discuss .AE Discussion and Showcase

[slapman]

anyone get in on a .ae?
It might be something to look into.. its only 30 bucks, plus the .ae region includes dubai....... just a thought.

3 of my apps are pending at instra.com.. not sure wassup with that

 

[Joe Caramel]

Ok thanks somone contacted me with a huge list of (keyword.ae) names so I thought I would check it out.

 

[mbadr]

I would like to correct one of the posts above and to make things clearer.

You must do a comprehensive review before you can post that there are not many sales know of and about the strict rules of registration of .ae domains.

Many things have changed since August 2008, that is when aeDA (ae domain administration) entered the market and took away UAEnic's monopoly.

I am talking because I am representing one of the few aeDA accredited registrars.

There is a record breaker sale which was done this summer, its horse.ae which was sold for 1.6 Million USD and there are plenty of other names gone.

You can read the domaining.ae blog which is all about the .ae domains. Here is a link to the sale history page of .ae's : .ae domains sale history | Domaining.ae | ae. أسماء نطاق الانترنت

 

[Joe Caramel]

What are the restrictions on them?
Can I own .ae?
Is it a good investment to buy good keyword .ae domains?

 

[Kate]

I believe you are not supposed to buy .ae just for resale.
If the registry finds out, they could wipe out your domains. Tread carefully

 

[Joe Caramel]

Ok....
I pitched InvestDubai.info to somone who owned a dubai site, and he replyed with a whole wak of good keyword .ae domains he wanted to sell.
I told him to buy InvestDubai.info from me develope it, and use it to sell his over a hundred .ae domains.
lol

 

[daj]

You must do a comprehensive review before you can post that there are not many sales known of and about the strict rules of registration of .ae domains.

Horse.ae> $1,600,000 - whoever paid that much got ripped off
TV.ae> $8000
Shops.ae> $1340
Parking.ae> $650
Estates.ae> $500
hotmail.ae> $13,660
vtc.ae> $820
22.ae> $1,366
33.ae > $1,366
LV.ae> $215
Snickers.ae> $850

That's the only sales I can find for the extension. As for the rules and regulations, U.A.E. is a muslim country, so free speech isn't welcomed there, or in domains for that matter. If I was a gay muslim who lived there and tried to register Gay.ae, I'd most likely be sentenced to jail for 5 years, or perhaps given horomone treatments to try to turn me straight (which is commonly practiced there) if I was even able to register the domain. Just sayin'.

 

[Joe Caramel]

Wouldnt hotmail and snickers be trademarks?
So lets get to the bottem line here, are we allowed to buy and sell these domains or what?

 

[gilescoley]

Yes, you are allowed to register .ae domains....and no, you dont have to live in the UAE

There have been some other private unrecorded sales of .ae names.

 

[.tv]

Yes, you are allowed to register .ae domains....and no, you dont have to live in the UAE

There have been some other private unrecorded sales of .ae names, lower that Horse.ae but bigger than TV.ae

Giles,
Where did you register your .ae names? How much is the reg fee?

 

[gilescoley]

I have found Instra.com the cheapest place to register .ae names

Costs about $40 per name

 

[telking]

I have found Instra.com the cheapest place to register .ae names

Costs about $40 per name

Instra is good. I have found their Customer Service a little lacking but otherwise its the cheapest .ae

 

[mbadr]

If you are looking for a UAE based registrar, then try the 2 local ISP's Etisalat and DU

I recommend using AEserver.com/Engage.ae as they offer full online registration and have awesome support.:great:

 

[Gerrit]

Most Middle Eastern extentions do have value (thinking of .co.il, .co.sa, .ae, ...) and especially Saudi Arabia and the UAE. With the difference that registering a Saudi domain is close to impossible without having a local address, while .ae is open for anyone in or outside the Emirates. Any good keyword will have value.

Note that domains that are politically sensitive, relate to adult sites or gambling sites, are forbidden. If you are not based in the UAE they cannot arrest you for trying to register such domain, but your domain will probably not be registered in the first place and even if it is, as soon as it gets attention the registry will erase the registration and probably not refund you. So forget about sex.ae or poker.ae or so. In Dubai, focus on construction works and tourism industry related domains as that is very big over there.

PS: those willing to enter the Saudi domain market if there is any, .sa.com subdomains are without restrictions but probably hardly used as within the Kingdom the .co.sa is very popular (but requires local presence)

 

[Kirkland]

I took a punt with a .AE (Arab Emirates)

The UAE is a facinating place for me, paticulary Dubai, the people who run that country are relitively smart pouring most oil profits into tourism development for when the oil runs out.

At the moment the UAE is heavily populated with English speakers for development, and with it being an international hub they are required to learn this language aswell.

So, I took a punt on a single (popular) ENGLISH dictionary LLL.

Smart move or boring mistake?

 

[Kate]

I have one problem with .ae domains, they are not supposed to be bought for resale.

 

[Kirkland]

I have one problem with .ae domains, they are not supposed to be bought for resale.

http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090824/NATIONAL/708239845/1040

Interesting, it isnt disallowed however, just appears to be frowned upon by regulators. Several companies do offer .ae broker/auction facilities, so not much of an issue to be honest.

 

[nicedomains]

The UAE is a facinating place for me, paticulary Dubai, the people who run that country are relitively smart pouring most oil profits into tourism development for when the oil runs out.

At the moment the UAE is heavily populated with English speakers for development, and with it being an international hub they are required to learn this language aswell.

So, I took a punt on a single (popular) ENGLISH dictionary LLL.

Smart move or boring mistake?

If you're a fan of the UAE you should probably shift your focus and towards Abu Dhabi and not as much on Dubai. Abu Dhabi is the real reason that the UAE is still one of the richest countries in the world. Dubai's leaders let it grow too big too fast and it went bust.. Now it's like a rich ghost town I hear.

Anyway, perhaps you could pm me the name? I'll return your pm with my honest opinion. I too just bought my first .ae domain name and I am happy to own it.

Good luck. :gl:

 

[Animator]

Dubai is a rich ghost town.

 

[Kate]

Internet property wars reach UAE - The National Newspaper

Interesting, it isnt disallowed however, just appears to be frowned upon by regulators. Several companies do offer .ae broker/auction facilities, so not much of an issue to be honest.

TBH I don't believe that the $1M+ sales and offers for .ae domains are for real, sorry.

For investments purposes, I wouldn't put a lot of money (and trust) into ccTLDs that are controlled by 'conservative' governments. Internet censorship is prevalent in the region too. I would at a minimum keep a low profile.
While the UAE is not China, you just cannot rule out a backlash, in particular if foreigners are deemed to be gobbling up scarce national resources.
My own opinion of course.

 

[gazzip]

For investments purposes, I wouldn't put a lot of money (and trust) into ccTLDs that are controlled by 'conservative' governments. Internet censorship is prevalent in the region too. I would at a minimum keep a low profile.
While the UAE is not China, you just cannot rule out a backlash, in particular if foreigners are deemed to be gobbling up scarce national resources.
My own opinion of course.

Mine too, I have about 5 really nice/useable .ae's that I want to develop. (hopefully before they get taken from me for non-use )

I think Parking them or putting a for sale sign on them is risky for the reasons mentioned by Kate


.

 

[gilescoley]

As someone who has invested in a few premium .ae names, I find some of these opinions very interesting. I have recently been is discussion with a few people in the UAE and spoken to AEDA and the TRA regarding this.

Reselling .ae domains (under unrestricted zone .ae) is not violating .ae rules unless the name itself is in the reserved list or the name is infringes the right of others (trademarks) ,The Registration or use of a Domain Name in bad faith as it is defined in .aeDA polices.

aeda.ae/eng/aepolicy.php

As sdsinc and gazzip stated, rather dont go around advertising your .ae names too much, and at least have a small site on the domains so it looks like its being used rather than just having a big "for sale" out the front.

It may be a ghost town, but she will be back, all that infrastructure wont just disappear....patience is needed...

Good luck all

 

[alistair80]

I really hope Dubai gets back on its feet. Loads of $$$$$$$$$ have been put into that town and it'd be unfortunate to see that all burn to ashes.

 

[MeanerDomainer]

So the new امارات. (.emarates) extension probably pretty much kills .ae for local arabic speakers??? (With the exception of already established .ae sites).
Non-arabic speaking foreigners living in the Emirates will be pretty much the only audience left for .ae???

 

[aceeca]

Non-arabic speaking foreigners living in the Emirates will be pretty much the only audience left for .ae???

In any case they (English Speaking) are in majority in the UAE

 

[MeanerDomainer]

So the new امارات. (.emirates) does not render .ae obsolete?

Many of the foreign workers, particularly the laborers, probably have much lower buying-power than the locals and send large % of their earnings back to their native counries.

I wonder how many english speaking foreign professionals they have?