Nominet UK is responsible for the registration and maintenance of all .uk domain names on the Internet. It has taken over from UKERNA (the UK Education & Research Networking Association), which was previously responsible for managing the UK registration process on a voluntary basis, and became operational on 1 July 1996.
The name of every organisation or individual connected to the Internet has to be uniquely defined so that others wishing to make contact can do so without risk of their communications being mis-directed. Most Internet use was originally confined to academic and defence institutions in the United States, but as the Internet developed internationally in the 1980s, it was convenient that each country should have its own two character reference at the end of Internet names registered in that country. This forms the so-called top level domain, and in the case of the United Kingdom is .uk.
Until comparatively recently, the Internet has evolved in an unstructured and informal way. Few formal controls over its operation exist and such regulation as there was has been largely undertaken on a voluntary basis. However, the development of the World Wide Web and growth in the use of personal computers has led to an explosion of interest in the Internet - and of demand for new domain names. This growth in demand put intolerable strain on the voluntary registration arrangements operated in the UK and by the end of 1995, with new registrations running at 200 per week, it was clear that a new, more formal structure was required.
During early 1996 a number of meetings were held between interested parties, and a plan was developed to bring order to the situation. Nominet UK is the result of that plan.
From 1 August 1996 Nominet UK will operate a computerised register of all names in the .uk domain. The register will contain details of the user of the registered name, and of the addressing information associated with it. Thus, any individual or organisation wishing to register a new name will do so through Nominet UK.
In addition, Nominet UK will provide facilities for Internet users to search the register, in order to find out who is using a particular name, or whether a name is free, or is already registered to someone else.
Nominet UK is a not-for-profit organisation, which means that its charges only cover Nominet UK's operating costs.
Nominet UK's authority derives from Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) and the Internet industry in the UK.
Nominet UK is a company limited by guarantee, which means it has no shareholders and pays no dividend. Any individual or organisation is eligible to become a member of the company, and can do so by taking out a subscription.
The membership of Nominet UK constitutes its Steering Committee. This in turn elects non-executive directors to a Council of Management (Board of Directors), which runs the company. A small executive staff is headed by a full-time Managing Director.
Until now registration of Internet names has been undertaken on a voluntary basis and without charge. However, demand for registration is now so great that formal arrangements have to be put in place - and paid for by those that use the service.
As stated above, Nominet UK is a not-for-profit organisation, and its charges cover only its running costs. It is not in business to make money, and its existence will help to ensure that the ever increasing demand for access to the Internet can be met in a structured and efficient way.
