First figures of the opening of .fr to individuals

Press release
Saint Quentin en Yvelines, June 26th, 2006

The Internet users have been present for the opening of .fr to individuals
that was launched on June, 20th 2006.

The launch process, distributed from June 20th to June 23th1,
did not encounter any technical problems. This success is the result of several
months of preparation led by the AFNIC teams and to which the .fr registrars
have participated.
Throughout the week, 223 registrars sent more than 61.000 registration
forms for more than 41.000 distinct domain names. 37.000 of them have
been accepted. The latter have joined the 500.000 domain names already registered
before this opening.
A few domain names were the object of a competition. The most solicited domain
name “hugues.fr” was requested five times. The Internet users gave
free rein to their imagination and had the possibility to make a name for themselves
and to find their own place on .fr.
The AFNIC has managed to process the valid forms2
on the same day they were received. That is to say, an individual who submitted
a form in the morning obtained their domain name activated by the AFNIC the
same day.
The increasing hits on the website “www.faites-vous-un-nom.fr”
(www.make-a-name-for-yourself.fr)
and the amount of calls registered to the AFNIC helpdesk also confirm the interest
of the French Internet users in .fr.

Jean-Claude Gorichon, President of the AFNIC, says: “the interest of
individuals for .fr domain names has been increasing since June, 20th
2006 and should go on in the next months, a lot of possibilities remain available
for individuals who wish to personalize their identity on the Internet.”.

For any further information, please go to the website created for this
purpose: http://www.faites-vous-un-nom.fr

(http://www.make-a-name-for-yourself.fr)

Table of figures

Date

Received forms

Distinct domain names

Accepted domain names

Participating registrars

Age

Geographical distribution
(French “départements”)

20 june 2006

10 708

3 760

3 246

85

21 june 2006

14 400

9 636

6 947

145

22 june 2006

18 822

15 129

14 532

169

23 june 2006

17 569

13 077

12 546

154

Total for the 4 days

61 499

41 602

37 271

223

25-40 y. (50 %)
40-65 y. (39 %)
18-25 y. (8 %)
65 y. and + (1 %)

Paris (19 %)
Hauts-de-Seine (7 %)

Legend:

Received demands: the total number of forms submitted. They can be
valid, invalid or multiple copies.
Distinct domain names: after processing the multiple copies.
Accepted domain names: after verifications (domain names that already
exist or that are part of the list of prohibited and reserved terms, etc.)

About the AFNIC (Association Française pour le Nommage Internet en
Coopération)
Non-profit organization, the AFNIC is in charge of the administrative and technical
management of the .fr (France) and .re (Reunion Island) Internet
domain names.
The AFNIC brings together public and private members: representatives from the
French government, Internet users and Internet Service Providers.

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1- With groups of numbers and letters that
were cumulated day afer day.
2- With respect to technical
specifications which were previously published.