First .name fan out on the Internet

Don't be surprised if you receive an email message from Joe@Smith.name as the

first .name domain addresses made their way onto the Internet this week. The

.name domain is aimed at individuals who want to set up a family Web Site and be

able to have their name in the email address as well.

The .name domain is expected to replace the .org domain, which is currently

used by individuals who want their name in their Internet. The .name was

originally proposed and approved by the London-based Global Name Registry in

2000 proposed. That was at the height of the dot.com frenz

y and expectations for

up to seven new domain names were high.

Today, with the dot.com business mostly gone, there is no rush expected for

new .name domain names, which cost about $30 in annual registration fees.

Other new domain names, ''.biz'' for businesses and ''.info'' for

informational sites, debuted last fall. So far, 1.2 million names have been

registered under these two new domains. Total domain name registrations

increased only slightly in 2001, a 13.5 percent jump to 32 million as of

September.

In addition ''.museum'' began operating in November. Later this year

''.aero'' for aviation and ''.pro'' for professionals will also become active.

Most people with common names will probably be out of luck in getting their

.name registered as the .name addresses will be also sold on a

first-come-first-serve basis.