Over 1 mln Chinese-character domain names in use

A total of 1.037 million registered Chinese-character domain names are in use, the China Internet Network Information Center said Thursday.

At present, Chinese-character domain names can be used in mainstream browsers, search engines and input methods, which means, for example, input of a Chinese-character domain name in a browser can direct users to the corresponding website, like what a regular domain name can do, according to the center.

Since their creation in the 1980s, domain names had long been formed with characters in the Roman alphabet.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the center called on Chinese Internet companies, especially email service providers, to actively promote the use of Chinese-character domain names. Endi