Getting ready for the new era of .CO

Bogotá, Colombia : November 19, 2009

Colombia’s Ministry of Information Technology and Communications (MINTIC), the University of the Andes (UNIANDES) and .CO INTERNET have started the process of migrating the administrative duties of the .CO domain to .CO INTERNET.

On September 7th, the three entities began the transition process. We have defined a methodology and work plan, including the tasks and the schedule, that will assure a smooth transition with no negative impact on current and future users of the .CO domain.

The documentation to complete the redelegation process was sent to ICANN/IANA on September 16th, 2009 according to the conditions defined by the Colombian community and the MINTIC resolutions.

During the last ICANN/IANA meeting earlier this month in Seoul, South Korea, representatives from MINTIC and .CO INTERNET had the opportunity to meet with the ICANN/IANA staff to discuss the redelegation process and its timing. From those meetings it’s clear the process is taking its normal course and is expected to conclude soon.

Simultaneously, .CO INTERNET is taking all steps necessary to begin administering the .CO domain and has prepared promotional, administrative and technical plans that will allow us to assume registry functions with the new policies approved for the domain.

A quick summary of select actions includes:

• Delivered documents for the redelegation to ICANN/IANA
• Agreement with UNIANDES over the transition plan
• Marketing and branding research conducting polls with more than 600 people
• Development of a Communication Plan – Local, Regional and Global
• Definition of the “Sunrise” process to launch second level domains – with the approval of the Advisory Committee
• Preparation and technical tests by Neustar, Inc.
• Hiring of support personnel and office space expansion for .CO INTERNET
• Technical and commercial negotiations with the accredited registrars

We have received hundreds of emails with questions and suggestions about the transition process and the management of the .CO domain. We believe that this is indicative of the high level of interest in .CO from the global community and it fills us with energy and purpose to fulfill our mission. While we await the execution of the redelegation by ICANN/IANA, we invite anyone interested to keep in touch with our team and share additional questions and suggestions.

Contact us.

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