Registrations of .eu hit 3m

Domain name registrations for .eu web addresses peaked at three million earlier this year.

However, new figures from EURid, the non-profit organisation tasked with operating the suffix's registration scheme, show that the number of .eu web addresses held has fallen back below this milestone figure.

It is thought that the ongoing global economic downturn is responsible for the fall in registrations.

But EURid noted that it administered 48,000 new domain names in the first four months of this year – an increase of 1.6 per cent.

The largest proportion of requests came from Germany.

"The difficult economic times have affected many, including those of us in the domain community. Growth in registrations was somewhat slower over the first quarter of 2009 but .eu registrations did continue to grow," EURid's general manager, Marc Van Wesemael, said.

Recently, Travel Mole claimed that using the .travel suffix was a good way for companies to raise their online profile.