dotMobi, the company behind the
.mobi top-level Internet domain, today announced the availability of its
one-of-a-kind mobile keyword and .mobi domain bundle for Chinese brands and
businesses, offered in partnership with China-based mobile keyword vendor
Huarui.
Currently, more than 50% of China's 1.3 billion citizens are estimated to be
mobile subscribers - a figure that will quickly grow with the advent of 3G
networks, which are just now arriving in China. And as with other countries,
3G mobile network speeds will drive the growth of mobile Web use. dotMobi's
unique mobile keyword and .mobi domain bundle is designed to meet the needs of
businesses in that burgeoning mobile Web environment.
Trey Harvin, CEO of dotMobi, said, "The packaging of mobile keywords and .mobi
domains is a global first. This gives Chinese site owners the flexibility of
using the .mobi domain to help ensure successful discovery by search engines,
while using both the .mobi domain and matching keyword in advertising
efforts."
Keywords - memorable words that a user can type into a mobile phone instead of
a number - are very popular in China. And specific to the Chinese market,
dotMobi will offer Web addresses in Chinese characters. These addresses in
non-standard language characters are known as Internationalized Domain Names
(IDNs). The use of Chinese-character IDNs will allow Chinese-language mobile
Web sites to be found more easily by search engines. According to Analysis
International, more than 270 million Web searches were performed on mobile
phones in China in the second quarter of 2009 - double the figure from a year
earlier, which highlights the importance of search for the Chinese mobile Web.
"Huarai is pleased to work closely with dotMobi in bringing a unique solution
to market for local businesses as well as global brands doing business in
China. With 700 million Chinese mobile subscribers, a rising number are using
the Web on their phones as carriers in China roll out 3G services. Being able
to find content that works on mobile phones is extremely important, given the
ongoing rise in mobile Web users, and that is why Huarui is happy to be
collaborating with dotMobi," said Mr. Ma Yanli, CEO of Huarui.
Availability
The dotMobi / Huarui bundle of keywords and Chinese-language .mobi domains
will be available in a special sunrise period beginning at 4 a.m. UTC on
October 29, 2009, and will finish at 4 a.m. UTC on November 28, 2009.
Immediately after on November 28, 2009, general registration will commence,
and the keyword / Chinese-language .mobi domain bundle will be available at
standard prices.
More information for registrars is available by sending an email to
IDNCHINA@dotmobi.mobi.
About dotMobi
Headquartered in Dublin, dotMobi is a worldwide leader in enabling the
development & discovery of quality mobile content through innovative services,
helping businesses and individuals reach the world's billions of mobile phone
users. dotMobi spurs mobile industry innovation by giving content providers
the tools they need to ensure the Web will work on mobile phones with speed,
accuracy and relevant content.
dotMobi is backed by leading mobile operators, network & device manufacturers,
and Internet content providers, including Ericsson, GSM Association, Hutchison
3, Microsoft, Nokia, Orascom Telecom, Samsung Electronics, Syniverse,
T-Mobile, Telefonica Moviles, Telecom Italia Mobile (TIM), Visa and Vodafone.
For information on .mobi domains and all dotMobi services, visit
http://mobiDomain.com, and on mobile devices, visit http://mobiDomain.mobi.
