In response to the creation of the European-based .eu top-level domain in 2006, the new TLD for Asia, .asia, was conceived and created, finally being launched this month. Like other TLDs, .asia comes under the umbrella of ICANN’s regulation, but the official registrar for the domain is a company called DotAsia.

Unlike other most other TLDs, the prices of first-time purchases of .asia domains will vary according to the desirability of the domains, as an application and bidding process is employed for sales. The domains will be assigned on the basis of the merit of applicants’ submissions; if two or more applications are deemed equally valid, an auction will be opened where the domain will go to the highest bidder.

At the moment, only businesses with registered trademarks, governments, and official bodies are allowed to register .asia domains. The TLD will be available to purchases from the public from February 2008. It is expected that tourism boards, film companies and many other prominent Asian groups will be attracted to the domain, especially those which use Asia-specific slogans or advertising. The domain is intended to be a complement to other Asian country-specific domains such as .cn for China and .jp for Japan.

According to a DotAsia spokesperson, "Asia" is one of the most searched-for terms on the web, so having a .asia Domain Name should boost relevant search engine rankings for registrants.