NEW YORK — Growth in Internet domain names slowed considerably last year as speculators who once hoped to make a fortune off easy-to-remember addresses dropped properties they couldn't unload.

        In addition, total registrations declined in the last half of 2001 as new registrations of “.com,” “.net” and “.org” names failed to keep pace with expirations, according to figures released Thursday.

        VeriSign Inc., the master keeper of the three suffixes, reported a 2 percent increase last year in the cumulative name total. By contrast, total registrations more than tripled in 2000 and more than doubled in 1999.

        The totals peaked at 32.4 million June 30, before dropping to 32.0 million Sept. 30 and 28.8 million Dec. 31. At the end of 2000, the total was 28.2 million.

        After registering sought-after names for about $30 a year, scores of speculators were able to resell them for hundreds or thousands of dollars. A few names commanded seven figures, including $7.5 million for business.com in late 1999 and $3 million for loans.com in January 2000.

        But countless others sat unclaimed.

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