Take your business sky-high with a .cloud domain

Cloud-friendly businesses will be able to show off their affinities with the launch of special new .cloud domains, which have gone on general sale.

Available on a first-come-first-served basis, the new domains, which will replace the traditional .com or .co.uk web addresses, will allow businesses to register their new websites online.

The new domains are already in hot demand, with businesses including Ubuntu, Weebly, Odin and ePages among the first to sign up from the 70 plus registrars selling them, including the likes of GoDaddy and 1&1.

Francesco Cetraro, head of registry operations at .cloud [run by Aruba PEC, a subsidiary of IT giant Aruba], said: “We have been thrilled with the response to date: first with the wide level of interest in our Pioneer program, which turned out to be one of the best subscribed to date.

“The Priority phases were also very well subscribed, showing there is a clear interest among companies and individuals to get access to a modern domain extension that helps them better reflect their business capabilities and position their brands in a unique and powerful way.”

The launch of the .cloud domains first began back in November as part of the availability of a whole range of new web address options. The initial Priority Registration phase saw more than 2,000 orders for .cloud domains and close to 200 domain names receiving multiple requests, which will now be assigned through auctions.

There’s no direct information on the cost of the new domains, but hopefully they will not have been affected by price rises that have inflicted other areas of the web. Back in November, Nominet, the company in charge of the .UK domain registry, announced that the wholesale price for .UK domains (including .uk, .co.uk, .org.uk and .me.uk addresses) will be rising from £2.50 per year to £3.75 per year from 1 March 2016.

The increase is needed to combat rising administrative costs and help Nominet provide a “first-class service” for owners of .UK domains.