NeuLevel's(R) Reputation for Security, Stability and Reliability are Key in Bid to Assume Operation of .NET Registry

NeuLevel's(R) Reputation for Security, Stability and Reliability are Key in Bid to Assume Operation of .NET Registry Trusted, Neutral Operator of Global .BIZ Internet Domain Joins Japan Registry Services Co., Ltd. to Administer Top-Level Domain STERLING, Va., Jan. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- With a strong track record of security, stability and reliability in its day-to-day operation of Internet registries, NeuLevel, Inc. -- the operator of the .BIZ Internet domain -- announced today that, together with Japan Registry Services Co., Ltd. (JPRS), it has submitted a bid to become the operator of the .NET registry. The bid is in response to a Request for Proposals issued by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the global organization that selects administrators for all global Internet top-level domains (gTLDs). NeuLevel's joint venture with JPRS is named Sentan Registry Services, Inc. (online at http://www.sentanregistry.net/). If selected, Sentan will manage relationships with ICANN and .NET global customers, and oversee policy, legal and financial management within the domain. NeuLevel will provide the majority of technical services for .NET through a subcontracting arrangement with Sentan. "NeuLevel meets or exceeds every performance criterion prescribed by ICANN in the .NET RFP," said NeuLevel, Inc. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Ganek. "We have built the industry's most advanced Internet infrastructure and registry platform that is scalable, stable, efficient and reliable. Together with JPRS, we welcome the opportunity to become the steward of the .NET registry, one of the highest profile Internet public resources. Our successful administration of the .BIZ domain, among others, is strong evidence that NeuLevel can shoulder the enormous responsibilities associated with transitioning and managing a top-level domain. Through the .BIZ domain, we have built a strong partnership with ICANN and the international registrar community, which we hope to extend to the administration of the .NET registry." NeuLevel was selected by ICANN to operate the .BIZ top-level domain in 2000, and has been the trusted administrator of the domain since 2001. The only global top-level domain devoted exclusively to meeting the performance, reliability and neutrality demands of the business community, .BIZ addresses have enabled companies worldwide to fully realize the power of the Internet. NeuLevel's name server network for .BIZ has maintained 100 percent uptime throughout its existence, supporting both users accessing the Web as well as the internal operation of the Internet infrastructure. Serving the Global .NET Community NeuLevel and JPRS based their decision to partner because of their combined ability to service the global .NET community. For example, over 80 percent of .NET Internet hosts (machines connected to the Internet) are located in Japan and the United States. The joint venture will establish several multilingual Regional Support Centers to be geographically closer to .NET users. The joint venture will also leverage JPRS's world-class expertise in the development, deployment and operational aspects of Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs), an area of considerable importance to non-English-speaking users of the Internet. In addition, JPRS offers support for an unprecedented third disaster recovery site in Japan. "With its strong reputation of unwavering adherence to neutrality standards and contractual requirements, NeuLevel was a natural partner for us on the .NET registry," said Koki Higashida, president of JPRS. "The NeuLevel and JPRS bid embodies the criteria essential to the Internet community at large and to ICANN. These include the promotion of responsible innovation, the delivery of approved new services, superior customer support, expanded consumer choice, globalization, good corporate citizenship and the improved implementation of standards and policies." "JPRS has been an active and respected ICANN partner, and it is renowned as a company that has made the .JP domain readily available for the Internet community in Japan. Working with JPRS, we are in a better position to communicate ICANN policy and support .NET customers on a global basis," said Ganek. "The JPRS and NeuLevel registries are experienced, capable and financially strong, and together comprise a formidable and worthy team organization to assume operation of the .NET registry." NeuLevel: Leveraging Strong Experience in Managing Mission-critical Databases NeuLevel is a joint venture between NeuStar(R), Inc., a leading provider of trusted information exchange services for the communications industry, and Melbourne IT(R), a leading international Internet services company. NeuStar has an eight-year history of delivering "five nines" reliability on a 24x7x365 basis, and manages the largest registry in the world, managing over 1.3 billion addressable telephone numbers across North America. "NeuStar is renowned for handling more than triple the number of electronic addresses than any other entity in the world, in a mission-critical telecommunications environment that also demands highly reliable services," said Ganek. "In all, more than 14 billion transactions a day depend on NeuStar's directories. ICANN and .NET registry customers can expect the same levels of security, stability and reliability should we be selected to administer the .NET registry," Ganek commented. ICANN will announce the winner of the .NET procurement on March 15, 2005; the successor operator will assume responsibility for the .NET domain on July 1, 2005. About NeuLevel(R) NeuLevel is a joint venture between NeuStar(R), a leading provider of trusted information exchange services for the communications industry, and Melbourne IT(R), a leading international domain name registrar. NeuLevel combines NeuStar's credentials and experience in managing large, mission- critical databases with the technically advanced domain name registration capabilities of Melbourne IT. NeuLevel was selected by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to be the exclusive operator of the .BIZ Registry, the world's first top-level domain dedicated exclusively to business. NeuLevel is also the exclusive Registry Gateway Operator for .CN and .TW, the Chinese and Taiwanese country domains, respectively. NeuStar operates the .US Registry-America's Internet Address(R). About Japan Registry Services Co., Ltd. ("JPRS") Japan Registry Services Co., Ltd. (JPRS) was incorporated to manage domain name registrations and to undertake operation of the domain name system for Japan's .JP ccTLD. JPRS manages and administers the .JP top-level domain in a fair and neutral manner; it is dedicated to maintaining Japan's Internet infrastructure, making the .JP Internet domain readily available for the online community in Japan and contributing to the development of the Internet as a whole. Source: NeuLevel, Inc. CONTACT: Sue Cushing, +1-571-434-5150, sue.cushing@NeuStar.biz, or Daniel Diaz Zapata, +1-571-434-5151, daniel.diaz@NeuStar.biz, both for NeuLevel, Inc. Web site: http://www.sentanregistry.net/ ------- Profile: International Entertainment