Yes, no and maybe. Let us explain that a little more:
Yes, you can apply for almost any name you can think of except:
- There are some domains we are not allowed to create, which we will provide in a list shortly for your reference.
- You are unable to register a domain that is already registered, or is 2 characters long (e.g. me.kiwi)
- Maybe, the domain might be a premium domain name which you can’t register using the normal process. Check our site regularly to see when we post our premium name list.
Register your interest here
No, Dot Kiwi Ltd is not a charity, but we have a charitable component to our business. Basically, for every domain name we sell, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Christchurch rebuild.
If you’re talking about the small flightless birds, then no they’re not the only ones who can register. And if you’re talking specifically about Kiwis in New Zealand then also no. While we have brought the .kiwi domain to New Zealand specifically for Kiwis, our people are everywhere and it would be very challenging for us to prove who is or isn’t a genuine Kiwi. In fear of turning down genuine Kiwis with interest in owning a .kiwi domain, we have placed no restrictions on who can register.
Dot Kiwi Ltd is the wholesaler, the Registrars and Resellers are the retailers. So, we can only suggest a recommended retail price. We expect domain names to be selling for around $39 NZD per year, per domain once we are in 'open' phase.
You’re probably asking the wrong people here, and our answer is going to be obvious. That said, as objectively as we can, we’d say that it’s really your call. Lots of people will find it useful to have both a .nz and a .kiwi domain. If you’re a business then you can make that decision based on what makes sense for you commercially – considering marketing opportunities and brand protection. It probably comes down to whether you like what .kiwi stands for, how it makes you feel, and how well it represents you or your business.
Absolutely not, but we love those guys (.nz). We do lots of stuff together globally, but down here we also love to compete and show how different our domain names are.
Yes you most certainly can. If your trademark is registered with IPONZ, or within another valid jurisdiction, and your trademark is in use, you can apply to register with the Trademark Clearinghouse, which in turn will allow you to be first in line to get your trademark.kiwi. We call this the Sunrise phase, and it’s specifically for you – the trademark holder. For more information about trademarks, and how you can register with the Trademark Clearinghouse please check out this page.
Absolutely. In fact, through the use of a .kiwi domain name, it will be the first time a 100% Māori domain name will be possible.
No, we don’t make you just register a share in a domain name, we let you have the whole thing. So .kiwi domains will look like this: great.kiwi, rather than: shared.co.kiwi
You’ll be able to buy our domains from the usual suspects, and by usual suspects we mean our esteemed partners. Our partners will be listed on our website in due course and they’ll make .kiwi domains easy to buy and use.
A Top Level Domain is the section of domain name that appears to the right of the last dot. For example, .nz is a Top Level Domain, so is .kiwi. A gTLD is a certain kind of Top Level Domain, it is known as a generic Top Level Domain (e.g. .com, .org etc), and is different from a ccTLD, which is a Country Code Top Level Domain (.nz, .au, .ca etc). So .kiwi is a gTLD not a ccTLD.
The only risk is being found not having one! Dot Kiwi is run by Kiwis for Kiwis. ICANN, the global regulator, set the bar incredibly high for us to prove our technical ability, and commitment to consumer protection. Being Kiwis, we thought we’d go the extra mile, so we’ve taken even more measures to make .kiwi a trusted domain for Kiwis to use and enjoy. You can read more about how we’ve gone the extra mile here.
It’s safe to say that you’ll be able to buy a .kiwi domain name late in 2013, or early 2014. The best thing to do is get on our mailing list. We can then send you a timely little reminder about when, where and how.
There are three answers to that particular question:
- If a website other than ours is offering pre-registration for a .kiwi domain name, you’re not guaranteed you will get it.
- You can join our Launch Community and by doing so, pre-register a domain name of your choice, so long as it doesn’t interfere with the rights of trademark holders. There are limited spaces in our Launch Community though, find out more about that here.
- You can also check out our selection of Premium Names (when they’ve available). We think these ones are so great, we couldn’t let them go out without getting special treatment. Keep an eye out on our site to see when you can purchase Premium Names.
As the official Registry of the .kiwi Top-Level Domain, we are restricted from providing domain names directly to individuals and businesses. Special organisations, known as “Registrars”, act as the official distributors of .kiwi domain names, and are under contract with ICANN which enables them to do so. Domain Vault Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ours (Dot Kiwi Limited), has applied to become an official .kiwi Registrar and will be responsible for facilitating reservations of .kiwi domain names, as well as subsequent registrations when applicable, on our behalf.