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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 Analysys 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.

About dotMobi

Headquartered in Dublin, dotMobi - a wholly owned subsidiary of Afilias Limited - is a worldwide leader in enabling the development & discovery of quality mobile content through innovative services, in turn 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. (Learn More)

Related topics: Domain Names, Registry Services, Mobile, Multilinguism, Top-Level Domains