Think of it as a virtual ribbon cutting ceremony as  the Mayor of New York Bill de Blasio today announced that the first .NYC websites have gone live.

The owners of these domain names, officially called “.NYC Founders,” represent a diverse group of New Yorkers”

“It’s exciting to see New York City’s official domain coming to life with the launch of our first .nyc Founder websites,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.

“Our .nyc Founders include an eclectic mix of small businesses, well-known brands, non-profit organizations, entrepreneurs, artists, agencies and individuals embodying the spirit and opportunity of New York City—including our First Lady Chirlane McCray—who are using their .nyc web addresses to share their stories, develop their businesses, engage with their communities, and support their fellow New Yorkers.

“Today, we move one step closer toward placing our city on the digital map and allowing more New Yorkers to own a small piece of cyberspace.”

The .nyc Founders were given the opportunity to publish their websites early in an effort to showcase .nyc domains to the public, and will be featured in many of the City’s pre-launch marketing and awareness building initiatives.

“It’s moving day for #FLONYC! Today, my blog leaves ‘dot com’ behind and moves on to the newest and coolest destination on the web – “dot nyc.” And I’m thrilled to be a part of its historic launch,” said First Lady Chirlane McCray, one of the Founders and Chair of the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City. “The address may have changed, but the content and purpose of my home on the web remains the same: to help tell the stories too often untold in our city, by documenting and sharing my work as First Lady of New York City.”

The First Lady will be relocating her personal blog to flo.nyc, where she chronicles her work as First Lady in an effort to shine the light on the people and stories of New York City.

“The Shubert Organization is proud to be a founding member of the .NYC initiative.

Every year, over 12 million people from around the world come to the heart of NYC to see a Broadway show.

Our new website, Shubert.NYC, will extend the digital outreach of Broadway and New York City,” said Philip J. Smith, Chairman, and Robert E. Wankel, President, of The Shubert Organization, Broadway’s largest theatre owner and operator.

“We are thrilled to be one of the first agencies in the City to get our .nyc domain, and to use it as part of our branding efforts,” said Daniel Doebrich, co-founder of MISTER, a NYC-based digital design and new technology agency. “MISTER is inspired by New York City’s unique combination of innovative fashion, and the constant stream of new tech solutions through its thriving startup scene. The .nyc domain helps us to better communicate this aspect, and supports our goal to become the digital house for a new generation of fashion brands. It creates a strong identity, which we have already witnessed after the first few weeks with our new emails. Clients are reaching out repeatedly to ask how we landed the .nyc domain. They love it and want to get their own.”

“.NYC gives the world’s greatest city its own digital identity—.nyc addresses the lack of available domain options, while solidifying NYC as a preeminent place to start a technology business today,” said Michael Lazerow, a serial entrepreneur and investor at Lazerow Ventures. “I am proud to call NYC my home and Laz.nyc my new digital home, dedicated to helping entrepreneurs build great companies in this great city.”

“It is so important for a nonprofit tech startup like us to represent New York City and our local community to both spread awareness and to increase community engagement,” said Jukay Hsu, Founder, Coalition for Queens (C4Q). “We’re thrilled to claim our own .nyc address at C4Q.nyc, as it will help us to empower local residents and support the growth of NYC’s tech ecosystem.”

“As a media brand with a largely New York audience, rebranding to GayCityNews.nyc will help us to better serve the residents, workers and visitors of our communities with the most relevant news, information and opinions that affect their lives,” said Jennifer Goodstein, Publisher, NYC Community Media LLC. “We’re excited to be one of the earliest adopters of the .nyc domain, and are looking forward to switching all of our brands to .nyc in the near future.”

“I am so excited to launch my new website, Bridget.nyc! I’ll be posting news and updates about my upcoming album release, tour dates, amongst other passions. I’m ready to share everything with the world,” said Bridget Kelly, singer and songwriter. “I was born and raised in this city, and being a New Yorker is an important part of my story. I can’t wait to take everyone on my journey on the new site—I hope my fans will follow along the way.”

While additional websites will be launching in the weeks ahead, the first wave of .nyc websites includes:

• 125th Street Business Improvement District (125thstreet.nyc)
• Armory Foundation (armory.nyc)
• Bell Environmental Services (wheresroscoe.nyc)
• Bike New York (bikenewyork.nyc)
• Birdland Jazz Club (birdland.nyc)
• Blue Sky Communications (bluesky.nyc)
• Brooklyn Music Festical (brooklynmusicfestival.nyc)
• Coalition for Queens (c4q.nyc)
• Dance / NYC (dancenyc.nyc)
• Droga5 (droga5.nyc)
• First Lady Chirlane McCray (flo.nyc)
• Flatiron 23rd Street Partnership (flatirondistrict.nyc)
• Gardega Studios (murals.nyc)
• Gay City News (gaycitynews.nyc)
• General Assembly (generalassembly.nyc)
• Gothamist (gothamist.nyc)
• Icon Parking Systems (wepark.nyc)
• Il Forno Bakery (ilfornobakery.nyc)
• Ink Creative Agency (ink.nyc)
• Journalist Tim McDonald (stories.nyc)
• Lazerow Ventures (laz.nyc)
• Lincoln Square Business Improvement District (winterseve.nyc)
• Livestream (livestream.nyc)
• Liz Christy Garden (lizchristygarden.nyc)
• Lower East Side Business Improvement District (chamber.nyc)
• Manhattan Sideways (sideways.nyc)
• MESH Architectures (mesh.nyc)
• Mister (mister.nyc)
• Musical Theatre Factory (mtf.nyc)
• Musician Bridget Kelly (bridget.nyc)
• New York City Beekeepers Association  (bees.nyc)
• New York Rugby (newyorkrugby.nyc)
• NY Tech Meetup (future.nyc)
• Pace University (pace.nyc)
• Photographer Casey Neistat  (casey.nyc)
• Pickle Day (pickleday.nyc)
• Plenty (plenty.nyc)
• Row House (row.nyc)
• Staten Island Makerspace (makerspace.nyc)
• Studio M+ (studiomplus.nyc)
• Tech entrenpreneur Alex Godin (alex.nyc)
• Tech entrenpreneur Hilary Mason (hilary.nyc)
• The New-York Historical Society (nywomen.nyc)
• The Shubert Organization, Inc. (shubert.nyc)
• Times Square Alliance (newyearseve.nyc)
• Tinsel & Twine (tinsel.nyc)
• Union Theological Seminary (unionseminary.nyc)

The .nyc web address will be available to the general public on a first-come, first-served basis, starting on October 8, 2014.

For those interested in registering .nyc domain names early, applications are still being accepted through October 3rd during the pre-launch “Landrush” registration phase.

For more information about .nyc, the official web address of New York City, or to register your .nyc domain name, please visit www.OwnIt.nyc.