Bad news about .CO.ZA domains

The ZA Registry Consortium’s (ZARC’s) .CO.ZA top-level domain registration stats for the past decade show that while registrations continue to grow, the rate of growth has slowed significantly since 2021.

Between 2015 and 2020, net additions for .CO.ZA domains grew at an average rate of roughly 54,830 per year. However, between 2021 and 2024, the rate slowed significantly to an average of 17,896 per year.

Net additions equate to the difference between .CO.ZA creations and deletions each year.

According to the ZARC’s data, .CO.ZA deletions even surpassed creations in 2023, resulting in a negative net movement of nearly 15,000 in that year.

The data showed a positive net movement of nearly 55,000 .CO.ZA domains in 2015, nearly 58,000 in 2016, 50,000 in 2017, 55,000 in 2018, nearly 39,500 in 2019, and almost 72,000 in 2020.

In comparison, the highest net movement in domain registrations and deletions between 2021 and 2024 was 42,000 in 2022.

The ZARC recorded a net movement of approximately 12,400 in the year prior and a net movement of just over 31,500 in .CO.ZA domain creations and deletions in 2024.

We did not include 2025’s data in our analysis. However, the ZARC has recorded a net movement of 13,413 .CO.ZA domains so far this year.

Absolute Hosting managing director Jade Benson told MyBroadband he believes the slowed growth reflects challenging economic conditions in South Africa.

“We aren’t seeing a decline of country code top-level domains in the .ZA namespace. It has grown. However, the rate of growth is slowing,” said Benson.

He believes the .ZA Domain Name Authority (ZADNA) should focus some of its time on creating greater awareness and education around resellers and provide them with the skills they need to start their own businesses and grow in the namespace.

The chart below shows the difference between .CO.ZA domain creations and deletions from 2015 to 2025, according to the ZARC’s data.

.CO.ZA domain price hikes in South Africa

In June 2024, ZADNA announced price hikes for the CO.ZA, ORG.ZA, NET.ZA, and WEB.ZA domains for the 2024/25, 2025/26, and 2026/27 financial years.

ZADNA CEO Molehe Wesi said the organisation decided on price hikes based on a comprehensive financial analysis of the impact of inflation and exchange rates on its operational expenditure.

He said the announcement followed thorough consultations with industry stakeholders and aligned with recent economic developments and operational needs.

Registrars were hit with a 5.23% wholesale price hike in the rate of Billable Transactions for all CO.ZA, ORG.ZA, NET.ZA, and WEB.ZA domains on 1 October 2024.

The current pricing will remain until 30 September 2025.

ZADNA said the price adjustment was linked to the consumer price index (CPI). It increased the registration and renewal fee from R55 to R61 per domain name.

The entity revealed price hikes for 2025/26 and 2026/27 as well. These are as follows:

• 2025/26 — 6.56%
• 2026/27 — 6.15%

“These figures will be confirmed annually in July, based on the prevailing Consumer Price Index (CPI), allowing for industry implementation in October of every year,” said Wesi.

As these are wholesale price adjustments, it is up to individual registrars to determine whether they can absorb the increases or whether they will need to pass them on to customers.

Wesi advised stakeholders to align their timelines and communications with ZADNA’s adjustments to ensure a smooth transition.