Applies on a one year registration of all ASCII-based .cn domain names and the promotion will end April 30, 2007.

EnCirca, a ICANN accredited registrar, yesterday announced an 80% price reduction on .cn domains for companies and users residing outside of China.

According to the company, the special promotion applies to a one year registration of all ASCII-based .cn domains. The promotion will end April 30, 2007.There are no restrictions on who can own a .cn domain name. This special pricing will generate a surge in new registrations for the .cn domain. The .cn domain grew 60% in 2006 to a total of 1.6 million domains, becoming the fourth largest country-specific domain, the release said.

"China is determined that its .cn domain will compete with the .com domain name for companies and users striving to conduct business in China," says Tom Barrett, a Spokesperson of EnCirca. "This promotion will also attract more speculators into the market. If companies and brand owners have not protected all of their trademarks in the .cn domain, now is a good time to do so."