Ireland's longest .ie website is just the word 'Cork' repeated 15 times

Ireland’s longest .ie domain in 2024 features "Cork" 15 times, while the shortest is simply 9.ie

The longest .ie domain name registered in Ireland is all about Cork Picture: Denis Minihane

The longest .ie domain name registered in Ireland last year is all about Cork — in fact, it is the word repeated 15 times.  

The website www.corkcorkcorkcorkcorkcorkcorkcorkcorkcorkcorkcorkcorkcorkcork.ie directs users to a webpage that displays the text: "Had to, Sorry".

While the longest domain is about the Rebel County, the shortest registered domain is just four characters long — 9.ie.

These are two of the more unusual findings in the .ie Domain Profile Report 2024, published by weare.ie on Thursday.

The report found a slight decline in the number of websites using the .ie domain, with 326,562 sites in the .ie database at the end of last year — a 0.51% decrease compared to 2023.

There were also 46,180 new registered domains last year, down 5% from the total registered in 2023.

Leitrim recorded the largest percentage growth (+51%) in new .ie domain registrations compared to 2023, followed by Tyrone (+20%) and Meath (+19%).

Fermanagh recorded the fewest total .ie domain registrations in the country, with just 191 domains registered there last year.

The top keywords across all new domains registered in 2024 were "Ireland," "Dublin," "Home," "Design," and "House."

The tenth annual .ie Domain Profile Report also shows that 54% of websites hosted in Ireland use the .ie domain, while 29.4% use .com, and 7.35% use .uk.

Weare.ie said the report shows that the appeal of Irish-owned and registered websites remains strong, despite the continued growth of e-commerce capabilities on social media platforms. It also highlights the need to improve the quality and sophistication of digital technologies, as a gap between aspirations for digitalisation and reality persists for businesses in Ireland.

eCommerce and social media

Referencing a Reuters report from last December, which found that TikTok Shop sales reached $100 million on Black Friday last year, weare.ie stated that the recent U.S. TikTok ban revealed "just how volatile it can be to use social selling as a business’ sole eCommerce platform."

"Since SMEs account for 99.8% of the number of companies in the Irish economy, supporting their growth and scaling efforts is crucial for a modern future-proofed Ireland," said CEO of .ie David Curtin.

"The .ie Domain Profile Report shows that while there has been a lot of progress made in digital intent in Ireland, there is still a long way to go to convert this to real digital growth. The government must invest more in infrastructure and supports for SMEs to take them onto the next step of digitalisation."

Mr Curtin added that, when it comes to building a trustworthy digital presence, websites should be seen as "prime real estate" for any business online.

"While social media is an excellent tool for increasing visibility and capturing audience interest, these platforms are limited in their ability to build lasting relationships with customers and, more importantly, convert them to sales," he said.

Mr Curtin suggested that an "omni-channel" approach, wherein social media is used as a tool to drive customers to a secure website is likely the best approach.

"It is crucial that SMEs have control over their own eCommerce channels and are not solely reliant on third party selling platforms such as TikTok Shop which has been proven to be extremely volatile over the past few weeks," he added.