As China continues its buyout of high value domain names, we're seeing higher and higher sales numbers, with four-letter .COM domains currently considered the hottest property among many investors.
At the top of the tree, however, is the two-letter .COM domain names. Chinese investors now own over 20% of all two-letter .COM domains, and there are likely to be many more sales to come. With the sales prices often over $1 million each, these are valuable assets for investors, but many companies are still operating on this valuable category of domain. Here are five examples of how companies are using two-letter .COM's.
TN.com - Tuft & Needle
This domain name was the subject of my Inside Interview last week. TN.com is being used by Tuft & Needle, an innovative mattress company with the #1 rated mattress product on Amazon. The domain name is currently being redirected to a page at their main website TuftandNeedle.com.
The company currently doesn't have any plans to fully rebrand to the TN.com name, but if it is considered a superior choice for their customers in the future, then rebranding could be a possibility.
TT.com - Tiroler Tageszeitung
What a great domain name! One of only 26 repeating two-letter .COM domains in existence. The name is currently being used as the home of Tiroler Tageszeitung Online, a German newspaper brand published in Austria who have used the domain name ever since registering it in 1999.
DomainGang recently broke the news of the probable domain sale to China of NN.com, and whilst no confirmation or sales price was issued, it should definitely have been a multi-million dollar sale. I reached out to TT.com to ask whether they had plans to sell their name, and the answer is that they do not. And why should they? It's an excellent, memorable brand, and it's far better than even attempting to type in TirolerTageszeitung.com.
TT.com is a very valuable asset should they want to sell it one day.
BA.com - British Airways
Used by British Airways, the domain currently forwards to the BritishAirways.com home page. The domain looks to have been originally owned by Bell Atlantic before being acquired some time around 2002.
Although British Airways aren't actively hosting a website on their domain, the name is used in the majority of their advertising. This is one name that I feel confident won't be heading to China.
AM.com - Ackerman McQueen
AM is a commonly used acronym for Ackerman McQueen, an advertising and media agency with a 75-year history. The company have been using the domain since at least 2003, and their use - as with Tuft & Needle and Tiroler Tageszeitung - makes a lot of sense.
When you operate on a brand name that has an obscure spelling, could be misspelled, or that is too long to remember, a short domain can help new and existing clients to remember your online address and reach you.
PC.com - Intel
Being British, I thought that PC.com may be owned by PC World, a large chain of retailers specializing in computers. However, it is owned by another giant of the computing industry: Intel.
It seems only right that two letters that defined the 90's are owned by one of the companies that helped to advance the computing industry. Although, I would like to see Intel doing more with the domain name.
PC.com is currently being redirected to Intel's shop, and whilst this is going to guarantee them a lot of traffic (which should result in increased sales), I'd like to see a standalone site, or perhaps the domain could be used to house videos of those "annoying" commercials featuring Jim Parsons.
At the top of the tree, however, is the two-letter .COM domain names. Chinese investors now own over 20% of all two-letter .COM domains, and there are likely to be many more sales to come. With the sales prices often over $1 million each, these are valuable assets for investors, but many companies are still operating on this valuable category of domain. Here are five examples of how companies are using two-letter .COM's.
TN.com - Tuft & Needle
This domain name was the subject of my Inside Interview last week. TN.com is being used by Tuft & Needle, an innovative mattress company with the #1 rated mattress product on Amazon. The domain name is currently being redirected to a page at their main website TuftandNeedle.com.
The company currently doesn't have any plans to fully rebrand to the TN.com name, but if it is considered a superior choice for their customers in the future, then rebranding could be a possibility.
TT.com - Tiroler Tageszeitung
What a great domain name! One of only 26 repeating two-letter .COM domains in existence. The name is currently being used as the home of Tiroler Tageszeitung Online, a German newspaper brand published in Austria who have used the domain name ever since registering it in 1999.
DomainGang recently broke the news of the probable domain sale to China of NN.com, and whilst no confirmation or sales price was issued, it should definitely have been a multi-million dollar sale. I reached out to TT.com to ask whether they had plans to sell their name, and the answer is that they do not. And why should they? It's an excellent, memorable brand, and it's far better than even attempting to type in TirolerTageszeitung.com.
TT.com is a very valuable asset should they want to sell it one day.
BA.com - British Airways
Used by British Airways, the domain currently forwards to the BritishAirways.com home page. The domain looks to have been originally owned by Bell Atlantic before being acquired some time around 2002.
Although British Airways aren't actively hosting a website on their domain, the name is used in the majority of their advertising. This is one name that I feel confident won't be heading to China.
AM.com - Ackerman McQueen
AM is a commonly used acronym for Ackerman McQueen, an advertising and media agency with a 75-year history. The company have been using the domain since at least 2003, and their use - as with Tuft & Needle and Tiroler Tageszeitung - makes a lot of sense.
When you operate on a brand name that has an obscure spelling, could be misspelled, or that is too long to remember, a short domain can help new and existing clients to remember your online address and reach you.
PC.com - Intel
Being British, I thought that PC.com may be owned by PC World, a large chain of retailers specializing in computers. However, it is owned by another giant of the computing industry: Intel.
It seems only right that two letters that defined the 90's are owned by one of the companies that helped to advance the computing industry. Although, I would like to see Intel doing more with the domain name.
PC.com is currently being redirected to Intel's shop, and whilst this is going to guarantee them a lot of traffic (which should result in increased sales), I'd like to see a standalone site, or perhaps the domain could be used to house videos of those "annoying" commercials featuring Jim Parsons.
... The title really would look weird with "107 Companies Still using LL.com". Not to mention the fact that it would take a few days for me to research and write 
