City gets personalized domain url for area websites

Finding New York City on the web will soon be a whole lot easier.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn announced Tuesday that the city received approval for its own domain url, .nyc, making it one of the first U.S. cities to have the online distinction.

The address will show that websites that belong to Big Apple-based business, government entities and services are true New York institutions.

"Having our own unique, top-level domain — .nyc — puts New York City at the forefront of the digital landscape and creates new opportunities for our small businesses," Bloomberg said in a statement.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) approved the city's request for the domain and interested webmasters can begin to apply for it later in the year. In order to receive a .nyc domain, the applicant must have a permanent address in the city or have a "bona fide presence," where they must prove they perform activities within the city and maintain an office or other facility in the five boroughs.

Quinn, a mayoral candidate, pushed for the domain during her state of the city address four years ago.

"With a new top-level domain name, New York won't just be the greatest city in the world — we'll also be the greatest city on the Internet," she said in a statement.

Log onto www.mydotnyc.com for more information.