The .tz domain registration promotion which commenced on 1^st May 2010 will end on 31^st July 2010. During this period .tz domains are registered for TZS 5,000 (Nursery, Primary & Secondary schools and TZS 20,000 (Companies, Governmental institutions, etc) instead of TZS 10,000 and TZS 45,000 respectively.

The past two months of promotion has seen an average growth of .tz domain registrations from about 60 domains to over 100 domains per month. This achievement is a result of joint efforts by tzNIC, its accredited Registrars, Resellrs and increasing awareness of Tanzanians on the benefits of using .tz domain names.

Other stakeholders are encouraged to register their services or businesses with tzNIC or its accredited registrars. The following are the 10 reasons why they should do so:

1. .tz domain name provides a Tanzanian identity in cyberspace
Tanzania has various identifiers including language (Swahili), national anthem and national flag. In cyber space, the .tz domain name gives a unique identity that has a distinct association with Tanzania. Therefore individuals, organizations and businesses looking for online identity that directly tells their locality (Tanzania) need to register their domains with tzNIC or its accredited registrars.

2. .tz domain names are affordable and readily available
tzNIC is a non-profit making company acting as a trustee of .tz country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD) space. Its key responsibility is to administer and manage the .tz domain space and ensure availability of .tz domain names at affordable fees. The current registration fee ranges between TZS 5,000 and TZS 25,000 while the annual maintenance fee ranges from TZS 5,000 to TZS 20,000. The fees have been set to cover only the operational costs.
Currently, tzNIC is operating just like airlines and travel agents - it offers registry services in parallel with its accredited registrars. This model ensures that registry services are readily available throughout the country. As from February 2010, tzNIC had accredited four (4) registrars namely University Computing Centre (UCC), IT Farm Ltd, Habari Node (formerly Arusha Node Marie) and SimbaNet Ltd.

3. .tz domain names enable businesses to be availed online
A .tz domain name owner has a chance to avail contents or information of his products or services online. This opens up an opportunity of reaching out customers worldwide, at an affordable cost and round the clock.

4. .tz domain name usage facilitates the diminution of Internet connectivity costs
The recent deployment of the SEACOM’s undersea fiber optic cable promises cheap and fast Internet access. Further cost reduction of internet connectivity depends on how the Internet traffic is managed (localization of internet traffic).
Efforts to localize the Internet traffic have been made through installation of a K-root server in Tanzania and establishment and usage of Internet exchange points such as TIX (Dar) and AIX (Arusha). The .tz domain name usage and .tz ccTLD management in Tanzania (by tzNIC) contribute to improvement in content localization (both the Domain Name System (DNS) traffic and user contents).

5. .tz domain name offers fair market environment
Provision of services or doing business online does not depend on the size of an entity in terms of number of staff, business lines, branches or machinery used. What are important to the customers are the services or products being provided or sold. Small companies therefore, can equally and fairly compete with big companies in doing business online using a .tz domain name.
.tz domain usage gives equal competitive power

6. .tz domain names offer better search engine performance
The search results based on .tz domain names have specific presentation of data required by Internet users. The searching, indexing and reproduction of contents that website owners avail online through .tz domain names help the search engines like Google in data ranking and searching criteria.

7. .tz domain name dispute resolutions are handled based on Tanzanian business environment
The administration and management of the .tz registry is governed by the policies, rules and regulations that have been developed based on local environment. The disputes arising from domain name registrations and usage are therefore easily resolved.
In addition to the above, disputes are resolved using convenient language (Swahili or English) and at a low cost as there is no involvement of courts and foreign entities.

8. .tz is a national communication resource just like +255 for telephone use
Putting it in simpler terms, .tz is a country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD) that identifies our country on the Internet community. .tz as all other natural resources must therefore be managed for the public interest and benefits of the Internet community.
tzNIC has members and not shareholders and therefore the local Internet community has a role to play.

9. .tz domain names have inbuilt credibility
A .tz domain name has both monetary and credibility values. The monetary value comes from the success of an online business or service using a particular domain. The credibility comes in when .tz domain names are compared with other generic domain names. Sites that spot a .tz domain name build an impression in the minds of web surfers that they are associated with entities that provide trusted information, services or businesses.

10. .tz domain names are meant for every Tanzanian
Being a national communication resource for Tanzania then every Tanzanian has the right to use it.