where is your loyalty on the net???? Monday 30 April 2007, 12:23:00

All Countries

Written by Net 4 Now

British Internet users are six times more likely to choose a .uk rather than .com address when looking for information via an Internet search engine.

In an online survey of 2,324 Internet users, which was carried out by YouGov, 62% believe a .uk address suggests a company is local or more relevant than a .com, and a third (32%) believe that it is important for international companies to have local domain names in order to attract local customers.

When asked about searching for a particular company on the Internet, 72% said they would visit a .uk web address above any other and only 5% of respondents would try the .com option first.

Nominet CEO, Lesley Cowley commented: “The findings show that British Internet users are loyal to local web sites and have higher levels of trust for .uk domain names. It’s clear that the trust issue is one of increasing importance to the Internet industry, as well as Internet users.”