Telnic Limited has launched resources and open-source code for developers, enabling them to create new applications and services on the innovative .tel platform launching in December.

.tel, a new communications hub for individuals and businesses that bypasses the need for Web sites when publishing live information to the Internet, will enable secure sharing of contact information and personalization of online services under a .tel domain owner’s control.

A company spokesperson said there was an entire “ecosystem” building around this that will offer opportunities to the channel for developing value-add applications.

“Now is the right time to get the ball rolling to energize the developer community and deliver something long anticipated – a platform that an individual has complete control over that will change the way they can manage information and services online,” said Henri Asseily, chief strategist and CTO at Telnic.

As well as resources, code, toolkits and the .tel management console, Telnic has released beta versions of applications on the site that can be used on BlackBerry devices, iPhones and Windows-based PCs. These applications integrate with the address book and make them dynamically updated with information stored in a .tel owner’s domain. They are free to download, under an open-source license, and can be used as models for new types of applications around communications, directory services, location-based services, search and social networking, designed to exploit the DNS-based .tel service.

“With the new services that developers can deliver for customers, the bad old days of manually updating contact information and the outdated and fragmented information available within yellow page directories online will finally be a thing of the past,” added Asseily.

Telnic is also exploring a competition for developers that will see a prize fund for services and applications developed which take advantage of the .tel service. While the details are yet to be finalized, those interested in the competition should visit the developer resource site at www.dev.telnic.org.