The IE Domain Registry, the managed registry for Ireland’s .ie domain names, today announced that the number of .ie domain registrations has exceeded 75,000 registrations. This represents a major milestone in the growth in Ireland’s online population and is termed a strong indicator of the development of e-commerce in Ireland.

In the past year, the growth of .ie domain registrations has been significant, up 30% on the same period last year, positioning .ie as the Irish market leader with almost 40% of the domain market (.com domains account for approx 33% of the market). Irish companies represented the largest number of .ie registrants, with 83% of all .ie domains by end 2006. This strong trend in growth is set to continue in 2007 with another milestone achieved already this year; for the first time registrations have exceed 2,700 in a month.

The 75,000^th .ie registered domain was themusicshop.ie, which was established by Clare Sanders and Paul Burgess as an online retail source for musical instruments and accessories, as well as to promote their recording studio based in Mayo. As the 75,000^th registrant; themusicshop.ie was awarded free .ie registration for ten years.

The .ie namespace was recently named the second safest country domain name in the world by the McAfee Site Advisor Report. The IE Domain Registry says that one reason for this high ranking is that the .ie domain name is governed by a managed registry, which means that applicants must authenticate their claim to a domain name. The benefits of this are; there is virtually no cyber-crime, identity theft, credit card fraud and fewer incidences of spam and almost no cyber-squatting. These factors are crucial in building consumer confidence and consequently crucial in the development of e-commerce in Ireland.

Commenting on the 75,000^th .ie registration milestone, David Curtin, Chief Executive, IEDR, said: “Our resellers deserve great credit for the increase in registrations following the IEDR’s additional price reductions last year and our further investment in automation. The growth in registrations demonstrates that Irish businesses are increasingly choosing .ie for the safety and security that the local domain name delivers. With the McAfee Site Advisor Report naming .ie as the second safest country domain name in the world, Irish companies and consumers can be assured that with .ie there is virtually no cyber-crime and significantly with .ie websites consumers know who they are doing business with.”

Speaking at the presentation to the 75,000^th .ie registrant, themusicshop.ie,   The Minister for Communications, Marine & Natural Resources, Noel Dempsey T.D., said: “The strong growth in .ie domain names exceeding the milestone of 75,000 domain registrations is a very positive development for Irish businesses and consumers as the .ie domain name delivers safety and security, helping to foster the growth in the on-line community in Ireland.”