IE Domain Registry t/a .IE

.ie accredited Registrar community An accredited Registrar is a company authorised to act as an agent on behalf of Registrants (customers) who need .ie websites and/or .ie email addresses. They are usually hosting providers who operate across a number of different business sectors, offering a wide range of services to their target markets. Most accredited Registrars will offer .ie domains as part of a bundle of services (hosting, email, storage, website builder, security products etc.) usually for an ongoing monthly fee. Links to many of our accredited Registrars’ websites can be found on our website at www.weare.ie/accredited-registrar- list . At the end of 2020, the channel comprised 125 accredited Registrars. Growth initiatives The Company does not actively advertise .ie directly to the end consumer. Instead, the Company operates a Co-Funded Marketing Programme (CFMP) for our .ie accredited Registrar channel. The purpose of the programme is to promote awareness, stimulate registration growth and encourage renewals of .ie domain names. The CFMP, in partnership with our Registrars, supports one of the Company’s key objectives of raising SMEs’ awareness about the importance of having an identifiably Irish online presence. We continued to offer the CFMP throughout 2020. Although somewhat restricted by Covid-19 lockdowns, the programme supported a range of Registrar marketing initiatives including radio commercials, social media advertising and direct marketing. This resulted in increased sales growth, promotion of .ie domain activation, with an email address or a website and resulted in up-selling products such as website builders and security products. Registrars who participated in the 2020 programme reported positive results with increased traffic to their websites and an increase in their .ie registrations. Supporting the business community Throughout 2020, we continued to support the business community in Ireland with a range of initiatives and sponsorships. Our objective is to help them celebrate excellence in digital processes, e-commerce and digital marketing. Indirectly, this helps to promote the .ie domain name and to encourage internet usage. We sponsored the Small Firms Association (SFA) National Small Business Awards. These awards celebrate the achievements of small business in Ireland and recognise the vital contribution of the small business community to the Irish economy. Launch of SFA National Small Business Awards 2020-2021 with Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD. Right (L-R) Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD and David Curtin, CEO .IE Additionally, by providing useful, relevant and informative digital content, we continued to build and strengthen relationships with key SME and micro- enterprise representative bodies such as the Local Enterprise Offices, Retail Excellence, Digital Business Ireland, Guaranteed Irish, Restaurants Association of Ireland, eCommerce Association of Ireland and the All Ireland Business Foundation. By working with these groups, we engage with their networks to promote the benefits of digital adoption and e-commerce. Business and Market Review IE Domain Registry CLG t/a .IE / Annual Report & Review 2020 32