ARTISTS QUEUE UP TO GET THE DOT-MU-SIC IN THEM

With dot-coms dropping like flies it's good to know there's a new dot-thing on the cyber landscape.

In roughly a month, the new dot-mu (.mu) domain has found fans in the music industry. Artists such as Limp Bizkit, Korn, Garth Brooks, dc Talk, Reba McEntire, Kenny Rogers and Dixie Chicks have already signed up for limpbizkit.mu, korn.mu, garthbrooks.mu, dctalk.mu, rebamcentire.mu, kennyrogers.mu and dixiechicks.mu, respectively.

Columbia Records, Decca, Universal Classics and Amazon have also joined the trend.

While none of the dot-mu's (which we think should be pronounced "dot-moo," especially if there's stampede to register) we tested were up and running just yet, the registration site www.hot.mu is fully operational and features a large-breasted, bikini-clad girl bending over in the banner. So, at least the site's got that going for it.

The dot-mu domain suffix was set up by SamsDirect Internet, which holds the exclusive mass-marketing rights to the suffix, as a way for artists, labels and other music-related enterprises to stand out in the cluttered dot-com market. Currently, there are more than 30 million domain names registered worldwide. (Although, at the rate of fallout, that number isn't good for long.)

"The response has been as we expected it would be—amazing," said Renee Sams, co-chairperson and COO of SDI. "The global music community is rallying behind the dot-mu top-level domain suffix. The music industry and its artists deserve to have a unique domain space, and dot-mu provides an independent voice—not to mention one more thing the consumer has to remember!"

A dot-mu costs $50 a year to purchase, with a two-year minimum. SDI has set up two other sites to register dot-mu's: www.dot.mu and www.mu.