Invisib.ly Libyan

"There’s been a question as to what happens to .ly domains (i.e. the ones used by Bit.ly, Ad.ly and others) if these domain names are suddenly taken away by the Libyan government. As we wrote last Fall, vb.ly was seized by NIC.ly (the domain registry and controlling body for the Libyan domain space) because the content of the website was apparently in violation of Libyan Islamic/Sharia Law. Today, it appears that email subscription startup Letter.ly has lost its domain name as a direct result of the ongoing unrest and war in Libya." Leena Rao for TechCrunch ... Letter.ly Abrupt.ly Loses Domain Name As A Result Of The War In Libya.

The article illustrates the potential risk in using "cute" domains as a marketing strategy and the advantages (robust) and disadvantages (hen's teeth) of .coms and other GTLDs. If Africa (which potentially offers in excess of 50 country codes) wants to get in on the act of making money out of its domains or simply encourage businesses to use them as a viable local marketing tool (as opposed to, for eg a defensive registration pointing to a home site) then it will need to persuade marketers that they are reliable.