Afilias, a global provider of Internet infrastructure services and domain name registry technology, today announced that it is seeking to partner with a select number of organizations that wish to apply to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) for a new top-level domain (TLD).

“Afilias has supported more successful ICANN bids, and helped launch more new TLDs than any other registry services provider,” said Hal Lubsen, Chief Executive Officer at Afilias. “We are looking for organizations, corporations, and communities who can leverage our experience, financial and marketing resources, and technology to develop successful generic and community TLDs in English or other languages for Internet users around the world.”

TLDs are the names at the top of the DNS naming hierarchy, appearing after the last ‘dot’ of a Web address such as .com, .info, .org, and .me. With ICANN’s new application process expected to launch early in 2010, the opportunity exists for any organization to apply for a TLD that has meaning for their business, community, or interest area.

“New TLDs are excellent opportunities for brands looking to boost their global profile and offer a more personalized and branded experience on the Internet. A dedicated TLD may also provide a more private, controlled, and secure space for customer and community interaction,” added Roland LaPlante, Chief Marketing Officer at Afilias. “Organizations that are connected to specific communities and causes may also look at a dedicated TLD as a new means of offering value added services or a potential new source of revenue.”

Afilias supports over 14 million registrations across 15 TLDs, and has the widest range of TLD customers of any major registry services and outsource technical providers. Afilias launched .INFO, the first new TLD ever chosen by ICANN, in 2001. Since then, Afilias has built .INFO into the most successful new TLD ever launched with over 5 million domains registered—more than double the next leading new gTLD.

Afilias’ has pioneered many innovations in registry technology, including the first broad scale use of the now industry standard EPP-protocol, the first launch of IDN’s under the new standard, and the largest deployment to date of Domain Name Security Extensions (DNSSEC). In addition, Afilias is a leader in domain name anti-abuse operations and policies to curb spam, phishing, and malware. Afilias currently provides registry and outsourced technical services for the following TLDs: .info, .org, .aero, .asia, .mobi, .ag, .bz, .gi, .hn, .in, .lc, .me, .mn, .sc, and .vc.

Organizations, corporations, and communities looking to work or partner with Afilias for their new TLD bid and application, can submit their interest directly to Afilias online.