Birthday 2011
The Internet security option you need to know about
A low cost idea to keep customers focused on your business
Thought leaders on 5 years of .eu
Happy Birthday .eu!
Cakes, cocktails and nights out 1 2 3 Table of Contents
4 WORDS OF WISDOM Thoughts on birthdays and growing
5 Keep customers focused on your business The low cost, high return online press release 5 6 What’s on tonight.eu?
candycakes.eu The website network to check when out and about in Europe’s big cities
8 The untold story Marc Van Wesemael reveals what happened in the run up to the .eu launch
6 10 Who loves .eu? A statistical look at which countries support .eu the most and why
12 A true cocktail lover The enterprising Belgian who makes cocktails on the move
14 The next level of online security 8 Securing domain names with DNSSEC
15 Five questions for a fifth birthday Ex-ICANN CEO Paul Twomey on .eu and the domain industry
16 Colourful Candy Cakes The UK cake making company with a twist 12
18 Europe’s digital landscape Neelie Kroes reflects on five years of .eu and the future of the Internet in Europe
22 .EU MINI-GUIDE TO CELEBRATING A handy list of .eu companies in the 16 celebration business 18
This magazine was produced in March 2011 by EURid. Design and production: Typeman Design, www.typeman.eu. Printed by Gävle Offset on Tom&Otto, a paper approved by the Forest Stewardship Council. If you would like extra copies or have questions, please send an email to [email protected]. Woluwelaan 150, 1831 Diegem - Belgium
www.eurid.eu
2 3 From the Editor in Chief
Photo: Thomas Nylén Words of wisdom Some thoughts on birthdays and growing to n this special edition of .eu Identity we wish .eu a happy fifth birthday. In honour of the occa- celebrate .eu’s fifth birthday. sion, we put the spotlight on companies in the party industry that use a .eu website to promote their businesses. I The man behind cocktaillovers.eu shares how he turned his passion for the perfect cocktail into “All the world is birthday cake, a mobile catering business that brings the party so take a piece, but not to wherever you are. And Candy Cakes, a London- based patisserie with a twist, proves that with a bit too much.” of hard work you can have your cake and eat it too. George Harrison Photo: Harry Goodwin/REX Features For city fans we feature tonight.eu, one of the earli- est .eu domain names. This must-see website for revellers in Europe features hotspots, local events and activities in many European cities. EC Vice-President Neelie Kroes reflects on how the European top-level domain actively contributes to building strong cross-border business in Europe, and ex-ICANN CEO Paul Twomey looks back on the evolution of the domain industry and shares his thoughts on its future. EURid’s Marc Van Wesemael gets nostalgic and tells the story of how .eu began. We also share ideas that will keep customers fo- “None are so old as those cused on your business and describe the steps that .eu has taken to boost Internet security. who have outlived Happy reading and enjoy the party! enthusiasm.” Photo: Everet Collection/IBL Bildbyrå Photo: Everet Henry David Thoreau Editor in Chief Brigitte Lagrou
Editor Acknowledgments Megan Vosloo Konstantinos Chatzistamou Regina Fuchsova Contributors Marc Lampo Catherine Dowdell Daniela Medda Brigitte Lagrou Mathilde Oechsner “Happiness is neither virtue nor Megan Vosloo Giovanni Seppia pleasure nor this thing nor that Photo: Mary Evans/IBL Bildbyrå Staffan Wallin Katrien Smeyers Thomas Tammegger but simply growth. We are happy when we are growing.”
Do you own a successful .eu website? Would you William Butler Yeats like to be featured in Identity? Write to us at [email protected].
4 5 Keep customers focused on your business Studios Photo: Hill Street
The online press release is an unsung hero when it comes to increasing your company’s visibility online. It doesn’t have to cost much, but the results it can generate are often priceless.
Text: Megan Vosloo
These tips will inspire you to come up • A quote for credibility - preferably Facebook page or Twitter feed is often with your own ideas for online press from a third party who endorses all that’s needed for it to gain momen- releases, write them and distribute your news, although a quote from tum and reach your consumers. them, all free of charge. a company spokesperson is accept- able too. Make sure it adds value to You should also forward your release No news is bad news your announcement to the key influencers in your online One of the main reasons that small • Direct links to landing pages on communities. If they forward it to their companies don’t issue online press your website. This will allow pros- connections, it’s a big endorsement for releases, also called social media re- pects or customers to easily learn you and another, free way to reach a leases, is because they think they have more about your products and larger audience. nothing newsworthy to say. But the company with just one click news doesn’t have to be momentous or • Relevant videos, images or other If you do have some money set aside, ground-breaking, it just has to be regu- interactive media. While also online public relations companies will lar enough to keep you in the minds of increasing search engine rankings, distribute your release to major search your customers. Here are a few online this will get you attention and make engines like Google, Yahoo! News and press release ideas: you stand out. Bing, as well as influential bloggers in your industry, for as little as 18 euro a • Launching new products or features Remember to avoid: time. Search for “online press release • Winning an award • Industry jargon that your custo- distribution” or similar to find the com- • Announcing survey results mers might not understand and panies active in your country or region. • Contributing to a charity or helping words like “greatest”, “industry the environment leading” or “pioneering”, which Lastly, you can always pitch your release • Giving away free information, such have been used so many times that to online industry journalists and edi- as survey results or market studies. they are no longer effective tors with a phone call. It’s old school • An overly formal tone PR, but it works. Internet publications Writing powerful press releases • Verbosity. Keep it short - between are constantly looking for news and if When you sit down to write your press 500 and 600 words only. your release is timely and newsworthy release, remember that you will distri- it might just make the grade. bute it online. This means that you can Most importantly, make sure your enjoy all the benefits of the web 2.0 and release contains news and is not just Don’t be offended that your news is are able to bypass traditional media to a poorly disguised promotion of your actually their second choice. Focus speak to your customers directly. company. Consumers do not like pro- on the fact that, by being published, motion, they like news. it will reach your target audience When you’re writing, remember to and increase your company’s online include: Getting the word out visibility. • Lots of key words, terms that people You can, but don’t have to, spend money would use to look for you online. or rely on journalists to get coverage for This will increase the release’s the releases you write. Publishing the search engine rankings release on your company’s website,
4 5 What’s on tonight.eu?
As .eu celebrates its fifth birthday, so do all the .eu domain names registered five years ago. Tonight.eu is a European website network dedicated to urban nightlife and they registered their .eu domain name during .eu’s first month, April 2006.
Text: Catherine Dowdell Photos: Courtesy of Tonight.eu
onight.eu was founded by city, it is a sub-domain under our main tonight.eu website makes use of Face- Federico Pomi to answer the tonight.eu domain,” he explains. “We book, Twitter, email and RSS feeds to question, “What shall I do to- use tonight.eu not just as a domain spread the word. night?” The website started life name but as a brand for all our market- And taking tonight.eu with you in Milan, Italy, in 2000 to help ing activities.” on a night out is as simple as typing planT nights out by offering up-to-date “http://m.tonight.eu” into your mobile venue and event information with Active nightlife communities phone’s browser. The mobile version is unbiased reviews. Growing beyond Italy Tonight.eu keeps in with the “in” crowd free and compatible with most mobile meant a change in web address from by using different information sources phones. The tonight.eu team know the milanotonight.it to tonight.eu. Now, to give extensive coverage of what is importance of the mobile version, with tonight.eu is available for 16 European going on in each city. User-generated Federico observing that it generates cities, providing an easy way to discover content is a vital component and website “about a tenth of our traffic and has concerts, restaurants, exhibitions, visitors, venue owners, promoters and been growing at an amazing rate in the parties and other social happenings in ticketing partners can upload material. past two years.” each city. This means that an active nightlife The decision to use .eu was part of the community has sprung up around each Our audience is your business growth to scale up to more cities after city’s website – especially in Italy – as Tonight.eu has an urban audience aged achieving success in Milan. “I’d say the users share their unbiased suggestions, between 18 and 35 years and according first benefit of using .eu was a different reviews, videos and pictures on a daily to Federico, the website network cur- perception from other companies that basis. rently gets more than four million we had switched our vision from a local “We think that the credibility of our visits per year. This audience dynamic to global market,” remembers Federico brand is in allowing people to write helps drive tonight.eu’s business model, Pomi. “We immediately boosted the reve- what they want and immediately where they sell online advertising space nue we got from website advertising publish it,” says Federico. “You get a to global companies who target this age and started signing deals with compa- complete idea of a venue by reading profile. Similarly, tonight.eu also sells nies we previously struggled to get in just three or four different points of promotional services and marketing touch with before.” view, be it a huge nightclub or a cosy tools to venue owners and event promo- Federico sees the main benefit of wine bar.” ters, as tonight.eu users are also their .eu is “to be European and local at the Information sharing about the latest, potential customers. same time”. “When we open a new coolest event is vital and each city’s
6 7 Amsterdam BarcelonaBerlinBolognaBrescia Dublin Bucharest FlorenceGenoaLondonMilan Monte CarloParisRomeTurinVerona
“We use tonight.eu not just as a domain name but as a brand for all our marketing activities.”
Yourcity.tonight.eu Today there are 16 tonight.eu websites, published in multiple languages. Expan- sion continues as the tonight.eu team has launched a partnership programme inviting businesses and third parties to create their own “Cities Tonight”. When asked which is his favourite tonight.eu city, Federico responds “Well, obviously it is Milan as it is the website with the longest history. I am also very proud of the job done in Bucharest – it has huge potential and is proving the value of our franchising model.”
Visit tonight.eu.
Federico Pomi, CEO and founder of tonight.eu
6 7 “The 1000 .eu registrars who registered one million names for their customers in less than 13 hours made our launch the biggest in TLD history.”
The untold story
EURid General Manager Marc Van Wesemael looks Italy. “By that time, the European Com- mission had planned an information back on the run up to the launch of the .eu top-level session in Brussels to provide more bid details. During a breakfast session, .be, domain (TLD), one of the highlights of his career in .it and .se sat around the table and we the domain industry. decided: ‘Let’s do it’.” Seven other bids were submitted in total. A nail-biting time followed Text: Brigitte Lagrou Photo: Studioworks as each one was evaluated. “When we learnt that we had won we were really happy. And then it dawned on us: the real work had only just begun.” So s with many big projects, ther. “Then we thought about it for a began a series of meetings with the EURid started by chance. “I while and came to a conclusion: If our European Commission. During this was General Manager of DNS system is so good, why not make a bid time EURid was officially founded as Belgium at the time and we for .eu ourselves?” a not-for-profit organisation and the had just implemented a state- fledgling registry advised the EC on the Aof-the art automated registration sys- Strength in numbers Public Policy Rules, guidelines explain- tem. That prompted other registries The .be team decided to put together ing the implementation and function to ask us if we wanted to collaborate a bid with other smaller European of .eu and the .eu charter. on a bid for the .eu top-level domain,” ccTLDs to stand a better chance of Mr Van Wesemael explains. However, being successful. After talking to Under pressure following a decision by the board, .be several candidates, they approached The official launch of .eu was planned chose not to pursue the idea any fur- the ccTLD registries for Sweden and for 1 December 2005, 14 months later,
8 9 “It was a truly memorable moment Registrars remember when the first .eu domain names started the .eu launch to scroll across the screen.” “The high point was getting total.eu for the French petrol company Total. As that came through, there were shouts of satisfaction and I was reminded of one of those movies to coincide with an important EC meet- all the TLDs that have launched since,” where there's a successful Cape ing in Brussels. In line with launch notes Mr Van Wesemael. Canaveral launch and everyone in requirements, EURid had to publish all the control room is high-fiving each the necessary information at least two Record breakers other and hugging.” months beforehand, on 30 September, “The day we opened .eu to the public, Stéphane Van Gelder, INDOM Group NBT, France but as a supplier hadn't delivered the on 7 April 2006, is a day I’ll never forget: necessary operational hardware and the 1000 .eu registrars who registered couldn't even guarantee a delivery one million names for their customers date, the team wasn’t sure they would in less than 13 hours made our launch “The Italian developer we’d hired to be able to publish the information on the biggest in TLD history.” There was develop our EPP system in time for time. “We faced a tough decision: to go a record amount of traffic that day, at the launch refused to hand over the ahead with the launch on 1 December some points up to 146 transactions application until we had paid his or not? After many sleepless nights and per second, but EURid had everything invoice in full. Two days before the consultation with the .eu board, we in place to make sure the launch went launch we still had no system and, decided it was just too risky.” flawlessly. The EURid General Manager because I knew it took four days to While the EC understood EURid’s recalls, “It was a truly memorable mo- process an international bank trans- concerns, they were keen to launch .eu ment when the first .eu domain names fer, I was getting desperate. I tried to before the end of 2005 as originally started to scroll across the screen.” And persuade him to hand over the files, planned, so EURid proposed a launch that was five years ago. but he refused to send anything until date of a week later after organising his invoice had been paid. Only once that replacement hardware be on Looking ahead I had promised to get in my car and standby should the original supplier Mr Van Wesemael is optimistic about drive all the way to Italy to give him not deliver on time. On 7 December the future of EURid and .eu. “Steady the money in cash if that was what 2005, .eu’s four-month registration and healthy growth will allow us to it took to get our system on time, did period, known as Sunrise, began. become and remain a market leader, he agree to send us the files.” During this time governments and because what we offer is more than just Taranov Kuzma, Versanus Kft., Hungary trademark owners could register their a domain. Through .eu, EU residents .eu domain names ahead of the general can express their European identity public, provided they could prove online and feel confident while doing “We had prepared all our systems in their rights to the domain names they so, thanks to our efforts to increase anticipation of the launch and that wanted. online security. Our registrars too see morning we were all nervously wait- the added value of .eu for their busi- ing to register our first .eu domain Dawn of Sunrise ness because we strive to simplify pro- name. But as the clock struck eleven There had been Sunrise periods before cedures and give them a user-friendly nothing happened. We panicked and for other TLD launches, but EURid was registration interface.” started checking our systems to see the first to introduce the concept of a The TLD market is changing as new if they were functioning correctly, Sunrise validation agent, an organisa- extensions compete for market share, although everything seemed to be tion with the necessary expertise that but Mr Van Wesemael hopes that the fine. It turns out that the EURid sys- examines each domain name applica- hype around the new TLDs will draw tems were dealing with a flood of .eu tion to check if the applicant has the attention to the existing, more estab- domain name requests and, after the right to the domain name they are lished extensions. He notes, “We cer- first fifteen minutes, once the initial applying for. “We felt a validation agent tainly have challenging times ahead, rush had passed, we were finally able was necessary given that we were going but the .eu team is looking forward to start registering names.” to receive applications in 23 languages, to the future. We have every reason to some of which were unfamiliar to us. believe that the next five years will be Marek Erneker, IGNUM s.r.o., Czech Republic We are quite proud of the validation as fulfilling as the last five.” agent concept, as it has been copied by
8 9 Who loves .eu?
With 3.4 million registered domain names, it’s a fact that .eu is popular with EU residents. But some have embraced it more than others. We examine whether there is a pattern to .eu’s popularity.
Text: Staffan Wallin
A measurable indicator of .eu’s attractiveness is its share of But why? the total domain name market in each EU Member State.1 Two factors offer possible explanations as to why .eu has The map below reveals large regional differences. .eu is well become popular in certain countries. established in the north-eastern part of the EU and the Neth- erlands.2 In Estonia, Poland, Slovakia and Lithuania it is even • The population is accustomed to using two-character exten- competing with .com to be the second most popular exten- sions, like their national TLD. These are often countries sion after the national top-level domain (TLD). where the national domain is more popular than .com. • The population is positive towards the EU. .eu is less well established in the periphery of the EU, howev- er. In Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom, for example, To investigate the relationship between popularity of .eu and only one registration in 40 is a .eu domain name. preference for the national TLD, we compare .eu’s market share with national TLD registrations divided by .com registra- tions for each country. The relationship (shown in the graph below) is clear. The main exceptions are Denmark and Roma- nia, where .eu has not been widely adopted in spite of national domain popularity, and France, where .eu is doing well in .eu share of total TLD market spite of the prevalence of .com.3 Finland >7% 10 Sweden Estonia 4-7% Slovakia 9 Latvia Denmark 8 Lithuania <4% Ireland United Kingdom 7 Netherlands Romania Poland Poland 6 Germany Hungary Belgium Belgium Estonia Czech 5 Luxembourg Republic Slovakia TL D dominates Denmark Latvia Lithuania 4 France Austria Hungary Germany Austria Greece Czech Republic Slovenia
N ational 3 Romania Netherlands UK Sweden 2 Portugal Bulgaria Italy Portugal Finland Slovenia Spain 1 Spain Italy France 0 Greece 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12%
Cyprus .eu market share Malta National TLD popularity vs .eu market share .eu market share in EU Member States Sources: CENTR, EURid, national TLD registries, ZookNIC Sources: CENTR, EURid, national TLD registries, ZookNIC To see whether there is a relationship between .eu’s popula- rity and attitudes towards the EU, we compare .eu’s market share with information from the Eurobarometer survey on public opinion in the EU. Using this EU membership attitude data, the results show that while the relationship is weaker, a trend can still be seen. .eu has a low market share in the UK 1 A country’s domain name market is defined as the total number of domain names, including the national while it has captured a sizeable fraction of the market in EU domain, .eu and the larger generic TLDs, .com, .net, .org, .info and .biz. positive countries like Estonia and the Netherlands. 2 Registration numbers for .eu in Cyprus, Ireland, Luxembourg and Malta do not accurately reflect .eu’s popularity in those countries as they are strongly driven by domain name speculators who register large 3 Data from Bulgaria has been omitted due to unavailability as has data from Cyprus, Ireland, Luxembourg numbers of domain names with the aim of selling them for a profit. and Malta, where numbers are distorted by domain name speculators.
10 11 There are exceptions, however. .eu is not widely used in EU Based on these two factors, it appears that .eu is popular in positive Spain and Denmark, while the less positive views EU positive countries with a developed market for their in the Czech Republic have not had a visible impact on the national TLD, while it is less used in most EU sceptic coun- Czech interest in .eu domain names. tries and countries where the population is accustomed to .com. The exception is Denmark, where .eu has not been widely adopted despite the popularity of .dk and an EU positive population.
Attitudes to the EU Looking ahead
Finland Very positive Using the two factors, we can predict, to some extent, how well .eu will be adopted in the EU Candidate Countries once Sweden Estonia Positive they are eligible to register .eu domain names. Latvia Denmark Lithuania Indifferent or negative Ireland United Kingdom Turkey Netherlands Although the Turkish population is positive towards the Germany Poland Belgium EU, .tr, Turkey’s national TLD, is not well established. Czech Luxembourg Republic Slovakia Since the strength of the national domain is more in- France Austria Hungary fluential in determining .eu’s popularity than a popula- Slovenia Romania tion’s attitude towards the EU, this means that .eu might
Portugal Italy Bulgaria not be widely adopted. Spain Macedonia Greece Information about the strength of the Macedonian Cyprus Malta national TLD is not readily available, but seven leading Attitudes toward the EU Macedonian daily newspapers use .mk for their websites, Source: Eurobarometer indicating a strong national domain. Coupled with a very EU positive population, this signifies that .eu could Netherlands 60% be widely used in Macedonia. Poland Slovakia Denmark Belgium 50% Iceland Spain Romania Estonia Even though its population is less positive towards the 40% Sweden EU, .eu could do well in Iceland too, thanks to the strong Italy Germany Lithuania 30% national TLD .is. However, the country’s geographic loca- Slovenia Hungary tion could mean that Icelanders view the domain as less Portugal Greece 20% EU positive useful. Finland France Czech Republic Austria 10% Croatia Latvia The Croatian national TLD, .hr, is widely used. This 0% UK means that, despite an EU sceptic population, .eu could -10% enjoy widespread use in Croatia once the country 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14% becomes a member of the European Union. .eu market share
EU attitudes vs .eu market share Sources: Eurobarometer, CENTR, EURid, national TLD registries, ZookNIC
10 11 A true cocktail lover
Armed only with his determination and a cocktail shaker, enterprising Belgian Fred Vandenhoeke founded Cocktaillovers - a mobile catering company that brings deliciously sophisticated cocktails to wherever you are.
Text: Megan Vosloo Photos: Lies Duerinck
Fred Vandenhoeke, owner of Cocktaillovers
he idea for Cocktaillovers He explains, “I don’t have my own bar tells them I’m international,” he says. came in 2006. After four years because I work with external partners. Although 80 - 90% of Cocktaillovers’ in the hospitality industry, Fred This allows my customers to choose business is generated through its web- was a master cocktail maker, which bar they want for an event, site, Fred also promotes his company but wanted to be his own boss. depending on the theme or atmos- on other online platforms, such as SoT with no financial backing, but a very phere they want to create. I can provide Facebook and Twitter. “Social network- strong business vision, he took a leap design bars, tropical bars, even an ice ing plays an important role in the of faith: “When I started, I planned to bar if that’s what they want.” Cocktaillovers marketing strategy,” operate Cocktaillovers part time,” he he notes. “It stimulates the market says, “but within a month the demand Location, location, location by continuously letting people know was so high I had to focus on it one While a unique selling point of where we are and what we are doing.” hundred percent.” Cocktaillovers is its mobility, Fred is He confirms that many of the work- In the five years since he set up his aware that he does not have the option shops and private events that he caters, business, Fred has served cocktails all of using a brick and mortar store to like weddings or family parties, begin over Belgium and further afield, inclu- drum up business. This is why he with contact via social media channels. ding Germany and France. He caters finds his location on the Internet, both private and business events and cocktaillovers.eu, particularly impor- Create and communicate also offers workshops on location, in tant. As the owner of a cocktail catering com- which he passes on cocktail recipes and “My website is my business card. It’s pany, Fred relishes every opportunity techniques to fellow cocktail enthusi- important for me to have a site that he gets to pass on the art of cocktail asts. allows people to find me,” he stresses. making, be it at a bachelor party or a To each event he brings all his own And as the innovative Belgian had large corporate fair. In his years behind supplies, from the fresh strawberries always planned for Cocktaillovers to be the bar, he has observed that people are and mint he needs for Daiquiris and an international operation, a .eu website always fascinated to see a product being Mojitos to the glasses, cocktail shakers was the obvious choice. “European made by a craftsman. “There is not and refrigerators. He will even organise clients are more likely to visit my .eu much work involved in pouring some- the bar. website than my .be website because .eu one a pint or serving them a glass of
12 13 “European clients are more likely to visit my .eu website than my .be website because .eu tells them I’m international.”
wine, but I can captivate people when I prepare a cocktail,” he says. Of the 2000 - 3000 existing cocktail recipes, he knows about 100 by heart. He also enjoys developing new cocktails to add to his repertoire. The Mustard, a signature Cocktaillovers’ cocktail which he developed last year, is an unusual but delightful drink based on the Belgian lemon brandy called Jenever, cucumber syrup, mustard and egg white. “It’s not typical, but it’s the ideal cocktail to have with mussels or crayfish. When people think of cocktails they often think of something sweet or tropical, but actually they are far more diverse,” he notes. Fred derives a lot of satisfaction from this aspect of his work, coming up with new flavours and serving cocktails to people who are truly appreciative of what he does. “Yes,” he confirms, “it’s being able to be creative and interact with people that makes it worth it for me.”
Visit cocktaillovers.eu.
12 13 DNSSEC The next level in online security To many people, Internet security is about anti-virus software, firewalls and regularly changing passwords. However, .eu has a wider view and has taken steps within the Internet’s infrastructure to protect 3.4 million .eu domain names.
Text: Catherine Dowdell
The behind-the-scenes security measure EURid, the .eu registry, has protected However, if the website is not protected that .eu has implemented is called the .eu top-level domain, but for by DNSSEC, there is a chance that the DNSSEC - short for Domain Name DNSSEC to reach its full potential, all answer to their browser’s DNS request System Security Extensions. It gives .eu domain names also need to be pro- is modified to return an answer which online consumers greater confidence tected by joining the chain of trust so might redirect them to a third-party by reducing the chance that they will that each level of the DNS can authenti- webpage. This website will present a be led to fake websites and tricked into cate answers and be trusted by the level list of alternatives, which may not in- supplying personal information. above. clude the website they were originally looking for. What is DNSSEC? Why is DNSSEC important? Although this may seem helpful to The basis of any Internet presence is a The major benefit of DNSSEC is that it the end user, website owners end up domain name, such as eurid.eu, which gives authenticity and integrity to DNS losing web traffic and therefore custo- is used for websites and email. Looking replies by building security into the mers. And the end user may never know up a domain name, or URL, involves a fabric of the Internet. that they made a spelling mistake and set of questions and answers whenever Without this security protocol, were redirected. a browser issues a request to find the attackers can position themselves next Protecting your website with DNSSEC website it is looking for. But can the to genuine DNS servers and launch ensures that your customers will see browser trust the answer it receives? so-called cache-poisoning attacks by a DNS error page if they misspell your Has the answer been modified or inter- supplying false data and so redirect- URL. This means that they will type cepted by a third party? ing traffic. While this kind of attack is it again and successfully reach their With DNSSEC, name servers and rare in proportion to Internet traffic desired destination - your website. browsers can verify and authenticate volume, when it does occur the conse- the answers they receive. This means quences are severe. What can I do? that there is a smaller chance that Unfortunately, this very important DNSSEC helps make the Internet safer. Internet users can be redirected to DNSSEC benefit is the least obvious as As more top-level domains implement ill-intentioned websites or have their it is not visible to Internet users. Cur- DNSSEC, it is gaining momentum and email intercepted by rogue systems. rently there are no logos or messages becoming more commonplace. But that website owners can use to promote more work is needed so that everyone How does it work? their DNSSEC-enabled status, although with a .eu domain name, website or DNSSEC works by checking answers at the Internet community is discussing email address can benefit from the each level of the Internet infrastruc- ways to clearly show that a website is collective online security that DNSSEC ture – the Domain Name System DNSSEC-enabled. offers. (DNS) – where each level in the hier- A more tangible benefit of DNSSEC is Please instruct your domain name archy verifies the level above through that it can prevent website owners from provider, your registrar, to add DNSSEC what is known as a ‘chain of trust’. As losing valuable traffic to their websites. to your .eu domain name – a process a top-level domain, .eu is an important If a potential customer types a web known as signing – so that it joins the part of this DNS infrastructure. address into their browser, but makes a chain of trust and protects visitors to .eu implemented DNSSEC in Septem- spelling mistake, they should normally your website. ber 2010 and was one of the first of the get an error page saying that the domain world’s largest top-level domains to does not exist, which tells them that have a complete DNSSEC chain of trust. the address they typed was incorrect.
14 15 Five questions to mark a fifth birthday Dr Paul Twomey was President and CEO of ICANN, the chief rule- making body for Internet policy, at the time of the .eu launch in 2006. Five years on, he answers five questions on .eu and the new developments in the domain industry. Dr Paul Twomey, President and CEO of ICANN from March 2003 to June 2009 Text: Catherine Dowdell and Megan Vosloo Photo: Courtesy of Paul Twomey
.eu is one of the ten largest top- Domain Name System Security 1 level domains (TLDs) in the world. 4 Extensions (DNSSEC) uptake What was ICANN’s expectation worldwide is quite slow. What can when it opened to the public on registries do to encourage the 7 April 2006? Did you think it public to adopt the protocol? would be a success? “I was very curious to see I think they should promote DNSSEC .eu launched at an interesting time. to the domain name holders for whom Back then, many of the Domain Name whether European businesses it offers the most value, like banks and System’s (DNS) founding fathers felt that in particular would use companies doing e-commerce. Registries domain names were nothing more than should work with these registrants and technical identifiers, ways of linking .eu to express the identity they their industry bodies directly to help to IP addresses, while I believed that wished to present to their them brand DNSSEC as yet another step Internet users increasingly saw top-level they are taking to improve online secu- domains as a form of identity, not just customers.” rity for their customers. This will allow identifiers. So when .eu came along, I DNSSEC to achieve broader recognition was very curious to see whether Euro- and become more widely adopted. pean businesses in particular would use Companies like legal practices, that it to express the identity they wished to the DNS. Just as with .eu, I expect that rely on the DNS to move intellectual present to their suppliers and custo- the success of this process will be driven property and may be vulnerable to mers. by producer and consumer perception attack, should be another point of focus. Despite the early fluctuations thanks of online identity and their desires to be to top-level domain speculators, .eu’s associated with particular extensions. How do you see the opening up of long-term growth seems to have been 5 the TLD market affecting existing driven by a demand from the real What is big in the industry right TLDs, like .eu? economy to be identified with the 3 now? I doubt that .eu domain name holders European Union market. Its success has A very big thing is the introduction of will abandon the TLD, precisely because confirmed my hypothesis. internationalised country code top-level they consider top-level domains to be domains (ccTLDs). Internationalised a source of identity. I do expect large What is the next big thing in the ccTLDs are top-level domains that con- companies to turn their brands into 2 domain industry? tain characters other than the standard top-level domains, but I don’t think they Probably the liberalisation of the "a" to "z" or "0" to "9", like the Greek will walk away from the identity oppor- generic top-level domain space so that .δοκιμή. They are particularly important tunities offered by country code TLDs, anyone can create their own TLD, like for Internet users who don’t write in the including .eu. .com, .biz or .museum. This will encour- Latin alphabet. Having said that, competition has age competition because it will result IDN ccTLD applications for East Asia, numerous consumer benefits, particu- in more types of top-level domains: the Arab world and countries that use larly in terms of product innovation entrepreneurial extensions like .shop, or the Cyrillic alphabet have already been and price. I look forward to seeing what city and regional TLDs and TLDs based ‘fast tracked’. I know .eu has compre- DNS innovations will emerge as more on brands and organisations. This will hensive plans for being part of this competitors enter the market. be a fascinating period in the history of change to the DNS.
14 15 Colourful cakes for all occasions Candy Cakes is the brainchild of Mike Thomaides, a London patisserie owner with an entre- preneurial eye. Mike realised that the products that he and his competitors offered their cus- tomers were, although of high quality, a bit traditional and boring. This gave him an idea.
Text: Megan Vosloo Photos: Courtesy of Candy Cakes
“We needed to position ourselves in the heart of
Mike Thomaides, owner of Candy Cakes the European Community. I thought the best way to start would be to get a .eu domain name.”
16 17 ueue Candy Cakes, the tional sporting event, they can also cre- ness and knew that, to achieve this, we modern patisserie and ate their own cupcakes with the Design would need to position ourselves in the café that specialises in a Cake application. heart of the European Community. I high quality cakes and Three easy steps are all it takes to cre- thought the best way to start would be cupcakes with unusual ate the perfect cupcake. Goods ordered to get a .eu domain name,” he says. flavours that delight online are delivered the next working He has also already registered the the eye and tantalise day - freshness guaranteed. Candy Cakes trademark in the Euro- the taste buds. Mike explains how it works, “We can pean Community in preparation of his “I wanted to bring something unique guarantee quality because, once we move into the rest of Europe. Qand innovative to the cake and café have set up a local franchise, the cakes Mike believes that Candy Cakes is a world and bring the fun back into ba- are made locally and delivered by a truly European brand that can offer king,” Mike explains. “I spotted a gap in something unique to consumers and he the market and Candy Cakes was born.” and the Candy Cakes team are current- The enterprising patissier makes his ly in negotiation with new franchise cakes using only the highest quality partners, many of whom are European. ingredients. Each creation is finished So, if all goes according to plan for off with a fusion of vibrantly coloured the ambitious baker, it won’t be long icing and an exotic candy topping. The before mainland Europeans too will be result is a confection that stands out in able place their orders on candycakes.eu a crowd. The candied cakes are sold in or visit a local franchise to get their the Candy Cakes stores, cake shops that taste of a delicious Candy Cake. look like sweetshops, where customers Visit candycakes.eu. can order bespoke cakes, buy their favourites or enjoy them in store with local courier company, ensuring that a hot cup of Brazilian coffee. our customers get them as quickly and While Mike’s offerings are unusual as fresh as possible.” The cakes are also and, some would say, not for the faint dispatched in packaging that preserves hearted, the Candy Cakes concept has flavour and moisture. obviously been a success. Since he Currently a healthy 20% of Candy started in 2006, Mike has expanded his Cakes’ business is generated through its business to include seven shops in cen- website, but Mike has no intention of tral London employing 45 people, and resting on his laurels. He wants to take an online store, candycakes.eu. Candy Cakes into mainland Europe and registered the .eu web address, Candy Cakes on the web candycakes.eu, to help him realise his Not only can UK customers order cakes ambitions. online from a staggering product range, including low-sugar and gluten Candy Cakes on the continent free options and cakes for every special “I had always envisioned that Candy occasion, holiday, national or interna- Cakes would become a European busi-
16 17 The Neelie Kroes interview On .eu and the European digital landscape .eu Identity spoke to the EC Vice-President and European Digital Commissioner, Neelie Kroes. She shared her thoughts about .eu’s achievements during the past five years and future European online initiatives.
Text: Catherine Dowdell Photo: Courtesy of the European Commission
When the first regulation on .eu was .eu success by putting up the largest passed in 2002, the hope was that “Since its creation, volume of names for registration. How- a European top-level domain (TLD) .eu has marked out ever, they are followed by the names would promote the use and access to of families and persons, an interesting Internet networks and virtual mar- a European territory phenomenon, which shows that .eu is kets, improve the interoperability of not just a business concern. trans-European networks and give on the web.” the internal market higher visibility Did you foresee .eu appealing to What do you consider to be .eu’s on the Internet. Do you think that small and mid-sized enterprises greatest achievement during the past these objectives have been realised? (SMEs)? What is it about the .eu TLD five years? that makes it attractive to European Yes, absolutely. Since its creation, .eu businesses? I think the overall number of registra- has marked out a European territory tions speaks for itself. To date 3.4 mil- on the web. It has made it possible for Certainly, when the Commission lion businesses and citizens have signed businesses, associations and individu- began working on the idea of a single up for a .eu domain name - an increase als with a European calling to show top-level domain for Europe, we of 6% between 2009 and 2010. This their identity on the Internet and offer thought about the potential benefits means that in just a few years, .eu has guarantees of quality and security. for both large companies and small become the preferred option for a very In this respect, the EU internal mar- businesses. large number of European companies ket has obtained much larger visibility The Internet is a tool that busi- and individuals. on the Internet. nesses can use to reach out globally, .eu is confirming its position as the For businesses, opting for .eu is a far beyond their traditional local or ninth largest top-level domain in the very simple way to show that they are national markets. The added value for world. established in one of the 27 EU coun- any business in using a .eu rather than In the third quarter of 2010, some tries and therefore subject to the high a country code (for instance .de or milestones were reached in terms of standards set by EU law - particularly .fr) top-level domain name is to show registration numbers: Germany passed regarding data protection, consumer clients that their specific company is the one million .eu domain names rules or the EU's financial market doing business in all of Europe. This mark and Belgium registered its one regulations. is the "brand power" of .eu and it is hundred thousandth .eu domain This is one of the ways in which the particularly attractive for SMEs which name. In Baltic countries, .eu names Commission has sought to reassure can now use this additional tool to "go are becoming increasingly popular: at Europeans and encourage the growth global". the end of 2010, registration numbers of exchanges on the web, resulting in Of course, not only businesses are in Estonia were up by 39% and in the promotion of the use and access to involved. EURid statistics show that Lithuania by 16%, compared to just Internet networks and virtual markets. businesses have played a major part in one year earlier.
18 19 Neelie Kroes, EC Vice-President and European Digital Commissioner
glad that since December 2009, it is “...in just a few years, .eu has become the preferred possible to register names in all the option for a very large number of European alphabets used in the 27 EU Member States (which include not only Latin, companies and individuals.” but also Cyrillic and Greek) and there- fore in all characters (for instance "à", This is for me the greatest achieve- of registrations) and quality (services). "ą", "ä", and so on), used in the 23 offi- ment of this Commission initiative: The Commission will work with EURid cial languages of the European Union. .eu establishes a direct link between to keep and improve these trends in the By the end of 2010, the number of an individual or company and the Eu- following years to expand the success IDNs in the .eu portfolio was 57 826, ropean Union. It values Europe beyond of .eu in the TLD community. The areas in other words, 1.74% of all registrations. any territorial boundaries or market of potential further progress are many, I expect this number to keep on growing. place – it is an expression of European stability, security, multilingualism, etc. The Commission is currently discuss- identity. Just take the example of multilin- ing with the Internet Corporation for gualism on the Internet, and more Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) How do you see .eu evolving in the specifically the introduction of Inter- to introduce IDN also at the top level. next five years and how will its role nationalised Domain Names (IDNs) at This is a very important issue for us: I in the community change? all levels of the DNS. Whereas in the see no reason why every European past, domain names registered under citizen – and indeed every Internet I would hope to see a continued steady .eu could only contain the characters user – could not use the scripts of all growth of .eu, both in quantity (number "a" to "z", digits "0" to "9" and "-", we are our 23 languages at the end of the URL. >>>
18 19 “Half of Europe's productivity growth in the past 15 years has been driven by information and communication technologies. We need to capitalise on this potential even more.”
This can be a win-win: I believe intro- change and the ageing population. best practices and I take EURid's role ducing IDNs at the top level will bring The Internet is central to this plan, in managing .eu as one of these key less confusion and more stability and with interoperability, security and experiences. clarity for users. inclusiveness as central features of its development. What can the EC do to further How do you see the opening of the Let me give you a couple of examples – increase Internet penetration in TLD market affecting .eu? out of a list of more than a hundred Europe? concrete actions: for instance, the The Commission welcomes, in princi- Digital Agenda for Europe proposes Access to fast and ultra fast Internet is ple, ICANN's intention to extend the measures to eliminate regulatory bar- one of three conditions that will speed top-level domain market, as this would riers to cross-border e-commerce, such up economic recovery and allow Europe bring the key benefits of increasing as the completion of the Single Euro to grow strongly into the digital age. consumer choice and of promoting Payment Area, making a proposal for The other two being richer content competition and innovation. It has to a legal framework for cross-border rec- and services, and the take-up of ICT be done in a reasoned way, taking into ognition and interoperability of secure tools by all. account the comments of all stake- eAuthentication systems, or initiatives More concretely, the Commission's holders, including of course the public on consumer dispute resolution and vision focuses on offering broadband authorities, when the general interest enhancing customer trust by updating coverage (combining fixed and wire- is at stake. the EU's data protection regulatory less) for all Europeans by 2015, with Overall, I see this as a further incen- framework. Internet speeds gradually increasing tive for .eu to always improve its offer Another stream of action in the up to 30 Mbps and fostering the de- of services in a more competitive Digital Agenda for Europe sets out ini- ployment and take-up of next genera- environment. tiatives related to fostering trust and tion access networks (NGA) above 100 security. We have already launched legi- Mbps in large parts of the EU territory Is the EC planning any other online slative initiatives on the modernisa- by 2020. This vision was endorsed by initiatives that will benefit Europe- tion of ENISA, the European Network all EU Ministers when they met in ans? and Information Security Agency, and December 2010. fighting botnets as a criminal activity. The Digital Agenda will also boost Half of Europe's productivity growth Other measures push for Member penetration by improving digital in the past 15 years has been driven States and the EU establishing fast literacy and competences. This will by information and communication reaction mechanisms in the event be made a priority for the European technologies. We need to capitalise on of cyber attacks, notably through Social Fund and of the "New Skills for this potential even more. national and governmental Computer New Jobs" flagship of the Europe 2020 This is the reason I launched the Emergency Response Teams (CERT). initiative. “Digital Agenda for Europe” which sets Private stakeholders and public Finally, The Digital Agenda will ambitious targets to deliver sustain- administrations have joint obligations increase penetration rates by promo- able economic and social benefits to to fight against spam, phishing and ting new services, such as eHealth and our continent. identity theft, and protect the resil- ICT-based support for the independent The Digital Agenda addresses seven ience of the Internet against accidents living of elderly people; promoting major priorities: a digital single mar- or deliberate cyber attacks. With the creative content and cultural diversity, ket, increased interoperability, higher new EU telecom rules, the obligations such as with the europeana.eu portal Internet trust and security, much fast- of telecom companies and ISPs regard- and further developing e-government er Internet access, more investment in ing the integrity of networks, services services and intelligent transport sys- research and development, enhanced and privacy have been more clearly tems for better and more sustainable digital literacy skills and inclusion, defined in case of privacy or security mobility, etc. These are all converging and the application of information breaches. initiatives that will help Internet pen- and communications technologies For all these aspects, we should etration in Europe. to social challenges such as climate therefore ensure all players share their
20 21 20 21 .eu mini-guide to celebrating Make your good times unforgettable with our inspiring list of .eu websites from companies in the celebration business.
Text: Catherine Dowdell
Candy Bouquet As a delicious alternative to sending flowers for special occasions, why not send a colourful bouquet of choco- lates and sweets? Candy-bouquet.eu, in Limassol, Cyprus, will deliver bou- quets of stem-wrapped confectionaries and fun accessories that won’t wilt or fade. A memorable way to mark a special day. Photo: Helder Almeida Website: candy-bouquet.eu Fantasy Costumes Nothing to wear to that fancy-dress party next week? Fantasycostumes.eu offers fancy-dress outfits, shoes and accessories to customers in Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Two online stores, for the Baltic region and United Kingdom, helpfully organise costumes by theme – such as 1970s, fairytales or pirates – and gender.
Photo: Thomas Nylén Website: fantasycostumes.eu Photo: David Tuttle Pure Gifts eWine Puregifts.eu from Riga, Latvia, offers Surprise your host with a bottle of Ice and Sand Events enticing chocolate truffles in various wine from ewine.eu. eWine, a German Based in The Hague in the Netherlands, gift box sizes that can be personalised online wine retailer, specialises in the Ice and Sand Events put on spectacular with your company’s logo. With fla- import of South African wines. In co- ice and sand sculpture events through- vours that range from passion fruit to operation with South African partners, out Europe. Their expertise is also avai- tiramisu, served as dark or milk choco- eWine offers the latest and most inter- lable for parties and corporate events, late truffles, and boxes that hold from esting wines South Africa has to offer, where an eye-catching ice sculpture or two to 72 chocolates, there are plenty currently listing over 500 wines from ice bar can add a dramatic focal point to of options to choose from. 90 producers. any occasion.
Website: puregifts.eu Website: ewine.eu Website: iceandsandevents.eu
22 23 Xantra Greek company Xantra specialises in creating luxurious yet affordable hand-made jewellery pieces, perfect for any occasion. Designer Kiki Tsiliakos incorporates diverse materials, inclu- ding Swarovski crystals, semi-precious stones, pearls, glass beads and leather, into her one-of-a-kind creations. You can purchase Xantra jewellery whole- sale or online at xantra.eu.
Website: xantra.eu
Concept Catering Treat your guests to stylish, gourmet cuisine from Portuguese party caterer, Concept Catering. Weddings, cocktail parties, wine tastings and gallery openings are only a few of the events Just So they cover. You can also turn your own Just So, from London in the United hand to gourmet cuisine by attending Kingdom, offers tailor-made event a Concept Catering workshop to learn management with the guarantee that the tricks of the trade while enjoying everything will be “just so”. Product great tasting food. and press launches, fashion shows, gala
and society dinners, and award ceremo- Website: conceptcatering.eu nies are but a few of the many types of events that Just So organises for some of Europe’s best-known brands.
Website: justso.eu Photo: Sarah Rich
Crazycakes Crazycakes sells bespoke cakes in Stam- Photo: prism68 Buy a Rose ford, the United Kingdom. Birthday PartyRama Send beautiful flowers that last and last and wedding cakes take all forms, in- United Kingdom-based PartyRama with buyarose.eu. Located in the Dutch cluding sculpted and tiered, and come provides an extensive range of party province of Limburg, this online store in vanilla, chocolate, coffee, lemon and accessories for all occasions. Table sells roses and all things rose-related. orange flavours. Order a cake online decorations, invitations, bags, stream- Take your pick from rosebushes, rose- at crazycakes.eu or learn to bake and ers and banners are just the tip of the flavoured food, rose-infused cosmetics decorate your own at one of the com- iceberg for this e-shop which delivers and rose-patterned household goods. pany’s cake-making workshops. across Europe.
Website: buyarose.eu Website: crazycakes.eu Website: partyrama.eu
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