Google is partnering with a new Internet registrar that will let Apps customers choose Internet domains with a country code (CC) suffix.
Google has worked with registrars for years in order to offer companies signing up for the Apps suite the option of also buying a domain as part of the transaction.
However, its partners haven’t offered CC domains, which, unlike generic domains like .com and .net, tie the Internet address to a specific country, like .jp for Japan and .es for Spain.
Now, Google has struck a deal with DomainDiscount24.com, a domain registrar that can offer CC domains for a variety of countries.
This is one of the most requested features for Google Apps, the cloud-based email and collaboration suite for companies, schools and government agencies, Google said on Thursday.
Now, as part of the Apps sign-up process, Google can offer customers not only generic domains, including .com, .info and .org, but also a variety of country-specific domains including for Mexico, Japan, Spain, Germany and the Netherlands. Domain registration prices start at US$8 per year.
“We hope this gives new Google Apps customers more flexibility in their domain registration to help boost their local presence on the web,” wrote Hugues Vincent, a Google Apps team official, in the blog post.
Juan Carlos Perez covers enterprise communication/collaboration suites, operating systems, browsers and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Juan on Twitter at @JuanCPerezIDG.