Scotland asks UK for DotScot support

The Scottish government has asked the UK communications minister Ed Vaizey to back a bid to create a Scottish top level domain called 'DotScot' — .scot.

Scottish infrastructure and investment secretary Alex Neil has written to UK communications minister Ed Vaizey asking for support for the Dot Scot Registry, a non-profit organisation dedicated to securing a Scottish generic top level domain (gTLD).

"I am sure the UK Government with its responsibility for internet governance will want to support us," Neil said in a statement on Sunday. "DotScot will be a wonderful asset for establishing a distinctive online identity for many organisations and people who have been described as the worldwide family of Scots and want to demonstrate that identity online."

The UK government received the letter on Friday, a Department of Culture, Media, and Sport (DCMS) spokesman told ZDNet UK on Monday.

Icann, the organisation which oversees internet domain names, is currently gearing up to accept applications for new gTLDs from 12 January, for a three month period.

The Scottish government said it expected that there would be hundreds of applications for new gTLDs, including .NYC, .London, .Berlin, and .Cymru.

Promotional agency London & Partners may apply for a licence to operate the .London domain, the company said on Thursday.