Business owners can now apply for .me domains at Netfirms as part of the General Sunrise Period, before the official Landrush period begins June 6.

The country-code domain name extension is expected to be used as a personalized web address and a business marketing tool. The registration for .ME takes on a similar process as the .ASIA domain, enabling multiple parties to submit applications for the same .ME domain and eventually an auction process.

The .ME domain will be overseen by a new organization called doMEn, the word for domain in Montenegrin. Created by Go Daddy, Afilias Global Registry Services and Me-Net, the organization will act as the operational body with strategic oversight for the domain extension.

Meanwhile, Netfirms is encouraging businesses to protect their brands by applying for their .me domain names as soon as possible.

The domain name is priced at $49.95 per year with a minimum two year subscription. The package includes a basic webpage with 25MB of disk space that can be edited immediately, an email account at the domain including a calendar, address book and spam filtering and  full DNS management with the Netfirms Control Panel.

"Netfirms is one of the first registrars to accept .me domain applications," says Thomas Savundra, president of Netfirms. "Businesses with strong brands are encouraged to act quickly and register their .me domains during this period. In addition to protecting their trademarks on the web, this new and unique domain name extension is easy to remember and gives companies the power to communicate with their audiences on a whole new and more personal level."