China ‘has helped introduce Internationalized Domain Names’

China has made a significant contribution to the development of Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs), it has been claimed.

Rod Beckstrom, chief executive of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), said the Asian superpower has “a long history of leadership in advancing technology”.

With ICANN’s consent, domain names in a number of non-Latin languages – including Chinese, Arabic, Russian and Hindi – can now be adopted.

And since 2009, internet users have had the option of using internationalized country code top levels domains – a further step towards globalizing the web.

Mr. Beckstrom was commenting on China’s involvement in the rollout of IDNs at an event in Beijing geared towards informing, educating and engaging China’s business and internet communities.

He called on Chinese businesses to consider the benefits of securing a generic top level domain when they become available in spring 2012.

“Time is short,” he commented. “If you have not done so, now is the time to get expert advice and get your marketing people engaged to take advantage of new opportunities.”