The .IE Domain Profile Report is a comprehensive exploration of the .ie database.
In this edition, we assess the full year of 2022 – new .ie domain registrations, the .ie database, and country and county of domain registration.
We also have a closer look at steps taken to make the .ie domain safe. In our Analysis of .ie domain ecosystem chapter we examine domain usage, keyword usage in new registrations, .ie website categorisation and .ie market share.
.ie remains the domain of choice for Ireland.
New registrations
New .ie domain registrations decreased by 22.6% in 2022 when compared with 2021. This is due to a slowing down in the rate of registrations seen during the pandemic. This predicted decrease follows a surge in growth when businesses across Ireland mobilised to get online during restrictions. 48,168 new registrations were recorded in the full year 2022, a small decrease of 4% v pre-pandemic 2019.
The .IE Domain Profile Report demonstrates that SMEs continue to use websites as a core part of their business with the benefits far outweighing a social media ‘shop front’.
Identity with ‘Place’ proved very popular for new .ie registrations in 2022. 31 counties had their county name and / or ‘Ireland’ as one of their top 3 keywords.
A large proportion of new registrations in 2022 came from existing .ie customers who were able to avail of our express registration process. Returning customers do not need to be re-validated.
Total database and market share
There were almost 330,000 domains in the .ie database at the end of 2022, a 0.3% decrease on 2021. While this is the first year that we have seen flat growth, the multi-year trend remains positive. The database grew by 17.2% on pre-pandemic 2019.
91% of all .ie domains are registered on the island of Ireland.
The reputational strength of the .ie domain continues and it is the domain of choice for Ireland. It now accounts for 53.6% of all top-level domains hosted in Ireland, ahead of .com by more than 23 percentage points.
Cybersecurity - a key focus
We provide an additional layer of security to owners of a .ie domain name, free of charge. This service provides a constant scanning of .ie websites and involves instant notification to an SME’s hosting provider, who can help them take the corrective action once a scam has been detected. The report revealed over 500 cyber attacks were taken down in 2022. Two in five were phishing scams and one in four were malware attacks.
60% of content-rich.ie websites are secured with a security certificate, however this is down 6 percentage points year-on-year. This level of security is crucial to safeguard customer’s data.
As digital usage expands rapidly, keeping the .ie namespace safe from cyber criminals is a key focus for us.
Read the full report – Digital Edition
Click on the cover below to open the digital edition of our .IE Domain Profile Report 2022.
Download
If you are interested in sharing insights from our .IE Domain Profile Report, please download the additional graphics above.
Previous .IE Domain Profile Reports
