News on .Cymru/.Wales Top Level Domains
Nominet have now published their inital policy statement for the .cymru and .wales top level domains. Details, including the exact list of domain names that will be reserved, are still being discussed with the Welsh Government so anyone interested in registering a domain should keep an eye on the .wales/.cymru website where you can also register for updates.
According to the policy statement one thing that has changed from the original consultation is that there won't be any technical link between the two domains. Instead Nominet plan to offer a discount to registrars – which they expect to be passed on to registrants - when the same person registers a pair of names in the two domains. The names don't have to be the same, since the .wales one will often be a translation of the .cymru one, rather than the same string. And from the examples given it seems that names can include any of the Welsh letters: according to section 4.7 there will be a system for ensuring that domains work whether or not the ^ mark is included, though the description doesn’t make completely clear how it will cope if you come up with a domain that has more than one of those.
The list of reserved domains that won't be available for registration by the general public hasn't been finalised, though Nominet suggest in section 5.3 that it will include existing second level domains in .uk (I presume they mean existing before the recent direct.uk launch!) and is likely to include "organisations established by Royal Charter" in both their Welsh and English forms. For universities and colleges that don't have Royal Charters there will be a two-month "Welsh business priority phase" during which you should be able to apply for your domain before it becomes available to the public. According to the timeline that will be in "late Autumn 2014", though if you are considering applying for a domain it's worth registering on that site to receive updates. The aim seems to be for the domains to go live, appropriately enough, on St.David's Day 2015!
Comments
I've just discovered that the Royal Charter reservations may not be automatic, so if you were hoping to rely on that provision then it might be a good idea to check with the Government that you are on their list. Drop me an e-mail and I can put you in touch with the relevant person there.
Otherwise you should still be able to use the Welsh business priority phase. If you want to register a trading name, rather than your official name, then that is the only option in any case.