News
Here’s what NameJet is doing about shill bidding
Company releases statement including changes it is making.
Domain name auction site NameJet has posted an update about allegations of shill bidding and what it’s doing about it. You can read the full statement here, and here’s a summary:
1. NameJet has suspended some accounts that were bidding on their own domains.
2. The company made a technical change to prevent bidders from being able to bid on their own domains. (It’s surprising this was ever a possibility.)
3. It’s creating an activity tracking system to detect shill bidding.
4. It has created a dedicated email address (report_abuse at namejet.com) for people to report questionable activity.
5. It is suspending the “next bid wins” practice whereby sellers were able to lower their reserve so that the next bidder would win. This seems to be more of a perception issue than an actual shill bidding issue.
I think these are good steps in the right direction. I’d also suggest verifying ownership of domains before they can be listed and only letting the owner list domains, not a third party. Letting a third party list domains opens the system to abuse.
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Is a big TV network about to troll Donald Trump with a new cartoon?
Get ready for The Bigly Adventures of Donald Trump.
A client of corporate domain name registrar MarkMonitor registered a lot of domain name yesterday that suggest a new Donald Trump cartoon is in the works. The full list is below.
MarkMonitor has a lot of entertainment companies as clients. It’s not clear which client registered these domains because they are using MarkMonitor’s Whois privacy service. One of MarkMonitor’s clients is Viacom, owner of Comedy Central. But CBS Networks, owner of Showtime, just registered showtimedonald.com, showtimedonaldtrump.com, and showtimetrump.com, so it’s another candidate. It also uses MarkMonitor.
This is certainly a cartoon I’d tune in for.
adventuresofdonaldtrump.com
animatedtrump.com
bigleaguetoons.com
biglyadventures.com
biglyadventuresofdonaldtrump.com
biglytoon.com
cartooncabinet.com
cartoondonald.com
cartoonfakenews.com
cartoonkellyanne.com
cartoonpence.com
cartoonpresident.com
cartoonputin.com
cartoonspicer.com
cartoontrump2020.com
cartoonwhitehouse.com
donaldtrumpanimated.com
donaldtrumpanimatedseries.com
fakecartoonnews.com
fakescartoons.com
looniertoons.com*
lunatictoons.com*
makeamericatoonagain.com
makedonaldtoonagain.com
thebiglyadventuresofdonaldtrump.com
thecartoondonald.com
toondonald.com
toontrump.com
toontrump2020.com
trumpanimatedseries.com
*I’m assuming these are related as they were registered the same day.
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See, now here’s a good non-response UDRP decision
Panelist correctly denies complaint despite no response from domain name owner.
Yesterday I wrote about a a no good, very bad UDRP decision in which the domain owner didn’t respond but the panelist still shouldn’t have awarded the domain name to the complainant, Virgin.
Today comes a World Intellectual Property Organization decision with a non-response in which the panelist correctly denied the complaint.
Opus Group AB of Sweden filed the case against Opus Group LLC of New York.
We don’t know much about the domain owner, which didn’t respond to the dispute. But we do know that its name in Whois is Opus Group LLC, and Opus Group AB didn’t provide any evidence that this isn’t the actual registrant’s name.
That needed to be addressed because a company named Opus Group LLC would presumably have rights or a legitimate interest in the domain name OpusGroup.com.
Panelist Ian Lowe called the complainant on this. He also determined:
…the Panel considers that the Complainant has failed to demonstrate on any view that the Respondent is likely to have had the Complainant and its rights in any relevant trademark in mind at the time it registered the Domain Name, and that the Complainant has therefore failed to establish that the Domain Name was registered in bad faith.
It’s easy for a panelist to rubber stamp a complaint in which the domain owner doesn’t respond. Kudos to Ian Lowe for making the right decision in this case.
(The complainant also lost a case for Opus.group that is owned by a different group.)
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More thoughts on NameJet and investigating bad behavior
Let’s unearth bad behavior. Let’s also let NameJet properly analyze it.
Whenever there’s breaking world news, news outlets rush to cover the news. They don’t have any details so they resort to pure speculation. The facts usually end up being very different from the speculation.
That’s why when I see breaking news I usually wait three days to read the details about it. It’s more accurate that way.
But that’s world news. World news really doesn’t affect most of us when it breaks. The allegations of bad bidder behavior at NameJet, however, affect many people who spend money on the platform.
I’ve been following the thread at NamePros closely. I’m impressed by the investigative work people are doing to unearth odd bidding patterns and question them. Domain investors are great researchers (it’s part of the business) and they are doing a great job analyzing data.
At the same time, people need to be careful about calling for heads too quickly. NameJet has a lot to analyze. If it announces any of its findings too early it might make mistakes. Frankly, the initial response from NameJet was premature and an example of responding before doing a thorough analysis of the situation.
I don’t want a quick answer. I want the right one.
So kudos to domainers who are participating in the NamePros thread and investigating bidding behavior. Let’s hold NameJet accountable, but let’s also give them time to sort out this mess.
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A no good, very bad UDRP decision
Panelists should use common sense even when a domain owner doesn’t respond.
I don’t think this is Richard Branson’s website.
A PVC pipe maker in India is about to lose its domain name, and I bet it isn’t aware of it.
Umiya Poly Plast Industries uses the domain name VirginPVCPipe.com. It hosts its website on the domain name and has an email address tied to the domain. But it’s about to lose the domain name to Virgin Enterprises Limited.
Yes, that Virgin. The company known for Richard Branson. The company known for its airline and entertainment.
Why does Virgin want to shut down the website of a pipe maker in India?
That’s a great question. An even greater question is how a World Intellectual Property Organization panelist decided that the company in India was cybersquatting with the use of the domain name.
Virgin has trademarks in a number of fields, but I don’t believe PVC pipe is one of them.
Nonetheless, it filed a UDRP against the Indian company and the Indian company didn’t respond. The Whois for the domain is in the name of what appears to be a web developer. My guess is the PVC pipe maker isn’t aware of this dispute.
You can give a bit of leeway to a panelist for assuming the worst when someone doesn’t respond to a UDRP. But this case was so outlandish that I’m left scratching my head.
Virgin PVC is an industry term.
Panelist Tobias Zuberbühler wrote:
The fact that the Complainant has an extensive reputation for a series of marks comprising VIRGIN followed by a key word describing a business is likely to create the impression in the minds of Internet users that the website connected to the disputed domain name is in some way related to the Complainant or the Virgin Group.
Let me ask you something: If you saw a link for VirginPVCPipe.com, would you think it is associated with Richard Branson?
This line in the “Registered and used in bad faith section” also sets off alarm bells:
In view of the notoriety of the Complainant’s trademark, the Panel finds it plausible that the Respondent has registered and used the disputed domain name in an attempt to attract Internet users to its website for commercial gain, by creating a likelihood of confusion with the Complainant’s mark as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation or endorsement of the website or of the products presented on the website…
Plausible? Is that now the standard for bad faith in a UDRP?
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NameJet sellers at center of shill bidding questions
Questionable bidding sparks outcry.
Domain name auction site NameJet is caught up in a bit of a scandal around shill bidding involving sellers that use its platform.
As detailed over at NamePros, it started with a question about bidding by domain investors Andy and James Booth. It appeared with Andy Booth was bidding on his own domain; he responded by saying that he no longer owned the domains even though he was listed as the owner in Whois. But if you take the time to read through the thread, it goes beyond just these bidders. There’s some questionable stuff that makes it look like some people are engaged in shenanigans.
Shill and unnatural bidding is a serious allegation. Trust in platforms is key to continued usage.
GoDaddy went through this when a number of apparently fake bidders didn’t pay for auctions they won. People stopped participating because they questioned if competitors pushing up the bids were really going to pay. The company implemented bidder verification and trust was mostly restored.
In the case of NameJet, it’s not clear how widespread the problem is. It appears that some people might have been bidding on auctions in which they had some sort of stake, or there was “friend bidding” involved. The responses to the allegations haven’t held water with many commenters on the thread.
Again, it’s not 100% clear at this point. NameJet released an initial statement but is continuing to investigate.
I spoke with NameJet GM Jonathan Tenenbaum this afternoon, and he reiterated that they are continuing to look into all of the allegations. He said the company takes the allegations seriously and is taking the time to fully investigate them. It will take action (both with individual bidders and to improve the platform) based on what it finds.
To NameJet’s credit, it has some features that make it possible to track questionable bidding. If it weren’t for the site’s use of bidder handles, no one would have spotted this behavior. GoDaddy still refers to people merely as a bidder number that changes from auction to auction.
Regardless of which allegations are true, I was disappointed in Andy Booth’s initial response for people to “Find something better to complain about” and James Booth’s statement that people should “Find something better to moan about”. The integrity of auction bidding is extremely important. It’s definitely something to complain and moan about, and it’s fair to demand a full and detailed response to any allegations.
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Some Afternic partners are marking up your domain prices
The price you set might not be the price your customer sees.
When you list your domain names for sale through Afternic’s Premium Network, 100 resellers and registrars list your domain names for sale on their sites. Many of these partners allow customers to instantly purchase your domains by taking advantage of the Afternic Fast Transfer system.
You, the domain seller, pay a commission of up to 20% to Afternic.
But the total delta between what the buyer pays and you get might be much bigger. It turns out that some Afternic partners are marking up the price of your domains.
For example, both eNom and Name.com are adding 15% to your price. If your list price is $1,000, they promote the domains at $1,150. You still get $800 if the name sells.
Here’s an example. My list price on CashForecast.com is $1,995. Here’s the listing on Name.com:
SedoMLS has allowed this markup practice for a long time, but it appears to be new at Afternic. It was recently brought to my attention by a DNW reader.
I reached out to GoDaddy for an explanation. Afternic Chief Revenue Officer Bob Mountain stated:
Select partners are testing markups on Afternic domain names. There hasn’t been a fundamental shift, we’re just working with some of our partners at their request. If you would like to have your names removed from being listed at these markup resellers, please contact Afternic customer service.
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Here’s the latest on Donuts acquisition of Rightside
Donuts’ purchase of Rightside might be coming to a conclusion.
There has been a bit of activity regarding Donuts acquisition of Rightside (NASDAQ:NAME).
Offer issued: The tender offer was issued on June 27 and is valid until July 26, 2017 at midnight, which means the deal could close shortly after that. Rightside just needs a majority of shares to be tendered in order for the deal to go through. Otherwise, the tender deadline can be extended.
Practically speaking, small shareholders don’t need to do anything. You’ll still get paid $10.60 for your shares even if you don’t tender, but the money will come a bit later. If you don’t tender you also keep appraisal rights.
Lawsuit settled: Rightside and the other parties have entered into a settlement deal over the lawsuit a shareholder brought over the acquisition. These lawsuits are part of doing deals, and the real winner is the law firm that might get a mootness fee. Rightside made this additional disclosure as part of the deal.
ICANN approves: Because of the new top level domain contracts Rightside holds, it needed ICANN to approve (or not oppose) the deal. ICANN granted its approval on July 15.
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18 end user domain name sales up to $30,000
A cartoon artist, event management company and photography company bought domain names over the past week.
This week’s public Sedo sales were headlined by Trustwork.com, which was purchased by a new company for $30,000. SeedCompany.com was close behind at $28,000.
Other sales include a .com owner buying the matching .co.uk, a sports website company picking up a handball domain and an entrepreneur snapping up an alcohol-related .club domain name.
Here are 18 sales at Sedo that have cleared escrow and are in the hands of end users:
(You can view previous lists like this here.)
Trustwork.com $30,000 – Trustwork is a new technology development group.
SeedCompany.com $28,000 -The buyer is using Whois privacy but has switched the nameservers to AWS. You will undoubtedly see a site on this domain soon.
Snowflake.de €15,000 – The domain is still in escrow but I imagine the buyer is the same one that picked up Snowflake.co.uk recently.
ItaliaInnovation.com $10,000 – The domain forwards to innovationfoundries.com, which has a program called Italia Innovation.
Vector.co.uk £7,999 – Vector Informatik GmbH is an embedded electronics company. It uses the domain name Vector.com.
CoBase.com $5,882 – Financial Transaction Services BV in Amsterdam. The name looks like “Coinbase”, doesn’t it?
HousingMarket.com $5,000 – A Texas company called Housing Market LLC bought this domain and has started a content site on it.
Memoryfoammattress-topper.com $4,500 – And they said exact match hyphenated domains were dead! OK, I don’t know who the buyer is, but they clearly bought it for some of its existing links and traffic.
MyTheresa.dk €4,000 – MyTheresa.com, a high fashion clothing site.
AngelsEvents.com $3,500 – As best I can tell, the buyer is Angels Bespoke Events in France, which uses the domain angelsbespokeevents.com.
Handball24.com $3,450 – LiveSport Media Ltd operates a number of sports websites including ScoreBoard.com.
WSG.ch €2,700 – W. Schmid AG is a Swiss construction company.
Shiddy.com $2,500 – Dan Golden is a creative agency and this is for a comic character. This other book by the same guy is funny.
DataMind.org $2,500 – DataCamp, which offers online coding courses.
NoPic.com $2,500 – PicturePeople GmbH & Co. KG is a photography company in Germany. The domain just forwards to PicturePeople.de.
Snep.it €2,450 – Snep International Srl is a food company in Italy.
Booze.club $2,000 – The registrant company is The Robert Street Hub, which is a co-working and investment space in Manchester, England. It appears that the registrant bought it for one of his many companies.
AirportFirst.com $2,000 – National Aviation Services Co. in Kuwait.
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GoDaddy sells PlusServer for $456 million
GoDaddy divests managed hosting business as planned.
GoDaddy has entered into an agreement to sell PlusServer, a business it picked up in the Host Europe Group acquisition, for €397 million (USD $456 million). Funds advised by BC Partners are buying the business.
PlusServer is a managed hosting service that doesn’t fit into GoDaddy’s typical market segment of very small businesses. It announced that it planned to explore a sale of the business back when it struck the deal to acquire Host Europe Group (HEG).
To put the purchase price in perspective, GoDaddy paid $1.8 billion for HEG.
The company plans to use the money to pay off the bridge loan it took to complete the transaction.
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NameSummit’s agenda is stacked with new faces
NameSummit goes well beyond domain names.
You’d be forgiven for skipping panels at many domain name conferences. Once you’ve been once, you’ve seen the same panelists and same topics that make their appearance every year.
This changed a bit with NamesCon, but two conferences on the docket for this year go even further. Although they certainly have domain names at their core, they go much further.
First up is NameSummit taking place at the Hilton Midtown Manhattan August 7-8. Although the name is NameSummit, that’s not just referring to domain names. Dubbed “A Digital Branding” conference, the agenda shows that it will help people with digital marketing and social media.
There will panels about SEO, SEM, YouTube, body language, and even blockchain.
You’ll see some familiar domain name faces (it’s being organized by domain attorney Jason Schaeffer, domain investor Steven Kaziyev and event manager Jodi Chamberlain) but the topics go well beyond how to sell domain names.
Tickets are still available for the two-day event for $299. The hotel block is sold out but rooms at the Hilton are available for around $200 (a great deal for NYC).
Later this year another conference that expands beyond domains but is founded by the domain community, Merge, will take place in Florida. More on that in a later post.
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Amazon.com gets big win in domain battle, may yet get .Amazon domain
Independent review process recommends ICANN reconsider .amazon top level domain name application.
One of the biggest controversies in ICANN’s new top level domain name program has been the denial of Amazon.com’s applications for the .Amazon top level domain as well as the Chinese and Japanese equivalents.
Amazon.com was one of the largest applicants for new domain names, but its .brand strategy was thrown into disarray when when governments opposed its .amazon application.
This was bad for the new TLD programs supporters, as any use of .Amazon by the internet giant would drastically increase awareness of alternative endings to the right of the dot in domain names. Amazon has created some sites on its other .brand domains, such as .AWS. But a major push on .Amazon would raise the bar.
On the surface, there was nothing in the new top level domain applicant guidebook that disallowed the company from getting .amazon. Notably, it wasn’t on a list of protected geographic names.
But the governments of Brazil and Peru, which are among the countries along the Amazon river, filed an early warning notice about the domain. They had concerns that Amazon.com getting the domain name would somehow hurt the people of the Amazon. It was perplexing.
Yet, they were able to convince the ICANN Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) to issue consensus advice objecting to the issuance of the .amazon domain. (A community objection filed by the independent objector was denied.)
The GAC advice didn’t come with much of a rationale. Nevertheless, ICANN’s board gave deference to the advice and denied Amazon.com’s applications for the three domains.
Amazon filed for Independent Review and just got a big win (pdf). The panel determined that ICANN’s board gave too much deference to the GAC and that it should reconsider its decision.
The panel:
…recommends that the Board of ICANN promptly re-evaluate Amazon’s applications in light of the Panel’s declarations above. In its re-evaluation of the applications, the Board should make an objective and independent judgment regarding whether there are, in fact, well-founded, merits-based public policy reasons for denying Amazon’s applications….The GAC consensus advice, standing alone, cannot supplant the Board’s independent and objective decision with a reasoned analysis.
Following the decision, an Amazon.com spokesperson issued this statement to Domain Name Wire:
“We look forward to the ICANN Board re-evaluating our application for the .AMAZON top level domain so that we may develop new experiences and innovations on behalf of our customers.”
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HugeDomains gets Reverse Domain Name Hijacking win
Complainants first tried to buy domain before filing UDRP.
FPT Industrie S.p.a. and REM Industrie S.r.l. have been found to have engaged in reverse domain name hijacking in a domain dispute they brought against domain investor HugeDomains.
The companies, which use the domain fptfastmill.com, filed a UDRP with World Intellectual Property Organization for the domain name FastMill.com.
HugeDomains pointed out that the complainant first tried to buy the domain and subsequently filed a trademark application for Fast Mill before filing the complaint. The complainants do have a trademark for FPT Fast Mill.
The decision has good language for domain name investors, pointing out that the registration of generic and dictionary term domain names for resale can establish rights or legitimate interests in the domain names.
In finding reverse domain name hijacking, the panel wrote:
In this case, the Complainants filed the Complaint only after its attempt to purchase the Disputed Domain Name from the Respondent was unsuccessful (i.e. the Respondent did not respond to any of the Complainants’ offers). The general weak nature of the Complaint, the lack of evidence and the Complainants failure to fully address the 3 requirements under paragraph 4(a) of the Policy demonstrates that the Complainants were likely aware that they did not have a legitimate case against the Respondent, and filed the Complaint with the primary intent of obtaining the transfer of the Disputed Domain Name in bad faith. This is supported by the fact that the Complainants only sought to apply for the registration of the FAST MILL mark in Italy after its offer to purchase the Disputed Domain Name from the Respondent remained unanswered. It is also clear that this was done in a misguided attempt to bolster or lend legitimacy to the Complaint. The Complainants also misrepresented the facts of the case in the Complaint. For example, the Complainants state that the Disputed Domain Name “has been offered for selling to the complainant [sic]”. However, no such offer was directly made to the Complainants – it was the Complainants who approached the Respondent and offered to purchase the Disputed Domain Name for USD 1,500.
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DNW is looking for writers
Domain Name Wire is looking for beat writers to cover several topics. Qualified writers:
1. Have a deep knowledge of the beat. Do you live and breathe it?
2. Are able to write coherently and concisely with proper grammar.
3. Focus on accuracy.
4. Meet deadlines.
5. Are open to honest feedback.
6. Are trustworthy.
7. Know how to create content on WordPress.
Here are the beats I’m looking for:
1. Chinese domain market – This beat tracks China’s appetite for domain names. The writer needs to know the market trends and how Chinese domain investors influence them. Ideally, you know Mandarin and use Chinese social media to connect with big investors there.
2. Auction results – Do you participate in auctions and follow them across all platforms (GoDaddy, Sedo, NameJet, etc.)? This beat is for you. You will track closing prices and trends in domain auctions and can you write timely articles summarizing recent auction results.
3. WordPress – Do you geek out over WordPress? WordPress is the lifeblood of web development. This beat will cover plugins, explain how to develop unique sites (e.g. directory, e-commerce), provide tips & tricks and cover changes in new WordPress releases.
4. E-commerce Platforms – From Shopify to BigCommerce, adding e-commerce capability to websites is easier than ever. This beat writer should have a deep knowledge of e-commerce platforms and how domain investors and web developers can use them. This includes sourcing product, drop shipping, and optimization tips.
5. Web hosting and site builders – This beat will cover the latest developments in the web hosting business, such as analyzing mergers and major shifts in the business. It also covers companies like Weebly and Wix and how they are impacting the traditional domain-first on-ramp to the web.
6. Domain name columns – I’m also open to writers willing to produce a weekly column on a particular subject in the domain name business. Just pitch me on the topic; data or results-driven (sales, development, etc.) topics are my favorite. An example would be a weekly column covering TLD stats.
Compensation is available. Please contact editor (at) domain name wire.com if you are interested.
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It’s Never Too Late to Invest in Domains – DNW Podcast #144
Is it too late to start investing domain domains? Alan Dunn doesn’t think so.
Alan Dunn of NameCorp argues that it’s never too late to get into domain investing and explains why he thinks just 5% of domain names matter. This is a great episode for both new and old domain investors. Also: Elon Musk buys X.com, Berkens sues musician Bryan Adams, premium domain stats and Sucks.com.
Subscribe via iTunes to listen to the Domain Name Wire podcast on your iPhone or iPad, view on Google Play Music, or click play below or download to begin listening. (Listen to previous podcasts here.)
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Bad guys get Gandi.net’s password to technical provider, redirect domains
751 domain names registered at Gandi were pointed to malware sites.
Hackers managed to redirect 751 domain names at domain name registrar Gandi.net to servers spreading malware, the company detailed this week.
All of the domain names were on country code domain names for which Gandi uses a third-party technical provider to connect to the registry. Gandi, like most registrars, has direct connections to many of the registries. But for some ccTLDs, it uses a third party to provide the connection. That’s where the breach occurred.
According to Gandi, someone was able to get its credentials to log in to the web interface of the unnamed technical provider to redirect the names. Gandi believes that the credentials were intercepted because the technical provider allows access via http instead of https.
The domain names were redirected for up to 11 hours.
Although I understand the desire to not throw the technical provider under the bus, revealing its name could help other registrars prevent the same thing from happening. (Psst: if you know who the provider is that handles 34 of Gandi’s ccTLDs, drop me a line.)
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Aron Meystedt launches Napkin.com
Domain investor switches brand from XF.com to Napkin.com.
Aron Meystedt is a familiar name in the domain name business. He owns the oldest-registered .com domain name Symbolics.com and works with domain names at Heritage Auctions.
Meystedt revealed today that he’s rebranding his investment business from XF.com to Napkin.com.
Earlier this month I wrote about Napkin.com selling for $18,995 on NameJet and noted “What a great brand this will make for a food related business.”
But Meystedt had another vision:
Napkin.com was perfect for me – it’s simple to remember, it’s a generic word and it represents the beginning of the entrepreneurial process for the people that I am supporting – the back of the napkin business model that many of us have sketched in the past.
This is what I love about domains like this. They can become a brand with a connection to so many different images.
Switching to Napkin.com also makes it easier for Meystedt to sell XF.com, a very valuable domain name.
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Domains suggest Barclays will release Uber affinity credit card
Bank registers domain names that could be used for new credit card.
Barclaycard offers this American Airlines credit card. It might soon offer an Uber card.
Barclays bank and ride-hailing company Uber have had a close relationship for a while, and it appears they might be getting ready to take it to the next level.
Yesterday, Barclays registered the domain names ubercreditcardapply.com and ubercreditcardsucks.com, suggesting that the bank is getting ready to launch an Uber-branded credit card.
Update: Barclays also registered applyfortheubercard.com, applyforubercard.com, gettheubercreditcard.com.
Branded cards like this are quite common, and usually offer extra points back for using the brand’s service as well as the ability to redeem points with the brand.
Barclays was unable to register UberCreditCard.com. That domains was registered by a California man in 2014. But he just let it expire, meaning the domain should shortly become available in an expired domain auction.
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Categories: Domains
Great premium domain data from Radix
How are premium domains doing for registries and registrars? Here’s some insight.
Radix just released some data on its premium domain sales in new top level domains for the first half of the year, and it paints a decent picture of how premium domains are doing for both registries and registrars.
From January to June 2017, people registered or renewed 727 premium domains across Radix’s portfolio of nine domains. 469 of these were new registrations and 258 were renewals.
For new registrations, Radix estimates about $640,000 in payments at the registrar level for these 469 names. All of these names have premium renewals as well. Here’s a breakdown of the revenue split for each of its top level domains:
Although .online had the most revenue, it was actually second to .tech for the number of premium domains registered because of the $200,000 casino.online sale. Here’s a breakdown:
.Tech 127
.Online 124
.Space 101
.Fun 47
.Website 27
.Site 21
.Store 14
.Press 6
.Host 2
As you can imagine, the most expensive premium domains are rarely registered:
Here’s the average yearly price paid for premium domains within each TLD for new registrations the first half of this year:
And here are the top sales. Prices are estimated if Radix doesn’t know how much the registrar marked up the wholesale price.
Room.tech $11,467 at GMO
Ideas.tech $6,500 at Namecheap
Creative.space $6,499 at GoDaddy
Travel.fun $6,499 at GoDaddy
Vitamin.site $6,499 at PDR
Quantum.tech $6,499 at GoDAddy
Holidays.online $6,250 at Name.com
Airline.online $6,000 at Enom
Mar.tech $6,000 at Enom
James.store $5,274 at Alibaba
On the renewal front, 67% of first-year premium domains that were due for renewal in the first half were renewed, representing 258 premium names and an estimated $575,000 of revenue.
New top level domains with premium renewals have been hotly debated in the domain name business. You can see the appeal to both registrars and registries, as one premium domain can often equal 1,000 regular registrations. And with many TLDs struggling to get to even 10,000 registrations, that’s a big deal.
Still, I think some registries are out of their minds when it comes to premium domain pricing and this is hampering their domains’ overall acceptance on the web.
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More photos from Chinese domain conference GDS.2017
Another look at the Global Domain Summit in Xiamen, China.
Yesterday I posted photos from taken in Xiamen, China for Global Domain Summit (GDS) 2017. As promised, here’s a follow up with more photos taken during the event.
The photos are courtesy of Chinese consultancy Allegravita, which has helped a number of Western domain name companies get a foothold in China.
China has its domain celebrities, too.
.Club brand ambassador and Monkey in Chief, Hou Mimi
ZDNS’ Lin Wang, Sophia Feng and Karen Yu
The gala dinner during GDS.2017 in China
Allegravita Senior Acct Manager Alex Zhao, .shop CEO Hiro Tsukuhara
MMX CEO Toby Hall
Photos © Allegravita, used with permission.
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