discuss Are domains slowly becoming less important?

[a v i x]

Are domains slowly becoming less important for the average internet project?

I’m not saying domains will disappear. Premium domains, strong brands, and trust-based businesses will probably always need them.

But user behavior seems to be changing.

A few observations:

• Many new businesses now start on social platforms instead of standalone websites
• Telegram, TikTok, Instagram, Discord, and marketplace ecosystems are replacing traditional web presence for many small creators
• AI assistants and chat interfaces may reduce direct navigation and search dependency
• Mobile apps are becoming more important than websites in many industries
• Some startups seem to treat the domain more like backend infrastructure while the actual user interaction happens elsewhere

Curious what others think.

 

[ScruffyBeard]

When you put your stuff on other people's platforms/spaces, you lose control and you often have to comply with all kinds of stuff.

With your own domain, on your own website, your can make all your own choices, make your preferences, likes, use your creativity, your imagination, your style, etc. You have full control of over everything.

Plus anti-social media is in perpetual turmoil and controversy and is subject to all kinds of abuse, junk, spam, scams and everything else that is open to the public. It is the number one target for criminals.

 

[eyedomainous]

Yes, domains are [quickly] becoming less important.

It was happening slowly, primarily due to domainer neglect of the namespace, but now AI rapidly accelerates domain decline each time it does the Browsing, Discovery, and Presentation for a user.

The good news is "Domaining" can evolve to thrive, with AI. Though, at this point, domaining surviving as "backend infrastructure" looks like the future.

 

[mani0307]

After AI, domains are now more important than ever before.

 

[Kingslayer]

Sales don't seems to suggest that. But as been a concern of mine too and with that my own investments.

We entering an era where information/news is going to be Ai generated and where websites are going to be built by Ai, this may impact low quality/mid level domain names.

But people still need an address to go to and that might make premium domain names more valuable as premium domains add more credibility.

 

[MKA]

Many new businesses now start on social platforms instead of standalone websites

So what? They will eventually have to move to their own site if they want to grow.

Telegram, TikTok, Instagram, Discord, and marketplace ecosystems are replacing traditional web presence for many small creators

This comes at a cost of limiting your business to those platforms, and you'll develop a dependency on those platforms.

Keep in mind that most websites do social media as well, so it's not like you have to choose one over the other.

AI assistants and chat interfaces may reduce direct navigation and search dependency

Search engines are not the only way to find a site. Sites can be promoted on social media.

Mobile apps are becoming more important than websites in many industries

It depends on what you want to do. That said, would you really run a business so large that you can code and maintain an app, but not own the domain name for the business? Because it seems like a huge risk to me.

Some startups seem to treat the domain more like backend infrastructure while the actual user interaction happens elsewhere

You can use the domain for whatever you want. But this is still a use case, and a reason to acquire the domain.

 

[hamadyesorno]

I think this question can only be answered by statistics and data.