The Council of InternetNZ has approved a proposal to allow Kiwis to register their domain names directly to .nz, a move which has been backed by New Zealand firm Dot Kiwi.

Like .kiwi, Dot Kiwi CEO Tim Johnson believes this is a far simpler and more compelling proposition than previous iterations like .co.nz.

As a result of the move, when .nz becomes available Kiwis will really be making a choice between two domain names – .kiwi or .nz.

"The main issue that InternetNZ will face when introducing registrations directly into .nz is wholesale confusion between .co.nz and .nz and the array of other iterations, like .govt.nz or org.nz," Johnson says.

"Organisations and individuals who have invested significant time and money into their .co.nz domain are not guaranteed they will be able to secure their .nz domain. Some people will miss out."

From experience, Johnson says bringing new top level domain names (TLDs) to market is time consuming.

"After two years of working on .kiwi, businesses will be able to start reserving .kiwi domain names from next month onwards and using them from 2014," Johnson adds.

"We are proud to have brought to New Zealand the first relevant, simplified domain name in this new internet era.

"Old domain name iterations like .co.nz, .org.nz and net.nz will be become relics of the past.

"In a world where the internet moves faster than anything else we’re looking forward to proud Kiwi early adopters coming on board."