IE Domain Registry

The IE Domain Registry (IEDR) is the domain name registry for the .ie country code top-level domain. Formally, the IE Domain Registry Limited is a private company, limited by guarantee, incorporated in Ireland having its registered office and principal place of business in Dún Laoghaire, County Dublin. It operates on a not-for-profit basis and is a member of the CENTR representative body. IE Domain Registry Limited took over the administration of .ie in July 2000. Prior to that, the .ie ccTLD had been administered by University College Dublin.

The IE Domain Registry (IEDR) operates a managed registry model for Ireland's national .ie domain. The managed registry model requires that all applicants provide evidence authenticating their claim to their chosen .ie domain name at the time of application. Applicants must show that the domain they are applying for is related to their company, business, association or trademarked name. Company names and trademarks are often self-evident. Sole Traders and small businesses and some companies use Registered Business Name (RBN) certificates that are acquired by registering a business name through the Irish Companies Registration Office [1].

The .ie ccTLD has a Registry – Resellers model. The .ie Resellers are the equivalent of Registrars in the standard Registry – Registrars model. However becoming a .ie Reseller requires that the reseller has over 200 registered .ie domains or is at least the billing contact on over 200 .ie domains, provides a 2500 Euro bond, passes a credit check and has a demonstrable knowledge of IEDR domain name policies and technical procedures.

In 2001, IEDR had a rule prohibiting the registration of generic .ie domain names. In the first quarter of 2001, 73 domains were registered by a now dissolved company, On-Line Media Limited. Many of these domains were generic in nature despite IEDR's "Generic Rule" being in force at the time. In October that year, approximately 322 domains based on generic medical terms were directly registered by Medical Pages (Ireland) Limited in what was certainly Domain name warehousing. The "Generic Rule" was changed immediately after this incident to permit the registration of generic domains in .ie ccTLD. IEDR had been conservative when it came to the issue of the registration of surnames as domains though this has eased recently.

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