My thoughts and concerns on mtld and the .mobi extension

-REECE- · 05-15-2007, 06:04 PM

I feel mtld has been exaggerating the nature of the contributions of some of the backers. Initially, it all looks fine and dandy... But then, ask yourself -- when in history have that many multi-billion dollar corporations sided together on anything? I don't think mtld is as special in this regard, as they attempt to portray themselves to be. Now, I'm not saying .mobi isn't a great idea -- I like .mobi myself and wouldn't have invested in it otherwise. However, I highly doubt the likes of some of these behemoths are really interested in whether mtld succeeds or not. From a global standpoint, these multi-billion dollar corporations are only interested in ensuring that the mobile web becomes a success and that standards are in place to increase the likelihood and magnitude of their success.

Look at the market capitalization of some of the companies that mtld claims are investors...

I don't blame mtld for taking the approach that they have -- it makes sense from a purely economic point of view. Look how many domain names in every single extension are owned by domainers... Mtld can gurantee themselves a decent payday, merely by pushing these names at us, regardless of the perception .mobi forms years down the road in the general public's mind.

And saying mtld is not running things the way they are, solely for profit -- is a major misconception IMO. I'll liken that to thinking ICANN is actually a real non-profit... http://www.isp-planet.com/letters/icann_money.html
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/04...ly_litigation/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICANN
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/08/25/0611209

Of course -- if one digs deep enough, once can dig up dirt on just about anything or anyone... But the fact remains, that all of mtld's moves so far have been carefully planned in an attempt to maximize revenue (i.e. RFP, premium name allocation, "investor propaganda",...)

Is this wrong? No -- they're a for-profit corporation... This is to be expected. However, what is troubling, is that this company is being run by a bunch of mid-level marketers, not experts in the field of economics, not former CEO's of companies... Just marketers -- no offence intended, but do they really think they have the economic know-how to properly undertake what they're attempting; foraging into unchartered waters?

Releasing those premium names will be a challenge in it's own right. Mtld has already proven themselves unprepared by the joke the RFP has become. We can give them excuses all we want -- the RFP was supposed to be settled months ago. Applications originally ended when? Was it not mid-December? I think that another word now comes to mind... Disorganized.

How on Earth could it take this long to sort this out? The applications were extended... But they still ended on February 16. This was for 4 names. Yes! Four names -- not forty, not four hundred, and certainly not four thousand! So, do we really think they're up to the task of releasing these premium names? I, personally, do not think they're up to the task. I believe they're doing about as bad of a job as imaginable. Every time they delay the RFP, they're telling the "backers", and us alike, that they're unprepared for the task at hand.

We're talking about a whole new Internet here... Are they really cut out for the task? A list of things which really need to be addressed follows:

1. RFP (who, what, when, why)
Who is going to win the RFP's? Is preference being given to large corporations over individuals or smaller organizations with comparable ideas?
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/dot-mobi/328341-my-thoughts-concerns-mtld-mobi-extension.html
What can be done to ensure that the RFP's don't end up in the hands of domainers? Price is not an effective barrier as many domainers have more money than developers.
When are we going to finally have the RFP results? When are future RFP's going to take place?
Why has this RFP taken so much longer than initially anticipated? Why will future RFP's be different? Why does mtld deliberately avoid the Namepros forum, which collectively has invested far more money than readers of their blog, or other websites they respond on?

2. Premium Name Allocation (what, when, why)
What method will be used to allocate the premium names? I find it hard to believe you're capable of releasing thousands of names via RFP (if the current ongoing one is any indicator), or via auctions, if profit maximization is your goal, which it appears to be.
When can we honestly expect premium names to begin being released at a meaningful rate?
Why are you loaning out the city names (i.e. Helsinki) rather than giving them to the respective cities, something which I thought was the assumed intention, early on for reserving them.

3. Nature of the investments made in mtld (what, when, why, how)
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341
What is the nature of the investments made by these backers? Have they all made equal contributions? Are the contributions strictly monetary in nature, or are these companies also interested in aiding your extension in a meaningful way, other than to hedge their commercial interests?
When can we expect these backers to start using the .mobi extension in a meaningful way, advertising the .mobi extension, or otherwise promoting it's use?
Why are these investors interested in mtld? Are they strictly interested in the commercial applications of the mobile web and how standardization may assist them in initiating their corporate agendas?
How do you plan on recruiting additional backers? How do you plan on encouraging your current backers to promote .mobi specifically, rather than the mobile web as a whole? How do you plan on getting the general public interested in .mobi if the corporate backers aren't willing to risk promoting .mobi in a meaningful way, and prefer to spend their advertising dollars on the mobile web as a whole, so as to ensure that their marketing dollars are not wasted on a fledgling extension?

4. Convincing the general public and corporations alike of the need for a mobile web in light of the iPhone and future, even more capable devices (what, when, why, how)
What advertising efforts will you be undertaking in the near future to ensure that the iPhone, and competitors to it that many companies are currently working on, will not convince the general public that there is no need for a mobile internet?
When will you begin your Consumer Awareness Campaign? Technology changes very rapidly. Our video game consoles today are more powerful than the instruments NASA used to send man to the moon. You have a distinct advantage in beginning as soon as possible -- beginning before the iPhone and it's competitors hit the market gives you a competitive edge. Don't let the public be wowed enough by these devices that they see no reason for a mobile web when presented with reasons for one.
Why have you waiting so long to begin your Consumer Awareness Campaign? Is it because a large majority of people still don't use cell phones for internet browsing? If you wait until bandwidth costs come down, it will be too late. By then, there will be no need for the mobile web. Ever heard of the technology singularity? That isn't science fiction! As we get more advanced and build more advanced devices, the advanced devices in turn allow us to build more advanced devices. It's the same premise behind Moore's Law. Why are there so many technological breakthroughs recently? What makes you think that technology to allow enjoyable browsing on cell phones isn't in the very near future? Don't waste time! This is your chance, don't blow it.
How will you position your product (the dotmobi extension) in light of innovations such as the iPhone? How do you plan on convincing companies that .mobi is a better means for standardization than redirects to m-prefixed subdomains?

This is by no means an exhaustive list, merely a list of some of the questions which are at the very top of my mind -- and should be at the top of yours!
We need to get these questions answered... Not so I, Jeff, or Labrocca can be satisfied... We need these questions answered so that everyone making an investment in .mobi, whether it be in domain names or developments, knows exactly what they're getting into.

Until then, I'm forced to call it as Garrett previously did -- a gamble with better odds than 40 million to 1.

thebiffenator · 05-15-2007, 06:11 PM

Roger that!

hedgefund · 05-15-2007, 06:16 PM

I have to agree with you on some points.

You are right the guys running mTLD are not of quality of Jack Weilch, most of them are from middle level management team of corporate USA. Therefore you should not expect all-star performance from them. On the other hand we still don't know the inner working of mTLD, I would give them the benefit of doubt and would not make conclusion at such short period of time.

Give them some time to put everything together. It is difficult to start a business, mTLD is no difference.

Jeff · 05-15-2007, 06:18 PM

Quote:

We need these questions answered so that everyone making an investment in .mobi, whether it be in domain names or developments, knows exactly what they're getting into.

Amen!

????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

Reece, I am not only nominating you for the illustrious MOTM™ ... but I will also be writing in your name for President in '08! Seriously.

Thank you, Sir.
-Jeff

texasgamer · 05-15-2007, 06:18 PM

Great Post Reece, rep added

jeremyp · 05-15-2007, 06:38 PM

Reece,

Outstanding, sincere, realistic, crusade-free post.

The ignore button shall never be used on you!

Keep it real,

:-)

Jeremy

scandiman · 05-15-2007, 06:46 PM

Nice post Reece. Naturally I have some questions/comments:

Originally Posted by Reece

I feel mtld has been exaggerating the nature of the contributions of some of the backers.

An exaggeration is discovered when your comparing statements with facts. What statements has mtld made regarding the backers that does not compare with facts?

Originally Posted by Reece

Mtld can gurantee themselves a decent payday, merely by pushing these names at us, regardless of the perception .mobi forms years down the road in the general public's mind.

Interesting choice of words, I don't think it can be argued that .mobi has been pushed on anyone.

Originally Posted by Reece

Releasing those premium names will be a challenge in it's own right. Mtld has already proven themselves unprepared by the joke the RFP has become. We can give them excuses all we want -- the RFP was supposed to be settled months ago. Applications originally ended when? Was it not mid-December? I think that another word now comes to mind... Disorganized.

I would hardly characterize it as a joke without seeing the results first, but I agree they could and should do more to communicate why the delay. When the first RFP does emerge, hopefully it will shed some light on your item #1.
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

As for the other items:

2- I think we are all waiting to hear more about this, both the Premium and Reserved names to be precise.

3- I don't think we will ever have details that will satisfy you on this point.

4- Why have you waiting so long to begin your Consumer Awareness Campaign? That one is easy, too little content. "Hey world come check out our new mobile tld full of Sedo pages, cool ain't it!"

labrocca · 05-15-2007, 07:00 PM

AMAZING post REECE...welcome to the dark side.

????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

While some may view criticism of mobi and mTLD as an attack..I view it as healthy oversight. If the problems can be highlighted enough by the masses then it's pressure on mTLD to act. You can't sit around waiting for them to figure it out. They need to be told what the issues are. That's how marketers work. They listen well enough to the buyers so they can make a great sale. mobi was one of the most successful extensions to be launched...possible THE most successful. However...they had hurdles to overcome behind the scenes and promises and vague information aren't passing anymore.

I would love to see mobi doing more direct to consumer advertising and branding of mobi. Sites can be built rather quickly. This is sort of the egg and chicken dance of which came first. Do you first make the sites? Or do you first market the extension? imho...you do both as quickly as possible. It seems they have launched the extension perfectly well. Seems they have created building blocks for sites. Now where is the marketing to the masses? Where are the deals to push mobi into the forefront of mobile browsing?

It will be interesting to see what the next 6-12 months holds. So far the past 6 months have only slowed down the process of mobi. Please remember that it's been nearly 7 years since .info was released. It's value has not increased nor has it's consumer brand awareness.

-REECE- · 05-15-2007, 07:20 PM

Originally Posted by labrocca

AMAZING post REECE...welcome to the dark side.

????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

While some may view criticism of mobi and mTLD as an attack..I view it as healthy oversight. If the problems can be highlighted enough by the masses then it's pressure on mTLD to act. You can't sit around waiting for them to figure it out. They need to be told what the issues are. That's how marketers work. They listen well enough to the buyers so they can make a great sale. mobi was one of the most successful extensions to be launched...possible THE most successful. However...they had hurdles to overcome behind the scenes and promises and vague information aren't passing anymore.

I would love to see mobi doing more direct to consumer advertising and branding of mobi. Sites can be built rather quickly. This is sort of the egg and chicken dance of which came first. Do you first make the sites? Or do you first market the extension? imho...you do both as quickly as possible. It seems they have launched the extension perfectly well. Seems they have created building blocks for sites. Now where is the marketing to the masses? Where are the deals to push mobi into the forefront of mobile browsing?

It will be interesting to see what the next 6-12 months holds. So far the past 6 months have only slowed down the process of mobi. Please remember that it's been nearly 7 years since .info was released. It's value has not increased nor has it's consumer brand awareness.

Well said. IMO, the easiest way mtld could increase the value of the dotmobi extension would be to start developing mini-sites for the premium names they're currently holding. Not only would this be rather cheap to do, but it would provide mtld with a way to monetize the names in the meantime until they're released -- perhaps even give fellow developers ideas on what to do with their names. I'm sure there are developers out there who would be willing to develop the sites for free in exchange for a percentage of the revenue brought in by these premium names.

As Labrocca said -- this is intended as healthy oversight. I want .mobi to succeed as much as most people here -- but I feel that certain issues need to be addressed if we want to increase the likelihood of .mobi being a force to be reckoned with. If I can get my issues addressed, I'm prepared to up my current investment from $6000, to mid XX,XXX. Heck, if I liked what I heard, I might even go into my retirement savings...
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

The uncertainty is what bothers me. I'm sure there are plenty of people in this forum and elsewhere that feel the same way about .mobi as I do in this post. If we can get our concerns addressed, we'd be willing to make a much larger stake in the extension. That means more bidders on auctioned names and ultimately, more money for mtld. It's a win-win for everyone if we can get the answers -- provided the answers are the ones we were hoping to hear.

edit: If mtld were to develop their premium names, there would then be enough developed sites to begin marketing the extension. If mtld were to market the extension and the general public were happy with what they saw -- this could in turn increase the likelihood that corporations jump on the .mobi bandwagon. Furthermore, answering the questions we all have would increase the likelihood that developers would be prepared to invest the kind of time and money it requires to develop the kind of sites which will revolutionize the mobile web, much like Web 2.0 has revolutionized the web as we know it today. We need to provide answers to their questions -- ensure them that the extension has a future and ensure them that this future is a positive one and that investing in the mobile web will reap them dividends beyond imagination.

robertjr · 05-15-2007, 07:34 PM

Originally Posted by Jeff

Amen!Reece, I am not only nominating you for the illustrious MOTM™

Jeff- Please get to this ASAP! I need to vote.
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

Any domainer(or any .mobi holder for that matter), regardless where you fall in the .mobi discussion should be asking these questions and wondering where mTLD stands on them.

Great post Reece!

-REECE- · 05-15-2007, 08:00 PM

Hedge - You're right. This is a first for them and starting a business is no walk in the park. My best advice for them is to try to find people who complement their weaknesses. Hiring a domainer and an economist would be excellent way to fill their knowledge gap.

Jeff - Do you really think I should run for President?

I'm glad you liked the post

Jeremy - Thank you for the reply. I enjoyed reading your post on aftermarket expectations.

Scandi - We're all entitled to our opinions, of course. I'm a bit of a pessimist by nature. Sometimes my posts have a negative connotation, however they are intended as constructive criticism.
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

thebiffenator, Texasgamer, robertjr - I'm glad you guys all enjoyed the post. Hopefully it helps people understand some of the information we're currently lacking and what should be carefully considered before making a substantial investment with limited knowledge.

One thing I'll add... Pinky Brand, you need to come to Namepros more often. We're the #1 dotmobi forum. Quite frankly, I expect -- and we deserve more.

garrett200 · 05-15-2007, 08:07 PM

This is a good thread! Rep added Reece....

bucks · 05-15-2007, 08:26 PM

That's a good post Reese and I myself have also started to question several things lately (mainly after now the second no show of Pinky and/or the gang spending a little bit of time with their greatest asset at this point-->

Sure, I can understand spending a good deal of time going after those big Company's for obvious reasons, but not have the time of day to pop in every once in a while where several people here combined control a major part of ALL regged .mobi's is really humbling to say the least. I am now getting the feeling this is intentional and the questions raised on this forum may be just a little too tough for them to deal with at this point and for whatever the reason, they feel it's in their best interest not to come here and answer ANY questions.

What I was sold on in the beginning seems to of been greatly exaggerated in many aspects and very little has actually materialized in their actions lately.

Am I giving up on this extension and the future possibilities of what .mobi holds in the future? LOL- "NO" that's not my point.

but I am starting to take a more cautious view of what I bought into and what exactly it is they are up to with several delays on doing what they said in the beginning, and then just blown it off as if nobody is even paying attention.

I for one am paying attention and when a Company "Any Company" starts by over promising and under delivering, it is not a good sign and should draw a Big Red Flag as to how far (or how much more) your willing to commit to them until they, at the very least start holding up their end of the relationship.

This .mobi extension and what it stands for is such a GREAT IDEA and I can easily vision this to be a household name in the near future, BUT (and it's a big but) with the management that is now in place making grade school mistakes when it comes to their Greatest Asset (the one's with xxxx amount of reg fees every year that they don't even have the time of day for) IMO could come back to haunt them and the rep for .mobi in general.
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

Maybe, just maybe this thread will find it's way back to someone that's in charge down there (or someone that needs to be) and take a few minutes to at least address a few of Reese's questions.

No more hype, no more broken promises, the TRUTH would do just fine.

I honestly believe the folks here at NP's .mobi forum deserve more (A lot More) credit for helping this extension then Mtld realizes and it's way past time they figure this out.

garrett200 · 05-15-2007, 08:46 PM

I have a theory about why "the gang" is not answering our quesitons.

I think it could be a good thing that they are not in here. If they came in here an started taking questions, it could make it seem as if they are trying to create artificial hype.

It might actually serve to backfire on them if they come in here and start answering questions too early without having solid, definitive answers, and also might appear unprofessional.

I have a feeling all of our questions will be answered in due time. Patience is a virtue.

robertjr · 05-15-2007, 08:57 PM

Pinky said he would show, it's NOT a good thing that he has not.

garrett200 · 05-15-2007, 09:02 PM

There's still time. Would be nice to at least put a FEW questions to rest, I agree...

labrocca · 05-15-2007, 09:08 PM

Originally Posted by robertjr

Pinky said he would show, it's NOT a good thing that he has not.

????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341
I would venture to guess that at least 10% of all mobis are owned by namepros members and that's a low estimate imho. You would think it would be a priority to speak to that much of your client base all in one place.

cobo · 05-15-2007, 09:11 PM

Originally Posted by Reece

One thing I'll add... Pinky Brand, you need to come to Namepros more often. We're the #1 dotmobi forum. Quite frankly, I expect -- and we deserve more.

-REECE- · 05-15-2007, 09:12 PM

Originally Posted by bucks

That's a good post Reese and I myself have also started to question several things lately (mainly after now the second no show of Pinky and/or the gang spending a little bit of time with their greatest asset at this point-->
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

Sure, I can understand spending a good deal of time going after those big Company's for obvious reasons, but not have the time of day to pop in every once in a while where several people here combined control a major part of ALL regged .mobi's is really humbling to say the least. I am now getting the feeling this is intentional and the questions raised on this forum may be just a little too tough for them to deal with at this point and for whatever the reason, they feel it's in their best interest not to come here and answer ANY questions.

What I was sold on in the beginning seems to of been greatly exaggerated in many aspects and very little has actually materialized in their actions lately.

Am I giving up on this extension and the future possibilities of what .mobi holds in the future? LOL- "NO" that's not my point.

but I am starting to take a more cautious view of what I bought into and what exactly it is they are up to with several delays on doing what they said in the beginning, and then just blown it off as if nobody is even paying attention.

I for one am paying attention and when a Company "Any Company" starts by over promising and under delivering, it is not a good sign and should draw a Big Red Flag as to how far (or how much more) your willing to commit to them until they, at the very least start holding up their end of the relationship.

This .mobi extension and what it stands for is such a GREAT IDEA and I can easily vision this to be a household name in the near future, BUT (and it's a big but) with the management that is now in place making grade school mistakes when it comes to their Greatest Asset (the one's with xxxx amount of reg fees every year that they don't even have the time of day for) IMO could come back to haunt them and the rep for .mobi in general.

Maybe, just maybe this thread will find it's way back to someone that's in charge down there (or someone that needs to be) and take a few minutes to at least address a few of Reese's questions.

No more hype, no more broken promises, the TRUTH would do just fine.

I honestly believe the folks here at NP's .mobi forum deserve more (A lot More) credit for helping this extension then Mtld realizes and it's way past time they figure this out.

Great post bucks.
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

IMO, if Pinky and the rest of the mtld crew are too busy to come here, they should at least hire someone else to. If I was running the company, I'd hire someone to monitor popular internet forums and blogs...

When I go to my bank with XX,XXX to invest, they let me sit down with an advisor and discuss my options -- my risk level, my goals, etc. Collectively, we've given mtld alot more than XX,XXX... Many members have given them 5-figures alone.

This, to me, is inexcusable. It's downright insulting. If I went to the bank looking to invest $20k and the bank told me to take a hike because someone else (i.e. a corporation) was looking to invest more -- I'd be darn angry. Perhaps angry enough to even consider using a different bank. We all have expectations as to how we should be treated and with the amount of money that we've collectively put into this, we deserve much more than we've gotten.

Perhaps it's as Garrett postulates and in their mind this is some kind of strategy. Frankly, they're really missing the boat if they honestly believe ignoring us is a good idea. Imagine for 1 second that you're an angel investor or venture capitalist and the company that wants your investment dollars doesn't have the time of day to explain their intentions to you... Would you invest considerable sums of money under those circumstances?

binaryman · 05-15-2007, 11:54 PM

Great Post Reece. You certainly echo many of my own and I notice others thoughts on this subject.

eyedomainous · 05-16-2007, 12:46 AM

I think its important to keep in mind that ICANN answers to the U.S. commerce department. Despite this connection ICANN, for the most part, has worked hard at maintaining a level of independence. True, under the current (Bush) administration ICANN's voice has been co-opted, on several glaring occaisons, by big business/the white house.

(BTW, Reece, I don't see anything wrong with non-profit workers getting good pay. They deserve it! "Doing well by doing good" should have no shame! And it helps insulate them from bribes. What is a shame, IMO, is the 'nobility of poverty' mindset).

For example, the W3C's DIWG (Device Independent Working Group) recommended that ICANN "reject the ".mobi" proposal because of the detrimental effect on the Web that will result." The ".mobi gang" used its political clout to not only get ICANN to accept the proposal but the valuable work of the W3C DIWG was shut down... in March. Quietly.

Keep this in mind, for perspective, when you read stuff like (Bold emphasis added):

Originally Posted by WorldRadio.mobi

Thread for Dot Mobi Rep Correspondance:

"2) .mobi, as the top-level-domain designed for mobile, provides a lelev of trustworthiness to the user (although they may not explicitly know it). We have a set of best practices, developed with the W3C, that we expect our registrants to build their sites to. And theoretically the right to disable sites if they flaunt basic principles of mobile suitability."

Also, keep in mind that .mobi is a corporate sponsored TLD (sTLD). Sponsored by corps that 'own' the mobile market. The resulting mtld did Not, and does Not, include the independent users voice. It was set-up by providers for providers. And, it was set-up, to a large degree, to protect corporate trademarks and profits from domainers. So don't hold your breath.

Combine the above factual statements with the corporate .mobi 'dress code' and the boss's "right to disable" (fire you) and one soon realizes that .mobi is indeed a seperate web (as in global corp. intranet). One where the .mobi domainer is more of a 'temp worker' than an entrepenuer (compared to other extensions). And that proceed$, when they come (and I do think they will come), will be more inline with corporate profit sharing, than free market capitalism.

Binfus · 05-16-2007, 12:48 AM

I do sincerely appreciate and in fact share some of the concerns and apprehension that many of us .mobi investors have and that are articulated so well in the first post above. However, to be fair, what's being asked and expected of the registry people here has been never heard of in the domain business before. Remember the debacles just in the relatively recent past during the release of .info, .biz and .eu? Despite all the protests and requests from scores of domainers, does anyone recall anyone from any of those registries ever uttering a single word of explanation to the domainer community? In comparison to their fellow registries, .mobi staff has not only done an extraordinary job in promoting the extension but also have made themselves available to the domainer community more than anyone else....but, no thats not good enough for us...we want more results more quickly, and more answers if we don't see the results according to the timeline that "WE" have in mind ..!!
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

The simple fact is that all of us .mobi investors, myself first, made speculative investments in this extension by our own free will just like we've been doing with all the other extensions....the major differences being that here we found a registry that have been much more active in promoting the extension and the extension itself created a lot more buzz in the domainer community than any of its predecessors...and hence expectations of rich payoffs in short period of time...and therefore dissappointment when that does not seem to be happening...!! Its all our own doing....no one forced us into this....so we should try to show some patience and take responsibility for our investment decisions.

Lets look at it this way: among all the newer extensions, .info is probably considered to be the most successful.....its been out for almost 7 years now...and many of us who invested pretty heavily in it haven't yet seen the payoffs that we'd expected. Mobi is out how long? 7 months may be..!!! We want explanations for "delays" in the RFP process and a clear delineation for allocation of premium (reserved) domains....do we know if the registry itself has yet decided on the final process for this or is considering a "wait and see" approach depending on how things evolve? Since summer of 2001, Afilias has had locked up thousands of fake TM sunrise premium .info domains and have never articulated any plan as to what their future would be and how they'd be released even though their initial 5-year registration got expired almost a year ago.....so lets be all a little patient with this new .mobi baby here...

-REECE- · 05-16-2007, 01:16 AM

Thank you kindly eyedomainous for the very well written and explained post. I share many of your sentiments and you've even given me a reason to not hate ICANN as much

Binfus, you're correct in that I, and many fellow domainers, hold mtld to a higher standard than other registries. I can't speak for others here, of course, but when mtld makes such a bold claim as that they're different than the extensions of the past, I hold them to that claim and expect them to follow through. Whether it happens or not, time will tell... But I won't cut them any sympathy when they make empty promises. If they can't follow through with the lofty goals they've set, they might as well come clean. Telling us the RFP is just around the corner, month after month, does not help public opinion.
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

Yes, eyedomainous is right that they (mtld) were created to protect corporate interests, but nevertheless, these corporate interests shouldn't have the audacity to make bold claims they can't deliver on, and then simultaneously expect these domainers, their families, their friends and relatives,... to start using their extension and thinking it's the best thing since sliced bread...

If Web 2.0 and social networks have taught us anything -- it's the sheer power that can be unleashed via word of mouth. Let's keep the word positive

Binfus · 05-16-2007, 01:32 AM

Originally Posted by Reece

Binfus, you're correct in that I, and many fellow domainers, hold mtld to a higher standard than other registries. I can't speak for others here, of course, but when mtld makes such a bold claim as that they're different than the extensions of the past, I hold them to that claim and expect them to follow through. Whether it happens or not, time will tell... But I won't cut them any sympathy when they make empty promises. If they can't follow through with the lofty goals they've set, they might as well come clean. Telling us the RFP is just around the corner, month after month, does not help public opinion.

In principle, I completely agree with you..but as we all know well, delays in product/service release in the business world are a commonplace and are due in large part to business and/or technical reasons; I'd expect former to be the likely reason here. As far as "public opinion" is concerned, I'm quite sure that in this context what we really mean by "public" is the "domainer community"....in all honesty, does any of us believe that the business community at large, let alone general public, is even vaguely in tune with this .mobi RFP thingy?

-REECE- · 05-16-2007, 01:41 AM

Originally Posted by Binfus

In principle, I completely agree with you..but as we all know well, delays in product/service release in the business world are a commonplace and are due in large part to business and/or technical reasons; I'd expect former to be the likely reason here. As far as "public opinion" is concerned, I'm quite sure that in this context what we really mean by "public" is the "domainer community"....in all honesty, does any of us believe that the business community at large, let alone general public, is even vaguely in tune with this .mobi RFP thingy?

Yes, the domaining community is what I meant by public opinion. One thing we have to remember here though, is that this is no ordinary business...

It's alot like semiconductor manufacturing fundamentally. For a company like Intel, AMD, or Nvidia, a 2 or 3 month delay often turns a great product/innovation into something mediocre. If it was mediocre to begin with, it's now been downgraded to poor.
????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341

Now, things aren't moving quite that fast with mobile technology, however the point to be made is that there is a limited window of opportunity associated with the mobile extension. The longer mtld waits, the less need the average (i.e. non-domainer) person will see for it. Devices such as the iPhone are already clouding people's judgement as to the need for the mobile web. Imagine what the iPhone's successor, or the successor to that will do to public opinion about the need for a mobile internet...

I stand firm by my prediction -- 5-7 years from now, we'll all have cell phones capable of running Windows Vista.

05-15-2007, 06:04 PM	THREAD STARTER #1 (permalink)
-REECE- NamePros Expert Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 8,984	My thoughts and concerns on mtld and the .mobi extension I feel mtld has been exaggerating the nature of the contributions of some of the backers. Initially, it all looks fine and dandy... But then, ask yourself -- when in history have that many multi-billion dollar corporations sided together on anything? I don't think mtld is as special in this regard, as they attempt to portray themselves to be. Now, I'm not saying .mobi isn't a great idea -- I like .mobi myself and wouldn't have invested in it otherwise. However, I highly doubt the likes of some of these behemoths are really interested in whether mtld succeeds or not. From a global standpoint, these multi-billion dollar corporations are only interested in ensuring that the mobile web becomes a success and that standards are in place to increase the likelihood and magnitude of their success. Look at the market capitalization of some of the companies that mtld claims are investors... I don't blame mtld for taking the approach that they have -- it makes sense from a purely economic point of view. Look how many domain names in every single extension are owned by domainers... Mtld can gurantee themselves a decent payday, merely by pushing these names at us, regardless of the perception .mobi forms years down the road in the general public's mind. And saying mtld is not running things the way they are, solely for profit -- is a major misconception IMO. I'll liken that to thinking ICANN is actually a real non-profit... http://www.isp-planet.com/letters/icann_money.html http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/04...ly_litigation/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICANN http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/08/25/0611209 Of course -- if one digs deep enough, once can dig up dirt on just about anything or anyone... But the fact remains, that all of mtld's moves so far have been carefully planned in an attempt to maximize revenue (i.e. RFP, premium name allocation, "investor propaganda",...) Is this wrong? No -- they're a for-profit corporation... This is to be expected. However, what is troubling, is that this company is being run by a bunch of mid-level marketers, not experts in the field of economics, not former CEO's of companies... Just marketers -- no offence intended, but do they really think they have the economic know-how to properly undertake what they're attempting; foraging into unchartered waters? Releasing those premium names will be a challenge in it's own right. Mtld has already proven themselves unprepared by the joke the RFP has become. We can give them excuses all we want -- the RFP was supposed to be settled months ago. Applications originally ended when? Was it not mid-December? I think that another word now comes to mind... Disorganized. How on Earth could it take this long to sort this out? The applications were extended... But they still ended on February 16. This was for 4 names. Yes! Four names -- not forty, not four hundred, and certainly not four thousand! So, do we really think they're up to the task of releasing these premium names? I, personally, do not think they're up to the task. I believe they're doing about as bad of a job as imaginable. Every time they delay the RFP, they're telling the "backers", and us alike, that they're unprepared for the task at hand. We're talking about a whole new Internet here... Are they really cut out for the task? A list of things which really need to be addressed follows: 1. RFP (who, what, when, why) Who is going to win the RFP's? Is preference being given to large corporations over individuals or smaller organizations with comparable ideas? ????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/dot-mobi/328341-my-thoughts-concerns-mtld-mobi-extension.html What can be done to ensure that the RFP's don't end up in the hands of domainers? Price is not an effective barrier as many domainers have more money than developers. When are we going to finally have the RFP results? When are future RFP's going to take place? Why has this RFP taken so much longer than initially anticipated? Why will future RFP's be different? Why does mtld deliberately avoid the Namepros forum, which collectively has invested far more money than readers of their blog, or other websites they respond on? 2. Premium Name Allocation (what, when, why) What method will be used to allocate the premium names? I find it hard to believe you're capable of releasing thousands of names via RFP (if the current ongoing one is any indicator), or via auctions, if profit maximization is your goal, which it appears to be. When can we honestly expect premium names to begin being released at a meaningful rate? Why are you loaning out the city names (i.e. Helsinki) rather than giving them to the respective cities, something which I thought was the assumed intention, early on for reserving them. 3. Nature of the investments made in mtld (what, when, why, how) ????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341 What is the nature of the investments made by these backers? Have they all made equal contributions? Are the contributions strictly monetary in nature, or are these companies also interested in aiding your extension in a meaningful way, other than to hedge their commercial interests? When can we expect these backers to start using the .mobi extension in a meaningful way, advertising the .mobi extension, or otherwise promoting it's use? Why are these investors interested in mtld? Are they strictly interested in the commercial applications of the mobile web and how standardization may assist them in initiating their corporate agendas? How do you plan on recruiting additional backers? How do you plan on encouraging your current backers to promote .mobi specifically, rather than the mobile web as a whole? How do you plan on getting the general public interested in .mobi if the corporate backers aren't willing to risk promoting .mobi in a meaningful way, and prefer to spend their advertising dollars on the mobile web as a whole, so as to ensure that their marketing dollars are not wasted on a fledgling extension? 4. Convincing the general public and corporations alike of the need for a mobile web in light of the iPhone and future, even more capable devices (what, when, why, how) What advertising efforts will you be undertaking in the near future to ensure that the iPhone, and competitors to it that many companies are currently working on, will not convince the general public that there is no need for a mobile internet? When will you begin your Consumer Awareness Campaign? Technology changes very rapidly. Our video game consoles today are more powerful than the instruments NASA used to send man to the moon. You have a distinct advantage in beginning as soon as possible -- beginning before the iPhone and it's competitors hit the market gives you a competitive edge. Don't let the public be wowed enough by these devices that they see no reason for a mobile web when presented with reasons for one. Why have you waiting so long to begin your Consumer Awareness Campaign? Is it because a large majority of people still don't use cell phones for internet browsing? If you wait until bandwidth costs come down, it will be too late. By then, there will be no need for the mobile web. Ever heard of the technology singularity? That isn't science fiction! As we get more advanced and build more advanced devices, the advanced devices in turn allow us to build more advanced devices. It's the same premise behind Moore's Law. Why are there so many technological breakthroughs recently? What makes you think that technology to allow enjoyable browsing on cell phones isn't in the very near future? Don't waste time! This is your chance, don't blow it. How will you position your product (the dotmobi extension) in light of innovations such as the iPhone? How do you plan on convincing companies that .mobi is a better means for standardization than redirects to m-prefixed subdomains? This is by no means an exhaustive list, merely a list of some of the questions which are at the very top of my mind -- and should be at the top of yours! We need to get these questions answered... Not so I, Jeff, or Labrocca can be satisfied... We need these questions answered so that everyone making an investment in .mobi, whether it be in domain names or developments, knows exactly what they're getting into. Until then, I'm forced to call it as Garrett previously did -- a gamble with better odds than 40 million to 1. Last edited by Reece; 05-15-2007 at 06:12 PM.

05-15-2007, 06:11 PM	#2 (permalink)
thebiffenator NamePros Regular Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 835	Roger that! __________________ mobiz.mobi USA's Mobile Locator Try it out! PHANS.MOBI Join Phans.mobi Phillies AreThe MLB Champs!!! Support the best team in Baseball.

05-15-2007, 06:16 PM	#3 (permalink)
hedgefund NamePros Regular Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 608	I have to agree with you on some points. You are right the guys running mTLD are not of quality of Jack Weilch, most of them are from middle level management team of corporate USA. Therefore you should not expect all-star performance from them. On the other hand we still don't know the inner working of mTLD, I would give them the benefit of doubt and would not make conclusion at such short period of time. Give them some time to put everything together. It is difficult to start a business, mTLD is no difference. __________________ iTravel.mobi - Interstate Highway Travel Guide \| iAnswer.mobi \| Why.mobi? Last edited by hedgefund; 05-15-2007 at 06:36 PM.

05-15-2007, 06:38 PM	#6 (permalink)
jeremyp NamePros Regular Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 603	Reece, Outstanding, sincere, realistic, crusade-free post. The ignore button shall never be used on you! Keep it real, :-) Jeremy __________________ www.Boing.mobi - search the complete mobile web from .MOBI to .COM!

05-15-2007, 07:00 PM	#8 (permalink)
labrocca NamePros Expert Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Las Vegas Posts: 6,268 Follow @supportforums	AMAZING post REECE...welcome to the dark side. ????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341 While some may view criticism of mobi and mTLD as an attack..I view it as healthy oversight. If the problems can be highlighted enough by the masses then it's pressure on mTLD to act. You can't sit around waiting for them to figure it out. They need to be told what the issues are. That's how marketers work. They listen well enough to the buyers so they can make a great sale. mobi was one of the most successful extensions to be launched...possible THE most successful. However...they had hurdles to overcome behind the scenes and promises and vague information aren't passing anymore. I would love to see mobi doing more direct to consumer advertising and branding of mobi. Sites can be built rather quickly. This is sort of the egg and chicken dance of which came first. Do you first make the sites? Or do you first market the extension? imho...you do both as quickly as possible. It seems they have launched the extension perfectly well. Seems they have created building blocks for sites. Now where is the marketing to the masses? Where are the deals to push mobi into the forefront of mobile browsing? It will be interesting to see what the next 6-12 months holds. So far the past 6 months have only slowed down the process of mobi. Please remember that it's been nearly 7 years since .info was released. It's value has not increased nor has it's consumer brand awareness. __________________ :$: Support Forum <-- My latest endeavor.:loveyou: Debate Forums Free Online Sudoku My vBum Blog

05-15-2007, 06:18 PM	#5 (permalink)
texasgamer Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Corpus Christi, Texas Posts: 2,373	Great Post Reece, rep added

05-15-2007, 08:00 PM	THREAD STARTER #11 (permalink)
-REECE- NamePros Expert Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 8,984	Hedge - You're right. This is a first for them and starting a business is no walk in the park. My best advice for them is to try to find people who complement their weaknesses. Hiring a domainer and an economist would be excellent way to fill their knowledge gap. Jeff - Do you really think I should run for President? I'm glad you liked the post Jeremy - Thank you for the reply. I enjoyed reading your post on aftermarket expectations. Scandi - We're all entitled to our opinions, of course. I'm a bit of a pessimist by nature. Sometimes my posts have a negative connotation, however they are intended as constructive criticism. ????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341 thebiffenator, Texasgamer, robertjr - I'm glad you guys all enjoyed the post. Hopefully it helps people understand some of the information we're currently lacking and what should be carefully considered before making a substantial investment with limited knowledge. One thing I'll add... Pinky Brand, you need to come to Namepros more often. We're the #1 dotmobi forum. Quite frankly, I expect -- and we deserve more.

05-15-2007, 08:07 PM	#12 (permalink)
garrett200 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 2,310	This is a good thread! Rep added Reece....

05-15-2007, 08:26 PM	#13 (permalink)
bucks NamePros Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: CA Posts: 134	That's a good post Reese and I myself have also started to question several things lately (mainly after now the second no show of Pinky and/or the gang spending a little bit of time with their greatest asset at this point--> Sure, I can understand spending a good deal of time going after those big Company's for obvious reasons, but not have the time of day to pop in every once in a while where several people here combined control a major part of ALL regged .mobi's is really humbling to say the least. I am now getting the feeling this is intentional and the questions raised on this forum may be just a little too tough for them to deal with at this point and for whatever the reason, they feel it's in their best interest not to come here and answer ANY questions. What I was sold on in the beginning seems to of been greatly exaggerated in many aspects and very little has actually materialized in their actions lately. Am I giving up on this extension and the future possibilities of what .mobi holds in the future? LOL- "NO" that's not my point. but I am starting to take a more cautious view of what I bought into and what exactly it is they are up to with several delays on doing what they said in the beginning, and then just blown it off as if nobody is even paying attention. I for one am paying attention and when a Company "Any Company" starts by over promising and under delivering, it is not a good sign and should draw a Big Red Flag as to how far (or how much more) your willing to commit to them until they, at the very least start holding up their end of the relationship. This .mobi extension and what it stands for is such a GREAT IDEA and I can easily vision this to be a household name in the near future, BUT (and it's a big but) with the management that is now in place making grade school mistakes when it comes to their Greatest Asset (the one's with xxxx amount of reg fees every year that they don't even have the time of day for) IMO could come back to haunt them and the rep for .mobi in general. ????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341 Maybe, just maybe this thread will find it's way back to someone that's in charge down there (or someone that needs to be) and take a few minutes to at least address a few of Reese's questions. No more hype, no more broken promises, the TRUTH would do just fine. I honestly believe the folks here at NP's .mobi forum deserve more (A lot More) credit for helping this extension then Mtld realizes and it's way past time they figure this out.

05-15-2007, 08:46 PM	#14 (permalink)
garrett200 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 2,310	I have a theory about why "the gang" is not answering our quesitons. I think it could be a good thing that they are not in here. If they came in here an started taking questions, it could make it seem as if they are trying to create artificial hype. It might actually serve to backfire on them if they come in here and start answering questions too early without having solid, definitive answers, and also might appear unprofessional. I have a feeling all of our questions will be answered in due time. Patience is a virtue.

05-15-2007, 08:57 PM	#15 (permalink)
robertjr Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: CA Posts: 2,288	Pinky said he would show, it's NOT a good thing that he has not. __________________ PhpCityPortal Get 20%-off with "namepros"â€¢CompleteArticles.comâ€¢UltimateFitness.pro :kickass: RobertJR.comâ€¢KaileeGetWells.comâ€¢LiveArticles.orgâ€¢ComicComic.com

05-15-2007, 09:02 PM	#16 (permalink)
garrett200 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 2,310	There's still time. Would be nice to at least put a FEW questions to rest, I agree...

05-15-2007, 11:54 PM	#20 (permalink)
binaryman Account Suspended Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 2,107	Great Post Reece. You certainly echo many of my own and I notice others thoughts on this subject.

05-16-2007, 12:48 AM	#22 (permalink)
Binfus NamePros Regular Join Date: Jun 2003 Posts: 512	I do sincerely appreciate and in fact share some of the concerns and apprehension that many of us .mobi investors have and that are articulated so well in the first post above. However, to be fair, what's being asked and expected of the registry people here has been never heard of in the domain business before. Remember the debacles just in the relatively recent past during the release of .info, .biz and .eu? Despite all the protests and requests from scores of domainers, does anyone recall anyone from any of those registries ever uttering a single word of explanation to the domainer community? In comparison to their fellow registries, .mobi staff has not only done an extraordinary job in promoting the extension but also have made themselves available to the domainer community more than anyone else....but, no thats not good enough for us...we want more results more quickly, and more answers if we don't see the results according to the timeline that "WE" have in mind ..!! ????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341 The simple fact is that all of us .mobi investors, myself first, made speculative investments in this extension by our own free will just like we've been doing with all the other extensions....the major differences being that here we found a registry that have been much more active in promoting the extension and the extension itself created a lot more buzz in the domainer community than any of its predecessors...and hence expectations of rich payoffs in short period of time...and therefore dissappointment when that does not seem to be happening...!! Its all our own doing....no one forced us into this....so we should try to show some patience and take responsibility for our investment decisions. Lets look at it this way: among all the newer extensions, .info is probably considered to be the most successful.....its been out for almost 7 years now...and many of us who invested pretty heavily in it haven't yet seen the payoffs that we'd expected. Mobi is out how long? 7 months may be..!!! We want explanations for "delays" in the RFP process and a clear delineation for allocation of premium (reserved) domains....do we know if the registry itself has yet decided on the final process for this or is considering a "wait and see" approach depending on how things evolve? Since summer of 2001, Afilias has had locked up thousands of fake TM sunrise premium .info domains and have never articulated any plan as to what their future would be and how they'd be released even though their initial 5-year registration got expired almost a year ago.....so lets be all a little patient with this new .mobi baby here... __________________ Psychiatry.us Last edited by Binfus; 05-16-2007 at 12:53 AM.

05-16-2007, 01:16 AM	THREAD STARTER #23 (permalink)
-REECE- NamePros Expert Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 8,984	Thank you kindly eyedomainous for the very well written and explained post. I share many of your sentiments and you've even given me a reason to not hate ICANN as much Binfus, you're correct in that I, and many fellow domainers, hold mtld to a higher standard than other registries. I can't speak for others here, of course, but when mtld makes such a bold claim as that they're different than the extensions of the past, I hold them to that claim and expect them to follow through. Whether it happens or not, time will tell... But I won't cut them any sympathy when they make empty promises. If they can't follow through with the lofty goals they've set, they might as well come clean. Telling us the RFP is just around the corner, month after month, does not help public opinion. ????: NamePros.com http://www.namepros.com/showthread.php?t=328341 Yes, eyedomainous is right that they (mtld) were created to protect corporate interests, but nevertheless, these corporate interests shouldn't have the audacity to make bold claims they can't deliver on, and then simultaneously expect these domainers, their families, their friends and relatives,... to start using their extension and thinking it's the best thing since sliced bread... If Web 2.0 and social networks have taught us anything -- it's the sheer power that can be unleashed via word of mouth. Let's keep the word positive Last edited by Reece; 05-16-2007 at 01:21 AM.

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