Depending on the extension you plan on registering, a domain can be obtained either through a registry or a registrar. The two words are very similar and it is important to know the difference between them.

For the record, a registry is the operator of a domain extension. For example, Afilias owns the rights to and runs .info. TLDs are typically operated by private companies. Government agencies sometimes handle the administration of ccTLDs, but often times outsource their operation to a firm.

A registrar, on the other hand, is an agent authorized to handle a domain registration– the middle man between you and the registrar. This is the place where you search for a domain and make payment. Many registrars are multi-million dollar companies. Some offer web hosting as well.

On some extensions, there are no registrars and all registrations are handled through the registry. Others are a mix of both. But on most, a domain must be bought through a registrar.

Continue reading: Domain name registration

Well ahead of ICANN’s planned implementation of IDNs, Bulgaria’s official domain registry, Register.bg, has announced the availability of .bg domains in Cyrillic. This makes the Balkan country one of the first to support a non-Latin alphabet.

There are some caveats, however. Most notably, only one Cyrillic character can be used and at least one Latin letter must be included. The registration requirements and fees for the new names are the same as Latin names, though the .bg extension must be used (there is no Cyrillic extension).

The introduction of internationalized domain names is predicted to greatly increase the number of web users. Currently, one has to have knowledge of the Latin alphabet used in Engish to access the web– a major hurdle to people in developing countries. By allowing individuals to use their native language online, one more barrier to Internet access has been removed.

Source | Novinite.com

Photo | Flickr

Continue reading: Bulgaria's .bg domain now available in Cyrillic