Historic times for us at .CO: just a few days ago we signed a “definitive agreement” whereby Neustar will become the company’s sole shareholder. I couldn’t be more proud to share this news or more excited about what the future holds in store for .CO! While this announcement may come as a surprise to some, we’ve spent the last year thoughtfully planning our long-term growth strategy. In our desire to take .CO to the next level, we are confident that now is the perfect time to join forces with Neustar.
Since the time we first launched, Neustar has been a trusted joint venture partner, seamlessly running our back-end registry system and DNS, and supporting our 1.6 million .CO domain names under management in every corner of the world.
With a suite of leading edge technologies, access to a huge distribution network of retailers, and an unparalleled portfolio of domain-related products and services, Neustar is well positioned to turn scale into a strategic competitive advantage in the years ahead – and to help fast track the growth of the .CO brand and business worldwide.
On the flip side, Neustar was drawn to .CO for several reasons. In addition to acquiring a profitable business, they are excited about the strong global brand we have built around the .CO domain – a brand that is synonymous with innovation and opportunity, and that appeals to a new generation of startups, entrepreneurs and tech savvy businesses. Today, many of the coolest things happening on the web, across continents, are being built on .CO domains – and that trend is only likely to accelerate with the introduction of new TLDs.
Perhaps most importantly, Neustar recognizes and values the fact that .CO has assembled an unparalleled team of professionals – a team with the proven ability to innovate and execute in the domain space. The plan, of course, is to leverage our team’s innovative domain marketing and brand building capabilities within and across Neustar’s broader domain portfolio.
Considering the success of our joint venture over the past five years, and the incredible opportunity we have to leverage one another’s strengths in the future, I am convinced that Neustar and .CO make a perfect combination. Just like peanut butter and jelly!
To our partners, friends and .CO-ers who have supported us from the beginning: Thank you for believing and sharing in our journey. While we may have new shareholders and a new Board of Directors, rest assured that our team remains firmly committed to working with and for you to continue innovating and building the .CO brand worldwide.
To the .CO team: There are no words. You are simply the best. Thank you for your creativity, your incredible contributions, and your commitment to making .CO awesome. It’s exciting to imagine how .CO will continue to grow and flourish in the years ahead.
And to our friends at Neustar: Thank you for sharing in our vision, believing in the power of our team, and being willing to roll up your sleeves to co-create the future of .CO with us!
Onward and Upward!
Juan, CEO @ .CO
PS. In case some of you are curious, POP.co and Nu dot Co LLC will continue to operate as independent companies
