The launch of .co began March 1 with a Grandfather phase followed by a Sunrise Local A phase for holders of trademarks registered in Colombia. The Sunrise Global B phase for global trademark holders begins April 26 and extends through June 10.

In addition to being common abbreviation for company and corporation, a .co domain name can help increase website traffic. Using proprietary typographical analysis our research indicates that on average a .co domain name can generate 7% of the traffic of the equivalent .com domain name. In many cases this will make it well worth the cost of adding a number of .co domains to your portfolio. The estimates are based on website averages for domain name type-in behavior and analysis of typographical errors.

Due to the resemblance to .com and other popular associations companies may need to consider securing their brand as a defensive registration since .co will become available to the general public in the landrush and general availability phases.

Companies interested in application for any phase can submit their domain name requests now and we’ll handle submission for the appropriate phase. For more information and terms and conditions, contact your client services manager.

Launch Details:

  • Sunrise phase B: 26 April 2010 through 10 June 2010. Applicants must have an active trademark registered in a trademark office or registry that corresponds to a state or entity described in the WIPO Standard ST.3 code on or before 30 July 2008. Applications for domains with multiple qualified applicants will go to auction.
  • Landrush phase: 21 June 2010 through 13 July 2010. During landrush, applications are open to the general public. Multiple applications for the same domain will go to auction.
  • General availability: commences 20 July 2010. Domains will be available on a first-come first-serve basis.