said:

"Peter has unparalleled experience, universal respect, a history of success, and is well known to customers and our investors. We are excited about the potential for the development of the Company under his leadership."

Mr Dengate Thrush has been actively involved in international policy development and governance of the Internet since 1995 and is a regular media commentator on Internet issues. Peter is a past Chairman of InternetNZ and past Chairman of the Asia Pacific Top Level Domain Association. A barrister and registered patent attorney specialising in intellectual property matters, Peter is Vice Chairman of the New Zealand Electricity Rulings Panel and a member of the New Zealand Copyright Tribunal.

Following these Board changes the composition of the Board of the Company is as follows:

Peter Dengate Thrush, Executive Chairman
Antony Van Couvering, Chief Executive Officer
Fred Krueger, Chief Strategy Officer and Deputy Chairman
Guy Elliott, Chief Investment Officer
David de Jongh Weill, Chief Financial Officer
Clark Landry, Non-executive Director
Michael Mendelson, Non-executive Director

Further information

Peter Charles Dengate Thrush (aged 55) has held the following directorships in companies or partnerships in the past five years:

    Current Directorships:  Former Directorship / Partnership:

    BrainFuel Limited       Worldwide Alliance of ccTLDs Limited
                            Bluejeans and Moonbeams Limited (formerly
                              Observatory Crest Digital Limited
                            Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and
                              Numbers

The Company has today awarded options over 15,000,000 Ordinary Shares to Peter Dengate Thrush at an exercise price of 8p per Ordinary share (total 15,000,000 Ordinary shares under option following this grant). The options granted above will vest over three years from the date of grant at the rate of 1,250,000 per quarter provided that Peter Dengate Thrush remains an employee of the Company and will expire unless exercised on or before 15 July 2014.

There are no further details in relation to the above appointment which require disclosure under paragraph (g) (iii) to (viii) of Schedule 2 to the AIM Rules.

About Top Level Domain Holdings Limited, http://tldh.org

Top Level Domain Holding is a publicly traded holding company listed on the London AIM market. The company is focused on the new top-level domain space. Top-level domains, such as .com, run by VeriSign (NASDAQ: VRSN), and .biz, run by NeuStar (NYSE: NSR), are regulated by ICANN. ICANN has announced plans to expand the number of top-level domains. TLDH intends to make targeted investments in this space, focusing on both infrastructure technologies and specific top-level domains.

About Minds + Machines, http://mindsandmachines.com

Minds + Machines is a wholly owned subsidiary of Top Level Domain Holdings, Ltd. Minds + Machines provides registry services for operators of existing operators of generic and country specific top level domains ( gTLDs and ccTLDs). With experience in launching over 20 top-level domains, and able to deploy the most widely used registry platform in the world, Minds + Machines helps new gTLDs applicants simplify the process of starting a new top level domain. The company offers flat-rate pricing, assistance with ICANN applications, launch strategy, and technical services for launching new top-level domains for entrepreneurs, cities and brands. Minds + Machines is currently working with groups that include those bidding for .mumbai, .radio, .eco, .nyc and .gay.

Further Information:

Top Level Domain Holdings Limited.
North America
Antony Van Couvering, Tel: +1-917-406-7126

Europe
David Weill, Tel: +44(0)20-7881-0180

Beaumont Cornish Limited
Roland Cornish
Michael Cornish, Tel +44(0)20-7628-3396

gth media relations
Toby Hall /Christian Pickel, Tel: +44(0)-20-3103-3902/3

Or visit the group's website at http://www.tldh.org