Here's
the The Lowdown from
DN Journal,
updated daily to fill you in on the
latest buzz going around the domain name
industry.
The Lowdown is
compiled by DN Journal Editor & Publisher Ron
Jackson.
The
Best Thing About Our Business Is the People -
Braden Pollock Named Big Brother of the Year in
Los Angeles
When
I head out to Las Vegas this
weekend for the NamesCon
conference that starts Sunday, I
will be going to see more
than just domain industry colleagues
(though that is certainly reason
enough to go to the big show). I
also go (and keep going) to these
events to see some great
people. Braden Pollock of LegalBrandMarketing
(who was profiled in a November 2011
DNJournal
Cover Story) is
certainly one of the best of them.
Shortly
after NamesCon, on February 7,
2018, Braden will be honored as
the Big
Brother of the Yearin Los
Angeles! That is truly a great
thing. The only thing I can think of
is greater is that not one person
Big
Brother Braden Pollock and Daniel
in
this business who knows Braden
will be surprised to hear this -
that is the kind of person he is and
has always been. But enough about
Braden - what about that handsome
young man in the photo above? OK,
they're both handsome - but I mean
the one on the right - Daniel!
Braden
told us, "I have been a
"Big Brother” to
Daniel for the past 9
years. I have tried to be a
mentor to him, and show him
that with hard work, a
positive attitude, and
motivation, he can achieve
whatever goals he sets for
himself. When I met him,
he was going through a
harder time than some people
go through in their whole
lives. You would never know
from the smile on his face
that he was once homeless,
scared, and lost."
"Throughout
my relationship with Daniel,
he has learned to overcome
the challenges he
experienced in his life and
is now doing great in
college - straight A's in
his senior year! He told
me that he wants to study
business so he can be his
own boss one day, just like
me. It really humbles me to
know that he's always
watching me and I know that
I owe it to him be the best
example possible. My life
has been so enhanced
because of my time with
Daniel...he truly has
become part of my family!
What
Braden would like to see now
is more kids getting the
kind of helping hand Big
Brothers & Big Sisters
are so deservedly famous
for. He noted "You can
help support this amazing
organization that has been
changing lives in Los
Angeles for the past 102
years! Join Lisa and
Daniel and I at the February
7 dinner by clicking this
link to buy a ticket or to
donate: www.jbbbsla.org/bigevent.
Anything helps!
MERGE!
Show Announce New Venue and Dates for Their 2018
Conference in Orlando
2018
is shaping up as a great conference
year - one that will kick off in Las
Vegas Sunday (January 27) when
the 5th annual NamesCon
conference gets underway. Over the
past few months I have been filling
you in on the details of other major
2018 shows as information has come
in to us. I just learned today that
the MERGE!
conference, that debuted
last
October will be
returning to Orlando, Florida
for their second annual event - but
it will move to a new venue and new
dates. The show that combines
multiple fields of interest,
including domains, cryptocurrency,
blockchain and hosting,
will move up a month to September
15-18, 2018 and it will move to
the beautiful Hilton Lake Buena
Vista Hotel, adjacent to Disney
Springs, putting attendees
within walking distance of all of
great restaurants, shopping and
attractions there.
Above:
A view of the walkway from the
MERGE! show venue -
the Hilton Lake Buena Vista in
Orlando - over to Disney
Springs.
Below:
An evening view of the Hilton Lake
Buena Vista pool area.
Above:
The spacious halls at the Hilton
Lake Buena Vista
will provide a great space for
networking.
Below:
A view inside the MERGE! conference
hall
where attendees will gather in
September 2018.
MERGE!
was co-founded and conceived by Ray
Neu and Jothan Frakes.
Ray (who was one of the 24 expert
panelists in our just published 2018
State of the Industry Cover Story)
has 15 years of conference
experience in the domain investment,
startup, crowd sourcing, security,
and technology innovation realms. Jothan
(who was profiled in a July 2014 DNJournal
Cover Story), brings a
special flair for connecting ideas
and people – evidenced by past
successes in co-founding NamesCon,
DomainFest and three other
networking / opportunity conferences
in the digital space over the past
25 years.
$199
early bird tickets for the 2018
event are already on
sale. It's not to early
to go ahead and book
your hotel room either.
MERGE! has secured a $149 a
night rate - an excellent value for
a hotel of this caliber in the
center of the world famous
Disney/Lake Buena Vista vacation
paradise.
This
could be your room at the Hilton
Lake Buena Vista Hotel for MERGE!
2018
We
will have more details on MERGE! and
2018's other major conferences as
they develop in the weeks and months
ahead.
Big
New gTLD Sales Spark Debate But Do They Change
the Big Picture? - What Sattler Says
Yesterday's
news
about the record $500,000
sale of a new gTLD domain (Home.loans)
has sparked a lot of renewed
conversation about the merits (or
lack thereof) of new extensions. The
conversation will likely go up a few
more decibels when our next weekly
domain sales report
comes out tonight with news of a
second big 6-figure new gTLD
that will join Home.loans on the
chart.
As
I noted in yesterday's post about
the Home.loans sale, no one sale -
or even cluster of sales - is going
to settle the matter of when
or if an active, broad-based
aftermarket for new gTLDs will
develop. While we all wait to see
what happens, there will be ups and
downs with both good and bad news
taking turns in
the spotlight
along the way. In the interim, if
you have an interest in new gTLDs, I
think it is best to stay abreast of
all of the news and opinions put
forth by credible sources - then go
with your gut and do what you
think is best, whether that be
investing in or developing new gTLDs
or ignoring them in favor of
traditional favorites - .com, of
course, being chief among those.
You
will find several interesting
opinions, pro and con, on new gTLDs
(among many other topics) in our
14th annual State
of the Industry Cover Story
that was just released this morning.
The piece features 24 leaders
from all corners of the domain
industry, making it by far the
biggest State of the Industry piece
we have ever published.
Earlier
this month another article
you should read on this
topic was published at CircleID.com.
The piece, titled New
TLD Launch: Lessons
Learned, came
from a very reputable
source, Tobias
Sattler, the
Chief Information Officer at
United-Domains AG
(part of corporate giant United
Internet, the parent of
companies like Sedo, InterNetX
and 1&1). It was
originally published in
German last fall but was
just translated to English
this month.
The
names of the section
headings in Sattler's piece
will give you a good idea of
the ground he covered in
researching these early
stages of new gTLD
development: Far Too Much
New GTLDs at Once, High
Complexity on the
Introduction of New gTLDs,
Technical and Operational
Challenges Due to
Non-Scalability, Marketing
and Awareness – the
Assumptions Were Wrong,
Unpleasant Pitfalls and
Future Prospects.
Cumulatively,
those headings might lead
you to believe that Sattler
is anti-new gTLD but
that
Tobias
Sattler
Chief Information Officer
United-Domains AG
is
not the case at all.
He details where the program
went off the rails but also
what it can do to get back
on track. In his closing
comments Sattler wrote,
"Despite all the
difficulties surrounding the
launches of the new
top-level domains, they
will find their way into
everyday life and expandstep by step. Even
.com took some time to
skyrocket. However, the
consolidation of the domain
market will continue and
some top-level domains may
disappear again."
Sattler
added, "Nevertheless,
it looks like there will be more
new TLDs from 2020
onwards. However, this time
around, it will most likely
be mainly trademark owners
who will apply for their
ending. However that may be,it is important to continue
to work on the success of
the new extensions,
true to the motto "Keep
it simple, stupid"
(KISS), all parties should
not lose sight of the big
picture."
Whether
you agree with Sattler's
findings or not, this is the
kind of clear-eyed
commentary you need to
consider when considering
your own path forward -
rather than basing it on a
big sale or two or, on the
flipside, mis-steps that may
be damaging but not
necessarily fatal as new
gTLDs continue on toward
whatever their ultimate
destiny may be.
Donuts
Announces Biggest New gTLD Domain Sale Reported
to Date - Home.loans at $500,000
Donuts,the world's largest operator
of new gTLD domain registries
with over 200 extensions in their portfolio,
announced
today that they have
concluded a $500,000 cash
sale of Home.loans - the
highest
figure ever reported for a new gTLD
domain. Donuts credited Senior
Domain Consultant Jebidiah
Burnett for closing the record
sale.
The
Donuts announcement said,
"Home.loans was
acquired by "Home.Loans
LLC founder and chief
executive officer Blake
Janover, a serial
entrepreneur, digital media
visionary and capital
markets innovator.
Janover is launching the home.loans
website; its primary focus
is to be
the
Internet's most complete,
well organized, and
responsive source for
"all things home
loans."
Janover
said, ""Home.loans
is the ideal organic search
term and digital media asset
for this business. The
website URL is
the brand, which will help
us drive awareness rapidly
and cost-effectively. It
creates an absolutely clear
vision for the entirety of
the site - we won't be
selling credit cards or car
loans." Janover already
operates a portfolio of
websites that includes: Multifamily.Loans,
HUD.Loans,
and CommercialRealEstate.Loans.
He noted, "the
objectives of these
businesses are to simplify
and streamline complicated
loan products, and provide
access to more sources of
more competitively-priced
capital for consumers,
multifamily investors and
developers."
Home.loans
buyer Blake Janover
Matt
Overman, Senior Vice President
of Sales at Donuts, said "We're
excited to be affiliated with yet
another innovative business that's
leveraging the power of a Donuts
premium name. Blake is an amazing
entrepreneur with an outstanding
track record launching new
businesses. He purchased the best
possible name for his new venture.
We look forward to supporting the
rapid growth and success of
home.loans in its marketplace."
The
Donuts announcement was
welcome news for new gTLD
fans who haven't
had a lot to cheer about
recently, however it was
also immediately questioned
by a number skeptics in blog
posts and commentary.
Followers of the U.S.
political scene are well
aware of the massive chasm
that has developed between
Democrats and Republicans
and, ever since new gTLDs
were introduced, we have had
a similar divide in this
industry with .com-only
stalwarts on one side and
new gTLD adherents on the
other. Today's news won't
change that but over time
the market, as it always
does, will make the winners
and losers clear. In the
meantime, it will continue
to be up to every investor
and developer to carefully
weigh the pros and cons of
the options and decide
for themselves what they believe and what path
they want to take going
forward.
We
Have Free Tickets to NamesCon for Five People
Who've Never Been to the Big Show in Las Vegas
The free tickets offered in this article have all been distributed now and the giveaway is over. Congratulations to the five winners!
The
5th annual NamesCon
conference gets underway a week from
Sunday (January 28, 2018) at
the Tropicana Hotel in Las
Vegas. The show attracts
industry veterans from around the
world but organizers of the event
also go out of their way to welcome
newcomers - knowing their energy
and fresh ideas are critical
to continued growth and
innovation in this business.
Toward that end NamesCon has given
us five free tickets to the
upcoming show (currently priced at $799
each) with the provision that they
can go only to people who
have never been to NamesCon
before.
The
tickets cover show admission only
- winners will have to take care of
their own transportation and lodging
needs. NamesCon left it up
to
us to decide how to hand them out. I
wanted to keep it simple and also
reward regular readers (who will be
the ones most likely to see this
offer before all of the tickets are
claimed). The method I settled on
will also give me a chance to show
you the kind of daily show coverage
we post from NamesCon in this column
every year (the kind we will be
providing again during its 2018 run
from January 28-31.
Here
is how it will work. I am going to
give you a link to our closing day
coverage of the 2017 edition of
NamesCon last January. After you
click the link, scroll through the
photos and highlights from that day
until you reach the final photo on
the page. Read the text above the
photo and that will give you the
name of the person in the photo who
is having their head shaved to raise
money for the Water
School (nearly
$90,000 was raised that night)!
Then just send that person's name
and your name to me via email
to Editor at DNJournal.com.
The senders of the first five emails
I receive with the correct name will
get the tickets.
A
scene from the 2017 NamesCon
conference in Las Vegas last
January.
Again,
remember you will only be able to
use this ticket if this would be your
first NamesCon and show
organizers will verify that is the
case when I send them the list of
winners. As soon as I have the first
five in I will add a message to the
beginning of this post (in
bold red) to let you know
all of the tickets have been
claimed. If anyone does not redeem
their free ticket or NamesCon
determines it is not their first
show, I will go down the line of
emails received and offer the ticket
to the next person in line).
Finland
- A New Frontier for Global Domain Investors?
I've
always been
a fan of country code domains (ccTLDs).
I wound up in this business only
because I was reading a computer
magazine one day in 2002 that had an
ad placed by Neustar
announcing that America's .US country
codedomain was being opened
to all U.S. citizens for the first
time (originally it was reserved for
government agencies, schools, etc).
In doing further research on that
development I stumbled upon the
domain business at large and the
rest, as they say is history.
I
soon learned that in many countries
the local ccTLD was just as popular
(if not more so) than the globally dominant
.com extension with Germany's .de
and Great Britain's .co.uk among
the most prominent examples.
However, it doesn't stop
there
as every nation on earth has their
own unique country code domain and
an aftermarket has developed for
many of them - especially among
citizens and those doing business
within a specific country.
Still,
investing in ccTLDS can be a
tricky business because most
countries have Nexus rules
that limit ownership of
their domains to that
nation's citizens and
businesses. That, of course,
limits overall sales and
aftermarket interest in
those TLDs. While I try to
keep up with developments on
the ccTLD front that could
affect the value of the
various
extensions,
I
have to admit that I wasn't
aware that a little over a
year ago Finland's .fi domain
administrator -FICORA
- had removed their
Nexus restrictions and opened
that extensionto
anyone, anywhere on earth.
That has created increased
interest in .fi, especially
since less than 450,000
domains were taken
with the old rules in place,
leaving a lot of desirable
words and terms there for
the taking. After the rules
change in late 2016 FICORA
reported the number of .fi
domains registered in the
first half of 2017 was 34%
higher than the number
claimed in the same period a
year earlier.
I
got a first hand report on
what is happening on the
ground in Finland from
domain industry veteran Esa-Pekka
Pälvimäki, who is a
co-founder of Intelium.com
and Estibot.com.
Esa
said, "Previously, there was
no aftermarket, as
registering domains for
resale purposes was
prohibited by law, and
domain registration was
restricted to Finnish
citizens and corporations.
As of September 2016, these
restrictions no longer
apply. Aftermarket sales
have started building up,
and a new domain marketplace
has recently been
established at DomainKauppa.fi."
Esa
is not involved in the new
marketplace but he did put
me in touch with the owners
and we expect to be able to
start reporting verified
sales on their platform in
the near future. Esa noted,
"The .fi ccTLD is the
default TLD for Finnish
businesses and consumers,
and aftermarket prices are
starting to reflect that. I
expect the value will rise
significantly once the
mainstream catches on to
what’s happening," He
added, "There is no
comprehensive database of .fi
aftermarket sales, but to my
knowledge, recent sales of
Moi.fi (translating to
"Hello") at
€15,000, Kasinot.fi
("Casinos") at
€11,500 and Etu.fi
("advantage")
at €5,000 have
recently occurred,
indicating a substantial
potential for this
aftermarket."
Esa
acknowledged, "It’s a
small but interesting
aftermarket, as it is a new
one, and Finnish
consumers always default to
the .fi ccTLD for type-in
traffic. For companies
hoping to do business in
Finland, a .fi domain name
is essential. It also
demonstrates how important
ccTLD domains are locally in
many countries outside the
U.S."
Since
individual registrars set
their own prices for new .fi
registrations they can vary
wildly in cost. After
checking just a handful of
registrars I saw prices
ranging from under $20 (at Gandi.net)
to well over $60 at others,
so it definitely pays to shop
around.
Radix
Registry Names New CEO:
Sandeep Ramchandani Takes Over After 15-Year
Rise Through the Ranks
Radix,
the domain registry founded by
serial entrepreneurs Bhavin
Turakhia and Divyank Turakhia,
has appointed Sandeep Ramchandani
as its new global CEO.
Launched in 2012, Radix owns
and operates 10 Top Level Domains
including nine new TLDs (.ONLINE, .STORE, .TECH, .WEBSITE, .SPACE, .PRESS,
.SITE, .HOST and .FUN) and one
re-purposed ccTLD in .PW.
Radix currently has over 3
million domains under its
management.
Commenting
on the appointment of Mr.
Ramchandani as CEO, Bhavin Turakhia,
who has been serving in that role
and will continue as Radix's
Executive Chairman, said, “Sandeep,
with close to 15 years of
experience, and having played key
roles across our registrar, service
provider and registry businesses,
has consistently built talented
teams, delivered results and
demonstrated exceptional
leadership. Despite intense
competition among new TLDs, he has
evolved Radix into a profitable and
fast growing business, with over
$12 million in top-line revenue.
We remain extremely bullish about
the registry space and are looking
for avenues to re-invest our
profits.”
Elaborating on his immediate
plans as the
Sandeep
Ramchandani
Radix CEO
new
CEO, Sandeep Ramchandani said,
“Just as the first few years of
Radix were about demonstrating proof
of concept, the next few will be
about growing awareness and
delivering accelerated growth. We
are also actively looking to acquire
more TLD assets to reach
newer segments of the market while
leveraging economies of scale. My
mandate is to grow Radix into one of
the largest global players, and
given the team and resources at my
disposal, I feel confident of being
able to achieve that goal.”
The
35-year-old Ramchandani has been
with Radix since its inception as
the VP and Business Head. Prior to
Radix, he was with LogicBoxes,
an enterprise consulting business,
which was one of the businesses
acquired along with Radix parent Directi
by Endurance International Group
in 2014.
NameSummit
Announces Dates, New Location & Pitchfest
for 2018 Show in New York City
The
2nd annual edition
of New York's NameSummit
conference will be held in a
new location next summer. The
big event that debuted last
August at the Hilton
Midtown Manhattan Hotel will move a
few blocks south to the Westin
Times Square for the 2018 show
that will be staged August 6th
& 7th.
Jason
Schaeffer, who co-founded the
conference with Steven Kaziyev,
gave me the Lowdown on the 2018
event this afternoon. Schaeffer
said, "Our first event provided
unsurpassed networking opportunities
for the lucky attendees and a
positive showcase for domains and
new TLDs. I’m happy to say that we
are back to help anyone in the
digital
branding space, and remain committed
to a providing a platform to
showcase domain names as an integral
part for a branding initiatives."
NameSummit
Co-Founders Steven Kaziyev (left)
and Jason Schaeffer at their debut event in New York
City in August 2017.
Schaeffer
added, "Thrilled by the
feedback and overall success of the
inaugural NameSummit, Steve and I
turned our attention to find a way
to add more value for
attendees, speakers and sponsors.
Building on the startup and
coaching component of the
conference was important, so we have
created Pitchfest Global for
2018."
"Among
other things, Pitchfest
Global is a contest where
the finalists will be able
showcase their innovative
ideas to an expert panel of
influencers, business
leaders, and a live
audience.
Additionally, the NameSummit
and NamesCon
teams are working
together on Pitchfest to
support digital
entrepreneurship and
innovation, and give
Pitchfest a truly
“global” reach. If
you have a new business idea
or marketing concept to
propel your business to new
heights then Pitchfest
Global is for you!"
Schaeffer
also noted, "The prizes
and promotional
opportunities for Pitchfest
Global will be announced
at NamesCon in January
(NamesCon runs January 28-31,
2018 in Las Vegas).
However, we can already say
that the winner of Pitchfest
Global may reap the greatest
reward of this collaboration
by receiving assistance to
position their new concept
and reach 100s of thousands
of people, if not
more."
"Jodi
Chamberlain is returning with us
to make sure the event is a
success," Schaeffer added.
"Be sure to join us at
NamesCon where the NameSummit
team will be at Booth 1 to
share more information about
Pitchfest Global and accept
applications to become a Pitchfest
Global participant."
Schaeffer
closed with this - "Whether you
have one follower or 1 million,
whether you are the brand, work for
one, or are one in the making,
NameSummit’s experts will show you
how to build your brand and connect
with your audience. You can
register for NameSummit 2018 to be a
part of Pitchfest Global at The
Westin Times Square with a special NamesCon
discount for $199,
limited to the first 50 registrants,
or use the CODE: NamesCon."
Radix
Rings Up $1.38 Million in Premium Domain Sales
Revenue Over Past 6 Months
New
gTLD registry operator Radix
issued a report
(.pdf file) on their premium
domain sales over the last two
quarters of 2017 today. The
data, presented in infographic
style, showed Radix banking just
over $1.38 million in premium
sales in the second half of the
year. Over $614,000 came from
new premium domain sales with the
rest generated by premium renewals.
The company said 64% of
premium names that had been sold
through the registrar channel and
were up for renewal for the first
time were renewed.
Radix's
most popular premium extensions,
both in terms of the number sold and
the dollar amount generated, were .online
and .tech. .Online generated
$157,000 of the new revenue in
2H-2017 with .tech close to
the same amount at $153,000.
One other Radix TLD, .fun,
generated six figures with $127,000
in premium sales.
The
report also listed the company's top
individual premium domain sales for
2H-2017. A trio of sales made
through GoDaddy topped the
list with Mint.tech, Wit.tech
and Mirror.fun selling for $12,999
apiece. One other domain reached
five figures - Track.tech -
at $10,320. Those are just a
few highlights from the full report
that you can download here
(.pdf format).
Neustar
Moves Nicolai Bezsonoff Into New Position as VP
& General Manager of Registry Solutions
Nicolai
Bezsonoff
is taking on a new role with industry
giantNeustar,
Inc. The company announced
today that Bezsonoff will now lead the
Registry Solutions business as VP and General
Manager, transitioning from his current role of VP and GM of Security Solutions.
Neustar said that will put Bezsonoff
in charge of supporting the world’s largest core registry and digital naming service.
Bezsonoff is well-known in the
domain world, having previously
co-founded and served as Chief Operating Officer
of the .CO domain administrator, which was acquired by Neustar in 2014.
The press
release Neustar issued
today noted, "Under Nicolai's tenure .CO had incredible growth and became one of the most successful domain extensions in history, with more than 2.2 million
domain names registered by people in
200 countries. He has more than 20 years of experience running businesses and consulting on functions ranging from strategy, finance, product, technology and sales."
Nicolai
Bezsonoff VP & General Manager,
Registry Solutions Neustar
Venkat
Achanta, Neustar Chief Data Officer and
SVP, Internet Addressing
Solutions, added, “Nicolai has shown incredible leadership and insight shaping our growing cybersecurity business to meet the needs of our
customers. Combining his expertise of the business,
and
knowledge from his previous role at .CO, is a natural fit to broadening our capabilities and shows our dedication to innovation and strengthening the evolution of the domain name space.”
Bezsonoff
said, "I’m excited to continue this journey with Neustar and take on a more active role leading passionate teams dedicated to delivering digital naming services that are second to
none. Working for an industry pioneer that continues to be at the forefront of the domain name industry provides an undeniable platform to raise the bar even higher on creativity, increased engagement and deeper insight for innovative brands.”
This
Is a Special New Year's Day for DNJournal.com -
The Publication Launched 15 Years Ago Today!
As
an eternal optimistI
have always loved New Year's Day.
The start of a new year symbolizes a
fresh start and an opportunity
to have not only a better year than
the one before (no matter how
great - or not so great - it may
have been) but possibly one's best
year ever. It is a blank
canvas ready to be filled in with
whatever you want to make of it. That
is enough to give the day special
meaning for anyone but for me it has
significance even beyond that.
In
addition to a fresh start it
marks the start for DNJournal.com.
On New Year's Day 2003 - 15
years ago today - I
launched this online
publication with no great
expectations. It was not
something I planned to do when
I discovered and got involved
in the domain investing
business in the spring of
2002, even though I had spent
most of my previous
professional life as a
journalist (most of that time
as a TV reporter).
As
a newcomer to this field I was
hungry for information about
the industry. In my previous
career that kind of
information usually came from
trade magazines. To my chagrin
I could find none about the
domain industry nor little
information of any kind on the
ins and outs of buying,
selling and monetizing
domains. So, the only solution
I could see was starting a
trade magazine myself. It
turned out that many others
were looking for the same kind
of information I was and the
publication - never meant to
be my primary business -
essentially took on a life
of its own and swept me
along
It
has been an extraordinarily
rewarding journey that
has taken my wife
Diana and I around the
world and allowed us
to make hundreds of
fascinating, creative
new friends across the
globe - people who
continue to inspire me
and our readers on a
daily basis.
Had they not been
willing to share their
stories and expertise
there would have been
no DNJournal. We could
not be more
thankful for them
and for the dozens of
sponsors who have
supported us over the
years including
several who have been
with us continuously
for over a decade.
In fact our very first
advertiser, Sedo,
is still with us 15
years later! Having
worked in media throughout
my life I know how
rare the kind of
steadfast support we
have gotten from this
industry has been.
Again, I also know that
we would not be here
now without it.
On
that New Year's Day
back in
2003, when
DNJournal.com first
went live, I had no
idea how much it would
change my life for the
better. On this New
Year's
Ron
Jackson
DNJournal.com
Day, the
same possibility
exists for each and
every one of you. You
have a blank canvas in
front of you - so start
painting! I wish you
all the best in whatever
you choose to do and
hope 2018 will indeed be
your best year ever!
Wishing
Our Friends and Readers Around the World a
Merry Christmas and the Happiest of Holidays
On
this Christmas Day
we want to send out our warmest
wishes for this special season
and for the new year ahead. Whatever
your faith or beliefs may be, we
hope that your holidays, and all of
your days ahead, will be richly
blessed.
With
over 2.5 million visitors to our
site each year, our readers are
located all over the globe, come
from every race, color and creed,
and have a rich variety of inspiring
holiday celebrations in their
respective cultures. Regarding
Christmas, American actress Marlo
Thomas once said "Our many
cultures not withstanding, there's
something about the holidays that
make the planet communal. Even
nations that do not celebrate
Christmas can't help but be caught
up in the collective spirit of their
neighbors, as twinkling lights dot
the landscape and carols fill the
air. It's an inspiring time
of year."
We
have always found that to be so and
the core of our belief is that,
regardless of the troubles we will
always see around us in this world,
the best is yet come. With that
in mind we hope that you head into
the new year filled with
inspiration, happiness and eager
anticipation of the good things that
lie ahead!
Latest
Verisign Industry Brief Reveals a Rare Retreat
in Total Domain Names Registered Worldwide Due
to Expiring New gTLDs
Verisign
has released their latest quarterly Domain
Name Industry Brief
covering the 3rd quarter of 2017. We
have typically seen steady growth in
the number of domain names
registered worldwide but this time
out there was a slight decline
from the previous quarter. On the
plus side, the number was up from a
year ago.
The
VeriSign report said 3Q-2017 closed
with approximately 330.7 million
domain name registrations across all
top-level domains (TLDs), a decrease
of approximately 1.2 million
domain name registrations at the
conclusion of the 2nd quarter. The
entire fall off can be attributed to
millions of new gTLD domains
(primarily .xyz and .top)
that were dropped
after
essentially being given away last
year with prices as low as a penny.
Year over year, the number of
registrations across all extensions
still managed to grow 1.1%
Verisign
administers the .com and .net
TLDs and said those two extensions
closed the year with a combined
total of 145.8 million registrations
- up 1.2% from the same time a year
ago. As of Sept. 30, 2017, the .com
domain name base totaled 130.8
million domain name
registrations (by far the world's
most popular TLD), while the .net
domain name base totaled 15.0
million.
ccTLDs
managed to grow at a faster clip,
finishing 3Q-2017 with 144.7
million country code domains
registered - a jump of 3.2%
year over year. That number
represents a smaller 0.3%
increase from the previous quarter
though.
As of Sept. 30, 2017,
the new gTLDs had a total of 21.1 million domain name registrations, which represents
6.4% of total domain name
registrations worldwide. There is
much more data in the latest
Verisign DNIB that you can download here.
.GLOBAL
Christmas Contest Offers $1,000 Amazon Gift Card
in Effort to Cut Through New gTLD Clutter
With
hundreds
of different new gTLDs
competing for market share, registry
operators have to create new ways to
break through the clutter so their
domain extension doesn't get lost in
the crowd. The .GLOBAL
Registry has come up
with a timely promotion aimed at
boosting their recognition - a
Christmas themed contest with a $1,000
Amazon Gift Card awaiting the
winner of a random drawing that will
conclude the contest.
They
are using a two-and-a-half minute YouTube
video as the vehicle for
the contest. In addition to
providing clues that will lead
viewers to the secret contest
website, the video showcases some of
the companies that have set their
enterprises up on a .global domain
name.
For
example, the screen capture
below was taken from a snippet in
the video featuring a multi-national
company whose website is at Imagen.global.
You will notice a large letter (N
in this case) overlaying the scene.
In the course of the brief video
eight letters will be shown. You
collect and enter those letters (in
the order they appear in the video)
in your browser, along with the
.global extension to create the
domain name/web address that will
take you to the contest entry site
(the format would be
www.[letters].global).
Once
you arrive at the secret contest
site you can complete your contest
entry thorugh a form that is
presented in a text message
conversation format. Then keep you
fingers crossed until the winner is
announced on December 26th.
You can review all of the contest
terms and conditions here
and view the full video by clicking
the play button below:
New
gTLD Registry Operator Radix Shares Their
Revenue Numbers for the First Time
There
has been a lot of speculation about
how new gTLD registry
operators have been faring since
ICANN delegated the first new
domain extensions four years
ago. Few registries release specific
financial
information but it has clearly been
a mixed bag with some operators
exiting the business after selling
off extensions they couldn't make
profitable and others, with deeper
pockets, staying the course or
expanding (in some cases by
acquiring TLDs acquired from those
leaving).
A member of the latter group,
Radix,
the world’s 4th largest new gTLD
portfolio registry operator (and a
part of the Directi Group,
which is currently valued at $1.4
billion), has, for the first
time, released some of their actual
numbers. The self-funded company
that
operates nine
new
gTLDS (.ONLINE, .STORE, .TECH,
.WEBSITE, .SPACE, .PRESS, .SITE,
.HOST, and .FUN) revealed today that
their 2017 revenue numbers had
reached $11.7 million and
would pass $12 million by the
end of the year. The $11.7 million
does not include revenue generated
in the month of December. The figure
also excludes the complete
renewal-revenue from domains
expiring in November and December as
registrants have up to 45 days to
renew their domains.
Even
with November & December
renewal revenue not yet included,
Radix reported that more
than 50% of their total
revenue has come from
non-premium domain renewals.
The recurring revenue of
non-premium domains was
almost double the amount
received from new
registrations. Of the total
revenue, $1.76 million
was attributed to premium
domains sold & renewed
on registrar storefronts as
well as one-time premium
sales made directly by
Radix. One-time premium
sales contribute 14% of that
amount with recurring
premiums making up the
remaining 86%.
Despite
being inactive in China
through most of the third
quarter of 2017 (due to the MIIT
restrictions), Radix said
total revenue in the quarter
showed an upward trend.
The company added that Radix
will be ending 2017 on a
high as November was its
best month of the year in
terms of new registration
revenue.
Radix
also broke down the source
of its registrar revenue by
country, noting that the United
States was the top
contributor with 49.6%
of the total share followed
by Germany at 14.4%
and China at 7.7%.
Details
Released for January's NameJet/RightOfTheDot
Live Domain Auction at NamesCon 2018 in Las
Vegas
Over the past three
years, NamesCon
auctions have produced over $4
million in domain sales. On January 30th,
2018 from 4pm-7pm Pacific
Standard Time (7pm-10pm EST) NameJet and
RightOfTheDot
(ROTD) will partner again to produce
their annual NamesCon live auction
as part of the 2018
conference that will run
January 28-31 at the Tropicana
Hotel in Las Vegas.
A
NameJet/ROTD press release said,
"The 2018 auction will feature some of the best .com and
new gTLD names available, including premium domain bundles sold as
single lots (you can view
all names currently entered in the
auction here).
Great.com, Super.com, Lucky.com,
Pen.com, Tee.com and Coins.club
are just a few examples of domains
in the auction catalog.
You do not
have to be in Las Vegas to participate in the Live Auction.
Just go to the Live Auction Page on the NameJet website and click the link to enter the Live Auction
portal ( which will appear on the Live Auction Page
shortly before the Live Auction
begins). You will need to be logged into your NameJet account in order to participate in the Live Auction.
If you do not already have a NameJet
account you can create
one here.
Most NameJet auctions typically have a 30-day Pre-Release period followed by a 3-day "active" auction,
but in this case the auctions are already in active public auction status and will remain so until they close completely.
So, any bids placed will automatically be the next highest bid.
A
scene from the January 2017 NameJet/ROTD
Live Domain Auction in Las Vegas.
Following the live auction,
an online auction will
continue on NameJet for an additional 9 days. This extended auction will include the domains names not selected for live auction and any domains in the live auction that do not hit reserve, and will close completely on
February 8, 2018.
New names are being added
daily and NameJet/ROTD is
still accepting domains for the
auction. However, at this time they
are considering only names they
consider to be " super-premium" .com
domains. If you have a name or names
that you think may meet that high
standard you can submit
them here for
consideration.
Domaining
Europe Returning Home to Valencia, Spain for
10th Anniversary Show Next Spring
The
Domaining
Europe
conference
began in Valencia, Spain almost
a decade ago and the first seven
shows in the annual series were
staged at the Hotel Sorolla
Palace there. In 2016 conference
founder Dietmar Stefitz
decided to take the show on the
road, staging that year's event
in The Hague, Netherlands,
followed by the 2017
show in Berlin,
Germany this past May. With the
2018 conference marking the 10th
anniversary of the popular
event, Stefitz decided it was only
fitting that the event go back to where
it all began in Valencia. So, he
has booked the Sorolla Palace and
set the dates for June 7-9, 2018.
Dietmar
Stefitz
Domaining Europe Founder
Stefitz
is determined to make the
10th anniversary show a
special one so he has
already started putting the
agenda and speaker's line up
together. He told me, "Braden
Pollock is again coming
over to Valencia from the
United States to moderate
the event. Also, we are
planning an opening day
Keynote address at 10am June
7 featuring pioneering
domain investor and DomainMarket.com
Founder Michael Mann
with a talk titled Get
a .com! Mann is
also scheduled to
participate on a panel
discussion devoted to domain
valuation."
Stefitz
has also identified several
other topics that will be
explored in depth through
presentations and panel
discussions at the 2018
event including Inventory
Carrying Costs, Brokerage,
Domain Portfolio
Monetization, Buy Now
Pricing vs. Negotiation and
Drop Catching. Of course,
the latest trends in new
gTLDs will also be
covered with Stefitz
expecting to have .CLUB CMO
Jeff Sass, .GLOBAL
CEO Rolf Larsen and a
representative from Neustar
on
hand
to give attendees an update
on that sector. He also has
an International Investor
Roundtable in the works
with participants from Asia,
Latin America, Russia,
the USA and Europe.
Registration
hasn't opened yet but it is
not to soon to block June
7-9 out on your 2018
calendar to join domain
investors, executives and
service providers from
around the world for this
landmark edition of
Domaining Europe.
If
you've been out of the loop lately, catch up in the Lowdown
Archive!
We need your help to keep giving domainers The
Lowdown, so please email [email protected]with any interesting information you might have. If possible,
include the source of your information so we can check it out (for
example a URL if you read it in a forum or on a site
elsewhere).
