QUAD DOMAINS
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Now seems like a fitting time to address the digital naming elephant in the room - Unstoppable Domains is offering .com domains. It’s a bit odd that many of the most vocal .com maximalists aren’t talking about this (at least not publicly). This likely has to do with Unstoppable Domains (UD) being a major Web3 player whose primary products are blockchain domains/DiDs. It’s worth noting that many .com maximalists have written blockchain naming off as an unsustainable fad; and tend to discount any view that suggests .com’s popularity alone won’t guarantee its future relevance. Especially at a time when people have, and deserve, a variety of naming options.
This is the part where .com maxis will probably say UD offering .com names isn’t news; and they’re merely doing so because they need the “king” to survive. Anyone who views UD’s move through such a lens is shortsighted and sadly mistaken. UD has announced that it’ll basically be doing more for .com than it could do for them by giving it a ‘utility facelift’. They’ll be affording .com names many of the functions their blockchain names have including, but not limited to, the ability to be used for payment addresses and messaging. Neither of which .com names could be deemed synonymous with before now. The blockchain is about to play a key role in changing .com’s fate.
So, what does UD’s announcement mean for the .com investor who believes it’s one way or the highway? The answer can be found in a clear distinction between yesterday’s .com domains and tomorrow’s. For example, many seasoned investors frown upon hand-registered names; but new .coms registered via UD will have far more utility by default than their counterparts. Anyone who’s objective likely won’t deny this variable alone changes a lot of things. Yes, an investor can have a .com name that’s aged and has good SEO metrics; but a newly registered name via UD will come with greater utility and benefits from the gate. .Com names without this utility will likely be a tough sale after so long.
Another goal expressed by UD involves introducing .com registrants to their suite of blockchain TLDs; and thus giving them access to names that do NOT have renewals. This makes things more interesting. Why? Because most folks will soon wake up to the fact paying renewals doesn’t align with the concept of “owning” a name as much as not paying them does. Before UD’s move, Web2 .com names were capped at renewals, email addresses and name server/record updating privileges. The Web3/blockchain edition of .com names will be, and do, far more. This is thanks to a company that recognizes .com had/has room to evolve.
With UD’s announcement in mind, it’s safe to say the king is now a guest in someone else’s castle; and thus not on the throne. There’s no disputing this. However, some will try though. Share your constructive thoughts below.
MelQUAD | Mainnet Domains
Greetings Brad! Hopefully you’re well.
So, the post focused more on .com domains being afforded greater utility. This was something your comment didn’t exactly address. Would love to know your thoughts on the utility aspect of things. 
As for the lawsuit and “50%” markup, this thread wasn’t geared toward those subjects. Nevertheless, UD’s litigation choices are their own; and a 50% price increase doesn’t seem too bad if the .com names have more utility.
UD stated they’ll be affording .com names most of the features their blockchain domains currently have including, but not limited to, the following:
The ability to be used as crypto wallet addresses.
