ISNIC

What ISNIC does

ISNIC Internet á Íslandi hf. is the registry operator for Iceland's country-code top-level domain (.is), holding an exclusive mandate under Icelandic law (no. 54/2021) and the original IANA delegation dating to 1987 (incorporated as a public limited company, kt. 660595-2449). The company registers and manages .is domains, operates authoritative DNS infrastructure with global Anycast distribution (Netnod, RcodeZero DNS), DNSSEC signing, WHOIS/RDAP services, and EPP/SOAP/REST provisioning APIs for accredited registrars. In addition to registry services, ISNIC operates RIX (Reykjavik Internet Exchange), a neutral domestic peering point scaled to 100 Gbps across three Reykjavik co-location sites, and runs public NTP stratum 1/2 time servers synchronized to GPS, Glonass, and Galileo.

ISNIC's commercial offering is anchored on annual .is domain registration fees charged to both Icelandic and foreign registrants (ISK 7,680 incl. VAT domestically and EUR 44.9 ex VAT for foreign customers as of October 2025), with multi-year prepay up to 5 years and IDN support for Icelandic characters since 2004. Ancillary recurring revenue comes from RIX port fees (e.g., ISK 39,950/month per 100G port), DNS hosting, web forwarding, dispute resolution, and meeting-space rental at its Katrínartún 2 headquarters. Distribution is primarily direct via the self-service isnic.is portal, with a network of accredited DNS providers and domain agents operating over EPP/SOAP/REST, and direct sales for RIX enterprise peering.

ISNIC is an independent, self-sustaining private company with no external investors, 11-50 employees, and no disclosed parent. The active .is domain base has grown to 102,086+ registrations, crossing the 100,000 milestone on 23 March 2026, with 2025 setting a record 15,375 new registrations (against ~10,233 deregistrations in 2023). The registry is GDPR-compliant, a member of the European TLD ISAC (since October 2025), and is consistently ranked by McAfee among the safest TLDs globally, holding roughly 47% Iceland market share per 2015 data.

Name

ISNIC

Legal name

Internet á Íslandi hf.

Website

https://isnic.is

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ISNIC is the Icelandic registry operator for the .is country-code top-level domain, providing domain registration, authoritative DNS, and the RIX domestic internet exchange to Icelandic and foreign registrants, ISPs, and accredited resellers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Domain Name Registry Services

NAICS

Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)

akta.pro primary industry

Managed Internet & Value-Added ISP Services (Managed Router/Wi-Fi, Security, Filtering) (HDAIADAJ)

Keywords

• Domain name registry
• CcTLD management
• DNS infrastructure
• Internet exchange services
• Domain registration services

Headquarters

HQ city

Reykjavík

HQ country

Iceland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Operations

Revenue model

1. .is Domain Name Registration Fees: ISNIC generates revenue primarily from annual registration fees charged to registrants of .is domains. Fees are charged per domain per year and can be prepaid for up to 5 years. Both domestic (Icelandic) and foreign registrants are served. The annual fee is charged in ISK for domestic customers and EUR for foreign customers. New registrations, renewals, and transfers all generate fees.
2. RIXS (Reykjavik Internet Exchange) Membership/Port Fees: RIX generates revenue from monthly port fees charged to ISPs and network operators that connect to the exchange. Pricing includes connection port fees (e.g., 100G ports at ISK 39,950/month plus setup fees). Peering at RIX is neutral and allows ISPs to exchange domestic traffic locally.
3. DNS Hosting and Web Forwarding: ISNIC offers DNS hosting services for .is domains and web forwarding services. These services are included as part of the domain registration or offered as add-on services.
4. Meeting/Event Space Rental: ISNIC rents out its conference/training room (ISNIC salurinn) on the 17th/18th floor of the tower at Katrínartún 2 for meetings and events at a reasonable rate.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

ISNIC is the official registry operator for Iceland's country-code top-level domain (.is), providing domain name registration, renewal, transfer, and management services globally. It also operates RIX (Reykjavik Internet Exchange), a neutral internet exchange point for Icelandic ISPs, and runs public NTP time servers and DNS infrastructure including DNSSEC signing and global Anycast distribution.

Product overview

ISNIC operates as the registry operator for Iceland's country code top-level domain (.is), providing a unified platform for domain name services. The core offering is the .is domain registration service, which includes WHOIS lookup, contact management, and DNSSEC signing. Supporting infrastructure services include DNS hosting, nameserver registration, and the RIX internet exchange point for domestic traffic peering. ISNIC also provides complementary services such as NTP timeservers for network synchronization, web forwarding for domains, and dispute resolution. For developers and registrars, ISNIC offers programmatic access through EPP and RDAP protocols, enabling automated domain management. The company operates from Reykjavik and maintains Anycast DNS infrastructure distributed globally through partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• .is Domain Registration Core registry service for registering and managing .is domain names under Iceland's country-code top-level domain (ccTLD). Available globally to any individual or organization via the self-service portal. Includes WHOIS lookup, contact management, and domain transfer capabilities. Pricing in ISK for domestic customers and EUR for foreign customers; multi-year registration up to 5 years.
• RIX (Reykjavik Internet Exchange) Neutral internet exchange point enabling Icelandic ISPs and network operators to peer and exchange domestic IP traffic locally. Provides 100G ports at multiple Reykjavik co-location facilities (Tæknigarður/Dunhagi 5, Múlastöð/Ármúli 25). Available to ISPs and network operators with their own AS number.
• WHOIS Service Public WHOIS database containing information on domain owners and contact addresses for all registered .is domains. Accessible via web search or protocol for any registrant, researcher, or third party.
• EPP (Extensible Provisioning Protocol) Protocol interface for accredited registrars and service providers to programmatically manage .is domain registrations including create, update, delete, and transfer operations. Supports multi-year registration periods (1-5 years) and both IPv4 and IPv6 connectivity.
• RDAP (Registration Data Access Protocol) Standardized protocol providing machine-readable access to domain registration data, replacing traditional WHOIS. Conforms to ICANN specifications for registration data access.
• NTP Timeserver Network Time Protocol service providing stratum 1 time synchronization from GPS, Glonass, and Galileo satellites. Available via is.pool.ntp.org or directly at ht-time01.isnic.is (stratum 1) and mh-time01.isnic.is (stratum 2). Open for public use.
• Domain Dispute Resolution Dispute resolution committee process for contested .is domain names, including domain locking requests for legal disputes. Governed by ISNIC's published rules for domain registration and dispute handling.

Quantifiable outcome

• Reached 100,000 registered .is domains in March 2026, marking a milestone in four decades of operation
• +3 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• European TLD ISACcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025ISNIC became a member of the European TLD ISAC (Threat Intelligence Sharing and Analysis Center) in October 2025. This is a collaborative platform for European domain registries to share information on cyber threats, coordinate incident response and mitigation strategies, exchange real-time threat intelligence, and publish best practice guides for internet security.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• SIDN: Dutch registry for .nl ccTLD. Similar structure as a foundation/association operating a national ccTLD with comparable technical infrastructure and member ecosystem.
• CIRA (Canadian Internet Registration Authority): Operator of Canada's .ca ccTLD. Comparable as a national ccTLD registry with member-driven governance, DNSSEC services, and additional infrastructure offerings.
• SWITCH: Swiss registry operating .ch and .li ccTLDs. Comparable as a small European ccTLD registry with strong technical/security focus (DNSSEC, Anycast) similar to ISNIC's positioning.
• DENIC eG: Operator of Germany's .de ccTLD, one of the largest ccTLD registries in the world. Comparable in core registry function, DNS infrastructure, and policy/governance approach — though at much larger scale.
• Norid (UNINETT): Operator of the .no country-code top-level domain for Norway. Most comparable peer — Nordic ccTLD registry with similar regulatory mandate, small team, IDN support, and government/regulatory relationship model.
• Swedish Internet Foundation (IIS): Operates the .se ccTLD for Sweden. Direct Nordic peer registry with similar size, regulatory structure, and DNSSEC/NTP infrastructure capabilities as ISNIC.
• AFNIC: Operator of France's .fr ccTLD registry. Comparable as a European ccTLD registry with similar technical infrastructure (DNSSEC, RDAP, EPP) and regulatory mandate from national authorities.
• Nominet UK: Operator of the .uk ccTLD registry. Comparable in regulatory mandate, DNSSEC operations, dispute resolution, and member-driven governance approach.

Broad incumbents

• VeriSign: Operates .com and .net — by far the largest registry globally. A broad incumbent in the registry/registrar infrastructure space; competes for the same end customers (registrants) but at vastly different scale and across different TLDs.

Others

• Netnod: Swedish operator of internet exchange points and DNS anycast services. Comparable as a provider of the DNS Anycast infrastructure (Autonomica/Netnod) that ISNIC uses for global distribution of .is. Peer in the broader DNS/internet exchange ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/isnic
• Facebookfacebook.com/isnic.is

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ISNIC