The DotAsia organisation will begin selling Asia-specific domain names to companies around the world from today.

Interest is expected to be high, as global corporations seek to grab domain names relevant to the region which is enjoying the fastest growing internet population.

Cyber-squatters will also be looking for some missed bargains, but today's sale is open only to governments and companies that own a trademarked name.

"We have already had over 100 enquiries about the domain name, and we are expecting a fair amount of competition for registration of .asia names," said Thomas Herbert, product manager at web hosting company Hostway.

"But people need to be aware of unofficial vendors offering pre-registrations as they could miss out, or be ripped off.

"This is a great opportunity for people to establish their presence as a pan-Asian entity, and companies which do not register for their domain name are effectively gambling with their brand identity."

The .asia domain name has taken six years of campaigning and the go-ahead was given last year. The domain will cover territories from Australasia to the Middle East.
"After years of talks and negotiations .asia is finally here and all the signs are that it will be in even higher demand than .eu," said Jonathan Robinson, chief operating officer at domain name registrar NetNames.

"Companies with registered trademarks can apply at this stage, but need to beware of other organisations trading with the same brand names in different countries or industries that will have just as much of a claim to the same .asia domain names.

"Businesses need to ensure that they get their valid applications in during the sunrise period to avoid missing out."