In Africa, the 17 applications were drawn from Gambia, Egypt and South Africa, with entities in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town being the first cities to apply. Among those submitting applications, Supersport, DSTv, Mnet, GoTV, Multichoice and MTN are South African businesses with a pan-African presence.

"I think we are seeing the dawning of a new age for Africa; Internet penetration is increasing exponentially in Africa and African and international businesses are seeing this as a efficient means of reaching their respective target markets in the region," said Neil Dundas, director of UniForum, the company bidding to run .Durban, .Cape Town, .Durban and .Africa.

One of the confusing points in the names revealed by ICANN is the ".africa" gTLD requested by UniForum and the ".dotafrica" gTLD requested by Dot Connect Africa Trust. However, any criticism of potential confusion regarding the names may come out during the 60-day comment period, where governments, individuals, public and private sector institutions can register their concerns regarding the applications.

Even though the number of applications from Africa are lower compared to other regions, the debate is likely to raise more awareness of ICANN processes on the continent. South Africa seems to be the main country in Africa that recognized the opportunities.