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.uk Domain Names Launched

In June, the '.uk' top-level domain was launched. The .uk extension indicates an organisation in the UK, as opposed to the '.co.uk' one, which has been used for many years to indicate a commercial organisation in the UK.

Most countries have domain suffixes that merely indicate the country of residence of the organisation, so the .co.uk suffix was always somewhat anomalous.

It is claimed that over time the .uk suffix will become the de facto standard for the domain names of UK organisations.

Given the clear opportunity this presents for 'cybersquatting', the Internet domain registries are offering the .uk domain names to the owners of the equivalent .co.uk domains in the first instance, provided the domain was owned prior to 8am on 10 June 2014. This option will be preserved for five years.

For more information, see the Nominet website.

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It is a simple matter to arrange registration and to have a redirect from the .uk domain to the domain holding your website.

If you are concerned about any aspect of Internet law or practice, contact us.

Although correct at the time of publication, the contents of this article are intended for general information purposes only and shall not be deemed to be, or constitute legal advice. We cannot accept responsibility for any loss as a result of acts or omissions taken in respect of this article. Please contact us for the latest legal position.