discuss 2020 Predictions for the Domain Industry

[Silentptnr]

Every year the top domain brokers and investors make their predictions for the coming year.

Let's make our predictions about domain name investing for 2020.

What do you think will happen? What do you think will be popular? What changes do you think will occur?

What new products/services will be unveiled in 2020.

I'm really interested to hear what NamePros members predict.

Make your predictions here and let's see what happens in 2020!

We have so many great minds here on NP. I look forward to learning from these predictions.

 

[Most Bay]

I predict many new mobile applications will be developed in 2020...

 

[Most Bay]

I predict, the growing of 5G technology will lead people and many companies to develope complete keywords like "Hologram..." and "Cyber...".

Elon will realize that registering Cybrtrk(com) was a mistake and will be on a mission to upgrade to CyberTruck(com)

or maybe CyberTrucky.com.

 

[BlackCatsAreNice]

If anything, Elon Musk has single-handedly raised the exposure and value of the word CYBER. So if you have any names with "cyber" in it, be prepared to raise prices!

 

[cuni.co]

Continued growth for one word .co, .io, .ai, and even .gg, while ngtlds will continue their down slide.

Especially .gg

 

[ksusha64]

My prediction is Players gonna play, haters gonna hate !!!

 

[BlackCatsAreNice]

Other trends/hot topics for 2020:

-Solar
-Electric flight/planes

 

[PeakDots]

or maybe CyberTrucky.com.

If it were called CyberTrucky, that would be the one to get

Elon will realize that registering Cybrtrk(com) was a mistake and will be on a mission to upgrade to CyberTruck(com)

Just to clarify, investors that hold Exact Match Brand (EMB) .com domains will be celebrating in 2020.

 

[Most Bay]

If it were called CyberTrucky, that would be the one to get

Someday... maybe in 2020 or next.

 

[Most Bay]

Thanks for starting a great thread @Silentptnr and thanks to all who have shared ideas. I am actually working on a blog post on the topic, and some of the predictions here may get highlighted on that post. I trust this is acceptable, but if anyone who posts here objects to a part of your prediction being highlighted, just let me know, and I will be sure to follow your wishes.

Obviously I will not be able to mention all posts, but I will draw attention to this great thread.

Bob

I always like your analysis, @Bob Hawkes.
Kindly please write here your predictions, Sir.
Thanks

 

[ExploitOdds]

I predict there will be an increase in Tech startup companies. The world I look at has a lot of security risks, so security and tech more and more together.

Every few years I need a new email address it seems with all the spam out there. Perhaps someone can fix that!! Id buy a share in that company!!

 

[ExploitOdds]

I predict we will see several new namepros members achieve a $xx,xxx+ domain sale.

Any chance we can post domains into a thread and you predict what names/domainers join the club?

 

[Silentptnr]

Any chance we can post domains into a thread and you predict what names/domainers join the club?

Love to!

 

[twiki]

Raining CATS and DOGS: Yes, the world is becoming more and more connected yet people are becoming more and more lonely. The paradox of our times. To make up for it, cuddly creatures will be our comfort. Buy pet names. Cats. Dogs. You're welcome..

Too bad, I missed CatsAI .com.

Edit: I predict all cats domains will be taken, and nobody sells.

 

[ExploitOdds]

I think the dot com grip loosens a little more, but not much.

 

[BlackCatsAreNice]

Too bad, I missed CatsAI .com.

Edit: I predict all cats domains will be taken, and nobody sells.

Cats rule the world. The only two things that pre-occupy people's time on the internets:

Porn and Cats.

And if you own cat domains, why would you in your right mind sell??? You don't sell the precious.

 

[TLDMart]

I am always hesitant to predict anything, except the sun rising and my wife wondering why “that” didn’t get done. And I only have power over one of those, no sun tomorrow everyone. Here are my unquantified predictions for 2020 domain world: 1. Short one word domains in unwanted extensions (biz, maybe even FM) will increase in value, 2. Others like myself, who may have experimented with domains in the past will return to the game, after making mistakes we will look for education, leading to increased enrollment at DNAcademy and use of educational resources 3. Financing/ rent with option to buy domains will increase as more become aware of the option 4. Godaddy and Sedo will start to slowly lose marketshare to younger, more flexible competition.

 

[Silentptnr]

I am always hesitant to predict anything, except the sun rising and my wife wondering why “that” didn’t get done. And I only have power over one of those, no sun tomorrow everyone. Here are my unquantified predictions for 2020 domain world: 1. Short one word domains in unwanted extensions (biz, maybe even FM) will increase in value, 2. Others like myself, who may have experimented with domains in the past will return to the game, after making mistakes we will look for education, leading to increased enrollment at DNAcademy and use of educational resources 3. Financing/ rent with option to buy domains will increase as more become aware of the option 4. Godaddy and Sedo will start to slowly lose marketshare to younger, more flexible competition.

Thanks for that.

 

[Mohamed Ahmaid]

In my view
4 letter pronounce-able domains are the next gems (after 1 word) and they will rule.
I don't have any but I will try to get some decent ones.

 

[BlackCatsAreNice]

2020 will definite see the rise of two+ word domains. If they sound good to the ear and pass the all important radio test, grab em! Or if you have some, sell em!

 

[DomainBanana]

HugeDomains will complete its acquisition of all possible domain names.

It will spend the rest of the century acquiring all property on Earth and the planet will be renamed "Huge Domain."

In the following centuries, Huge Domain (the planet formerly known as Earth) will become a Type II civilization on the Kardashev scale, harnessing the energy of the solar system, and taking ownership of nearby stars and planets.

 

[BlackCatsAreNice]

HugeDomains will complete its acquisition of all possible domain names.

It will spend the rest of the century acquiring all property on Earth and the planet will be renamed "Huge Domain."

In the following centuries, Huge Domain (the planet formerly known as Earth) will become a Type II civilization on the Kardashev scale, harnessing the energy of the solar system, and taking ownership of nearby stars and planets.

Except that I WON'T sell them one of my domains, foiling their plans completely.

They keep trying and trying, upping their offers until it becomes the total of all accumulated wealth since the beginning of time.

But no dice.

So they get depressed. Ten Prozac pills a day sad.

So they die.

The end.

 

[Silentptnr]

HugeDomains will complete its acquisition of all possible domain names.

It will spend the rest of the century acquiring all property on Earth and the planet will be renamed "Huge Domain."

In the following centuries, Huge Domain (the planet formerly known as Earth) will become a Type II civilization on the Kardashev scale, harnessing the energy of the solar system, and taking ownership of nearby stars and planets.

Whats funny is, some have said hand regging generally isnt good (I agree to some extent, in some cases, as it is a complex rask), yet my hand regged drops get picked up here and there.

 

[Bob Hawkes]

I always like your analysis, @Bob Hawkes.
Kindly please write here your predictions,

Thanks for your kind words.

So first the prediction that I am confident about: I don't know!

Now for more speculative thoughts....

1. I think that the domain market overall will be influenced by the economic and political environment, trade friction, etc. And that is difficult to predict.
2. I believe that dictionary word .com will continue to command ever higher prices.
3. I am less sure about whether prices and sales of multi-word legacy will go up. I see pressure from higher acquisition prices and little movement in sales prices, with obvious exceptions.
4. I see country-code both general purpose and restricted as having a strong 2020, possibly an outstanding year.
5. I don't know what to predict for .org. I think it will hold it's own for this year, but with the uncertainty of the proposed sale it is hard to know for long term.
6. I do not see another 8-figure sale but do see multiple 7-figure .com sales again in 2020.
7. I think mixed-mode domains, at least in .com possibly in a few other TLDs, will continue to grow, especially those that start with a letter.
8. I am cautiously optimistic about new gTLDs, but it will be slow. I do not think we will see many or possibly not even any 6-figure sales of new extensions in 2020. However I predict there will be more $1k+ and $100+ sales of new gTLDs in 2020 than in 2019.
9. I see legal issues in domaining ever more widespread and critical, but not confident predicting more than that.
10. I see continued consolidation and near monopolies in some elements of domaining, even though I wish it was not that way.
11. I predict some big player none of us predicted will have a big impact on the domain business.
12. I see domain payment plans, leases and rentals as becoming ubiquitous. Decreasing numbers of domains will be purchased outright. Some of these may involve an outright purchase but after a x month trial period.
13. I think, finally, people will begin to see the danger of trusting their work and information in large companies on sites they don't own. Personal websites will grow strongly in 2020. Whoever figures out the best system for people to get their site up with the features people want and the security protections they need will win. While most of these will be hand-registered names, there will be decent sales as well for those who want a memorable name.
14. We already have a lot of services like AirBnB, Uber, etc. but I see lots more growth in direct person to person services and items mediated by third party networks.
15. Robotics and AI will automate more and more processes we did not think could be robot-assisted. There will be domain opportunities here but difficult to be sure the type of name.
16. Physical and mental health and well-being will be highly sought with the best domain names. I see all of .com, .org and .net well represented, but also a few of the new gTLD and some of the general country code like .me.
17. People will tire of the divisive, confrontational tone of so much of public discourse, and organizations that build respect and communities and positive outcomes will thrive. There will be domain opportunities here, but in the spirit of the organizations limited financial gains.
18. Most people will have a side-gig and there are domain opportunities, both directly and in services like workspace sharing.
19. Finally, I feel confident on the last prediction. MOST OF MY PREDICTIONS ABOVE WILL PROVE TO BE COMPLETELY WRONG!!

Have a great 2020 everyone.

Bob

 

[Silentptnr]

Thanks for your kind words.

So first the prediction that I am confident about: I don't know!

Now for more speculative thoughts....

1. I think that the domain market overall will be influenced by the economic and political environment, trade friction, etc. And that is difficult to predict.
2. I believe that dictionary word .com will continue to command ever higher prices.
3. I am less sure about whether prices and sales of multi-word legacy will go up. I see pressure from higher acquisition prices and little movement in sales prices, with obvious exceptions.
4. I see country-code both general purpose and restricted as having a strong 2020, possibly an outstanding year.
5. I don't know what to predict for .org. I think it will hold it's own for this year, but with the uncertainty of the proposed sale it is hard to know for long term.
6. I do not see another 8-figure sale but do see multiple 7-figure .com sales again in 2020.
7. I think mixed-mode domains, at least in .com possibly in a few other TLDs, will continue to grow, especially those that start with a letter.
8. I am cautiously optimistic about new gTLDs, but it will be slow. I do not think we will see many or possibly not even any 6-figure sales of new extensions in 2020. However I predict there will be more $1k+ and $100+ sales of new gTLDs in 2020 than in 2019.
9. I see legal issues in domaining ever more widespread and critical, but not confident predicting more than that.
10. I see continued consolidation and near monopolies in some elements of domaining, even though I wish it was not that way.
11. I predict some big player none of us predicted will have a big impact on the domain business.
12. I see domain payment plans, leases and rentals as becoming ubiquitous. Decreasing numbers of domains will be purchased outright. Some of these may involve an outright purchase but after a x month trial period.
13. I think, finally, people will begin to see the danger of trusting their work and information in large companies on sites they don't own. Personal websites will grow strongly in 2020. Whoever figures out the best system for people to get their site up with the features people want and the security protections they need will win. While most of these will be hand-registered names, there will be decent sales as well for those who want a memorable name.
14. We already have a lot of services like AirBnB, Uber, etc. but I see lots more growth in direct person to person services and items mediated by third party networks.
15. Robotics and AI will automate more and more processes we did not think could be robot-assisted. There will be domain opportunities here but difficult to be sure the type of name.
16. Physical and mental health and well-being will be highly sought with the best domain names. I see all of .com, .org and .net well represented, but also a few of the new gTLD and some of the general country code like .me.
17. People will tire of the divisive, confrontational tone of so much of public discourse, and organizations that build respect and communities and positive outcomes will thrive. There will be domain opportunities here, but in the spirit of the organizations limited financial gains.
18. Most people will have a side-gig and there are domain opportunities, both directly and in services like workspace sharing.
19. Finally, I feel confident on the last prediction. MOST OF MY PREDICTIONS ABOVE WILL PROVE TO BE COMPLETELY WRONG!!

Have a great 2020 everyone.

Bob

Thanks for your predictions Bob!

 

[capybara]

Thanks for your kind words.

So first the prediction that I am confident about: I don't know!

Now for more speculative thoughts....

1. I think that the domain market overall will be influenced by the economic and political environment, trade friction, etc. And that is difficult to predict.
2. I believe that dictionary word .com will continue to command ever higher prices.
3. I am less sure about whether prices and sales of multi-word legacy will go up. I see pressure from higher acquisition prices and little movement in sales prices, with obvious exceptions.
4. I see country-code both general purpose and restricted as having a strong 2020, possibly an outstanding year.
5. I don't know what to predict for .org. I think it will hold it's own for this year, but with the uncertainty of the proposed sale it is hard to know for long term.
6. I do not see another 8-figure sale but do see multiple 7-figure .com sales again in 2020.
7. I think mixed-mode domains, at least in .com possibly in a few other TLDs, will continue to grow, especially those that start with a letter.
8. I am cautiously optimistic about new gTLDs, but it will be slow. I do not think we will see many or possibly not even any 6-figure sales of new extensions in 2020. However I predict there will be more $1k+ and $100+ sales of new gTLDs in 2020 than in 2019.
9. I see legal issues in domaining ever more widespread and critical, but not confident predicting more than that.
10. I see continued consolidation and near monopolies in some elements of domaining, even though I wish it was not that way.
11. I predict some big player none of us predicted will have a big impact on the domain business.
12. I see domain payment plans, leases and rentals as becoming ubiquitous. Decreasing numbers of domains will be purchased outright. Some of these may involve an outright purchase but after a x month trial period.
13. I think, finally, people will begin to see the danger of trusting their work and information in large companies on sites they don't own. Personal websites will grow strongly in 2020. Whoever figures out the best system for people to get their site up with the features people want and the security protections they need will win. While most of these will be hand-registered names, there will be decent sales as well for those who want a memorable name.
14. We already have a lot of services like AirBnB, Uber, etc. but I see lots more growth in direct person to person services and items mediated by third party networks.
15. Robotics and AI will automate more and more processes we did not think could be robot-assisted. There will be domain opportunities here but difficult to be sure the type of name.
16. Physical and mental health and well-being will be highly sought with the best domain names. I see all of .com, .org and .net well represented, but also a few of the new gTLD and some of the general country code like .me.
17. People will tire of the divisive, confrontational tone of so much of public discourse, and organizations that build respect and communities and positive outcomes will thrive. There will be domain opportunities here, but in the spirit of the organizations limited financial gains.
18. Most people will have a side-gig and there are domain opportunities, both directly and in services like workspace sharing.
19. Finally, I feel confident on the last prediction. MOST OF MY PREDICTIONS ABOVE WILL PROVE TO BE COMPLETELY WRONG!!

Have a great 2020 everyone.

Bob

Wow, that is only a thread comment, waiting for that promised post of yours...

I think, finally, people will begin to see the danger of trusting their work and information in large companies on sites they don't own. Personal websites will grow strongly in 2020. Whoever figures out the best system for people to get their site up with the features people want and the security protections they need will win. While most of these will be hand-registered names, there will be decent sales as well for those who want a memorable name.

I am rather pessimistic about that. Large aggregator services will continue to dissolve and depersonalize small players, who have no other choice but to dance to their tune. You either sell on Amazon or almost don't sell at all. So we buy from this small seller on Amazon and really do not even care about their name, we choose a hotel on Booking to barely remember it after the travel is over. Its getting harder and harder for small businesses to stand up to the challenge of technical superiority of large brands which employ hundreds of top engineers and designers, while the complexity of technology behind the digital experience continues to grow.