Government is overhauling the way it maintains Bermuda Internet addresses in an effort to increase their visibility and encourage new registrations ? and ultimately to promote the Island as an e-commerce centre.

The changes began last June, when Government upgraded the computer system that directs Internet users to addresses ending in .bm, the top-level domain assigned to the Island, to make them more reliable.

Until then, the registry was hosted without charge by Logic Communications and failed as often as three times a year. In one instance, Internet users were unable to reach servers with a .bm address for up to an hour. People involved with the project said the reliability issue discouraged companies from using .bm addresses as their primary address.

?The major issue was redundancy,? said Troy Symonds, the chairman of the Domain Advisory Board, established by government to oversee management of the country?s top-level domain, .bm. Mr. Symonds is also the chief executive of Fort Knox, a technology company and Internet service provider.

The registry was transferred to three different locations ? Cable & Wireless, TeleBermuda International, and Government ? so that if one failed, there would be two back-ups.

?The idea was to provide a top level domain that would be competitive with other top-level domains,? Mr. Symonds said. ?Government has built a very impressive technical infrastructure for top-level domains.?

Other top-level domains include .com, .net, and .org.

Three months after the switchover, responsibility for registering domain names transferred from Bermuda College to the Registry General, which officials and domain advisory committee members said reflects Bermuda?s approach to domain names as intellectual property.

In an e-mail, Registrar General Marlene Christopher explained that since her department is responsible for registering trademarks, it is ?able to apply our expertise and skills in this area to the .bm domain registration process.?

When one staffer at Bermuda College was responsible for registrations - in addition to other duties ? it could take several days to register an Internet address; according to Ms Christopher, the turnaround time is now usually less than 24 hours.

She also said her department can encourage trademark owners to register domain names for their trademarks so that they remain protected.

While there are no restrictions on who can register a .com Internet address, getting a .bm address is relatively cumbersome and is intended to prevent ?cybersquatting?, or speculative purchases of domain names. Currently, Bermuda domain names are only available to Bermuda organisations and companies, which must submit a signed letter on company stationery to apply for an Internet address.

But by April, Government plans on relaxing the registration requirements and will allow students to register addresses so they can put up websites.

Broadening the eligibility requirements was one of the changes the domain advisory board hinted at back in 2001, soon after it began discussing changes; however, it has stopped short of allowing individuals who are not students from registering addresses.

The new policy will coincide with the introduction of a price structure. While Bermuda domain names are currently free, the Government plans to charge an annual fee of about $30 per additional domain name for registrars with more than two domains. Network Solutions, the primary domain registration authority for .com and other addresses, charges between $15 and $35 a year for each domain name, depending on how many years registrars prepay.

With about 5,000 domain names registered to 800 companies and organisations, Mr. Symonds said the registration fees would not generate much revenue for Government, but would help sustain a more reliable system.

Mr. Hickson said: ?People were somewhat frustrated that they could not things to happen in the time frame that they wanted.

?[They wanted to register more quickly and make changes more quickly. They wanted higher service levels.?

Revamping .bm is part of Government?s initiative to develop e-business in Bermuda. Minister of Tourism, Telecommunications & E-Commerce Renee Webb said in June that ultimately she would like Bermuda?s business to evolve to a place where each saw the ?real value in owning a .bm domain name?. She added that the Bermuda domain should be seen by businesses as a ?symbol of excellence and prestige... (and) an important component of our overall strategy of making Bermuda a leading e-business jurisdiction?.