Mohamed al Ghanim, the chairman of the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), said a new system would "promote the use and utility of the .ae domain name".
Mohamed al Ghanim, the chairman of the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), said a new system would "promote the use and utility of the .ae domain name".

Easier internet domain registration

Changes to the way the national internet domain is administered will make .ae web addresses easier to obtain.

Tom Gara

August 03, 2008

Changes to the way the national internet domain is administered will make web addresses ending in .ae easier to obtain. Until recently, registering a website under the UAE top-level domain (TLD) was a cumbersome, largely manual process, involving multiple passport photocopies and trips to the local Etisalat office. This stood in contrast to the near-instant online registration of websites in domains such as the US-administered .com, or .tv, which has become a national revenue source for the Pacific island of Tuvalu.

The process in the UAE was slower because there were just a handful of retailers, known as registrars, authorised to issue web addresses linked to the national TLD. That changes now that the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) has created .ae Domain Administration (aeDA) to licence international website retailers, meaning they can begin to offer .ae web addresses alongside more popular domains like .org and .fm.

Mohamed al Ghanim, the chairman of the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), said a new system would "promote the use and utility of the .ae domain name". Nadya al Jassmi, the registrar liaison manager of aeDA, said the new system "signifies the administration's move to embark on an initiative to promote the widespread usage of the .ae branding on a global scale". According to figures published by Xavier Media, an online company targeting web professionals, .ae is home to just 6.5 million web pages, below Moldova (.md, 7.3 million) and Western Samoa (.ws, 24 million).

But despite being number 65 on Xavier's list of the top 90 TLD's, registrars see potential in the .ae location. Instra Corporation, an Australian registrar, said it would sell .ae to its clients as a key location for the growing Middle Eastern electronic commerce market. "The UAE is in the perfect logical position for businesses to expand in Middle East, given its strategic location," said Tony Lentino, the chief executive of Instra.

It was unclear yesterday, however, if the aeDA system has been fully automated. Websites in the .ae domain could be booked on Instra's website yesterday, but an attempt to register such a site ended in the registration listed as "pending". Instra does warn customers that some national registries still work on old systems where manual faxing of documents is required. The aeDA administration referred all media enquiries to the TRA, which did not respond to requests for clarification.

While enabling a wider range of international registrars to sell space under the .ae domain should result in more websites being registered, the upcoming liberalisation of the entire TLD system could trim overall demand for country-level web addresses. In June, the internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the governing body that oversees the allocation of internet addresses, announced the most significant changes in the addressing system since the beginning of the world wide web more than 20 years ago.

The most significant change was the relaxing of regulations regarding the creation of new TLDs. Previously only available to sovereign nations and a handful of international bodies, individuals and businesses will be able to register their own TLD by the end of the year, bypassing country domains like .ae altogether. @Email:tgara@thenational.ae

While you're here
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On Women's Day
Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction

Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.

Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.

Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.

Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.

Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.

What are the guidelines?

Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.

Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.

Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.

Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.

Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.

Source: American Paediatric Association

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
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