Afilias, a global provider of domain name registry and DNS services, announced that it is now offering domain name registrars a full suite of registry and DNS services to ensure that both their proposed new top-level domain (new TLD) applications and registries are successful.

On November 9, 2010, the Board of Directors of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) voted to allow domain name registrars, the retailers of the domain name industry, to act as wholesale registries in the upcoming new TLD round. This decision ends the separation that has existed between registries and registrars, creates new opportunities for both, and is published in the Final Applicant Guidebook posted on November 12.

“Afilias launched the first new TLD registry ever when it introduced .INFO in 2001,” said Roland LaPlante, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Afilias. “Afilias has supported TLD applications and has successfully launched more new TLDs than any other registry provider in the marketplace. We are pleased to offer registrars access to our world class services to power their own new TLD offerings.”

Afilias-supported new TLDs are, on average, three times as successful in terms of total volume of registrations as non-Afilias supported TLDs. Afilias’ registry technology already powers more than 54 percent of all registrations in the 15 new TLDs launched since 2001. In total, Afilias supports 15 TLDs across more than 17 million domains.

“Afilias’ new TLD launch model is proven to be the best in the market. Today we provide our TLDs with access to more than 360 registrars, representing more than 95 percent of the domain registrations. If a registrar wishes to operate as a registry in the new TLD round, they need a trusted and proven registry technology provider that allows them immediate access to the broadest distribution channel,” added LaPlante.

Afilias’ Global Registry Services are available to registrars under a white-labeled service and include: full thick EPP registry, WHOIS, a globally diverse and redundant Anycast DNS network, zone file publication, registrar accreditation services, 24/7 call-center and technical support, Web-based administrative tools, as well as sales and bid consultation services. All Afilias services are DNSSEC and IPv6 ready, and reflect nearly 10 years of experience supporting gTLDs operating under ICANN contracts.

In addition, Afilias offers other premium solutions to augment its registry offering, including: 1) GoMobi mobilization services to enable any website on any mobile phone; 2) managed DNS services which can be extended to a registrars’ existing hosting business via a RESTful API; and 3) a unique IDN-capable e-mail solution that enables fully internationalized email functionality for Web-based or mobile e-mail offerings.

For more information on Afilias’ new TLD services, please visit http://www.afilias.info/ntlds.