Full-Chinese “.香港” Domain names now available
12 October 2012
On May 31, 2011, the Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Limited (HKIRC) announced the official launch of full-Chinese .香港 (i.e. .hk in Chinese characters) domain names. At the same time, domain names in Chinese characters ending with .hk are no longer available for registration, according to lawyers at Wilkinson & Grist in Hong Kong.
Similar to.hk domain names in English, application for .香港 domain names is on a first-come-first-served basis, the firm says. Registration of the new .香港 domain names is in the form of Chinese-English bundles, meaning that when one registers a Chinese .香港 domain name, an English .hk domain name of the same category – e.g. .公司.香港 (.com.hk in Chinese) will also be allocated and bundled with the Chinese .香港 domain name.
“As one of the two official languages, Chinese has always been important in Hong Kong and over 90% of the Hong Kong population speaks and writes Chinese,” the firm says. “The role of the Chinese language is also becoming increasingly important worldwide. The full-Chinese .香港 domain names are definitely easier to remember amongst the Chinese-speaking public than the English ones. Therefore, hosting websites under .香港 domain names is expected to yield positive promotional effect both within and outside of Hong Kong.”
