discuss Are random 4L .com really worth investing renewals?

[Akhilesh.Kumar]

Keep aside repeat letters, multiple vowels, pronounceable, known or prompt possible abbreviations etc, if you consider random combination of 4 letter to make a .com, is it really worth?
I mean all 4L are either bought-up from kid to young by paying their school fee (renewals) for 10-15 years or the orphans (drop/expired) are adopted at a high ransom (bid) from an open auction.

The no-meaning, non pronounceable random combination of 4 letters sells for $100-150 in auctions.
I was negotiating one on such auction platform where there was no bid due to high reserve. I threw an under reserve (micro) bid to mark presence. Post auction, the name lost it's esteem and jumped from Burj-Khalifa ($999) to pot hole ($99) and landed in my mail box with a low BIN offer.

And soon flashed in my mind, the name I am referring to is aged since 2005.
Since 2005, the name celebrated 15 birthdays and 15 birthday gifts (renewals) would have been somewhere equal to what the young man (4L.com domain) is earning today.

Saying this, I want to discuss with community/family- the valuable 4L.com including usable abbreviations, fancy combinations, repeat letters etc are valuable (understandably).
Is it true that all non sense (excuse the description. Not intended to insult) 4L.com are renewed and are expected to sell high just because of the fact that there are no free available 4L.com available like all dictionary words.
Or the names are waiting for future when sometime someone may think of a 4 word name for his/her firm and that coincidentally matches the waiting 4L.com for abbreviation.

Logically end user may prefer a decent 2 word name for $50-70 rather a no meaning 4L for $100-150

I am still a leaner and may not see what vintage domineers do. So trying to find out an understanding why is it so. Please do not see the post as sarcasm or challenging. I do not have any (not even 0.00001%) intentions to insult owners of any sort of 4L.com name.

Cheers... !!!

 

[Akhilesh.Kumar]

Say the original owner registered the domain before the mark was filed.

When the domain changes hands, the new owner may be infringing on that recent mark.

Here is an actual scenario.

I am about to jump in for a name registered in 2005. There is an active trademark for this very name. TM registered in 2020.
The name has been in someone (one or more) else's ownership but never dropped. Like registered in 2005 and still active.
Should I try to get this name considering the age of name is more then age of active TM
OR
Should I pass considering the age of TM would be more then age of my ownership on the name

Your thought my friend....
And anyone else is welcome too... Plz share what you think..

Cheers...!!!

 

[CraigD]

Here is an actual scenario.

I am about to jump in for a name registered in 2005. There is an active trademark for this very name. TM registered in 2020.
The name has been in someone (one or more) else's ownership but never dropped. Like registered in 2005 and still active.
Should I try to get this name considering the age of name is more then age of active TM
OR
Should I pass considering the age of TM would be more then age of my ownership on the name

Your thought my friend....
And anyone else is welcome too... Plz share what you think..

Cheers...!!!

The original owner is probably safe, but you may be infringing on the mark.
TM law can be complex and there are various categories of marks.

 

[Future Sensors]

Here is an actual scenario.

I am about to jump in for a name registered in 2005. There is an active trademark for this very name. TM registered in 2020.
The name has been in someone (one or more) else's ownership but never dropped. Like registered in 2005 and still active.
Should I try to get this name considering the age of name is more then age of active TM
OR
Should I pass considering the age of TM would be more then age of my ownership on the name

Your thought my friend....
And anyone else is welcome too... Plz share what you think..

Cheers...!!!

You should also read about "change of ownership" in WIPO/UDRP decisions.

 

[Akhilesh.Kumar]

Thanks, so ideally I should remain out of it for now as a newbie (I think). 5 years down the line it may be a different game. By then I may be more verged with ins and outs before jumping in.

BTW @Future Sensors Do you have an article or write up about that interesting quote "78% of human domainers will be replaced by robots". If so, I would love to read.

Cheers...!!!

 

[CraigD]

This is an old article, but explains it relatively simply:

Aged domain names: a change in ownership is considered as a new registration in UDRP.

https://onlinedomain.com/2014/01/02...-is-considered-as-a-new-registration-in-udrp/

 

[Future Sensors]

BTW @Future Sensors Do you have an article or write up about that interesting quote "78% of human domainers will be replaced by robots". If so, I would love to read.

Cheers...!!!

It's my guesstimate AI will be used, and will create better domains than most of us will ever do on this forum. Maybe these newly created domains will be used by robots, though...

The parties with access to all of our queries will have a huge advantage, like AOL had back in the days. In the future, the largest registries and DNS-over-HTTPS monopolies will have all information. But there are more. Lots and lots of other parties are in the path. Who will eventually monetize all this information in a smart AI way? Maybe I'm just as curious as you.

 

[Akhilesh.Kumar]

This is an old article, but explains it relatively simply:

Aged domain names: a change in ownership is considered as a new registration in UDRP.

https://onlinedomain.com/2014/01/02...-is-considered-as-a-new-registration-in-udrp/

Thanks a ton. That's short and informative. Got a gist of the story.

 

[theinvestor]

This is a good question and one of the main reasons I pivoted very early on from buying LLLL to buying quality LLLLL that is now worth way more than a random LLLL.

Although I still do own a few LLLL, I didn’t go purchasing random ones just for the sake to try to sell them for 20 years later at a possible loss.

 

[Akhilesh.Kumar]

This is a good question and one of the main reasons I pivoted very early on from buying LLLL to buying quality LLLLL that is now worth way more than a random LLLL.

Although I still do own a few LLLL, I didn’t go purchasing random ones just for the sake to try to sell them for 20 years later at a possible loss.

Exactly my point.
Though the difference between me and you is that I am even late for good 5Ls now..

 

[Akhilesh.Kumar]

It's my guesstimate AI will be used, and will create better domains than most of us will ever do on this forum. Maybe these newly created domains will be used by robots, though...

The parties with access to all of our queries will have a huge advantage, like AOL had back in the days. In the future, the largest registries and DNS-over-HTTPS monopolies will have all information. But there are more. Lots and lots of other parties are in the path. Who will eventually monetize all this information in a smart AI way? Maybe I'm just as curious as you.

That is a kicker my friend. Who knows the future. Lets do it now, what we can.
Enjoy your Sunday.

Cheers...!!!

 

[Future Sensors]

Exactly my point.
Though the difference between me and you is that I am even late for good 5Ls now..

There are still good opportunities for catchy 5L/6L/7L on droplists. Often these are the domains you see at "brandable" marketplaces. Non-dictionary words. You can catch them for a small amount and keep them.

Learn how to create a good regex and filter by popular patterns. Use metrics to decide what domain has the most potential, based on starting letters of companies, etc.

 

[marijuanadomain]

I bought so many 4L domains years ago at dirt cheap prices at $15 a piece from someone who called themselves to be a domain Expert or Domain Pro or Domain Investor- Domains I got dirt cheap like
gxnx.com.zmmr.com,kvlp.com,llyu.com,mbxy.com,wzwi.com,vhvk.com and now I getting high prices offers...
Squarely.com- I got for just 1K and square is using squarely for their podcast as talking squarely.
So who is laughing all the way to the bank now!!!

 

[-AR-]

I guess it's all about luck as well as the fact that owning a 4 letter .com will have value in the next 5 years simply because it is limited in quantity. Just like 3 letter dot com's are today. Secondly there are a lot of big brands that are increasingly using 4L.com's. Don't forget that the moment you move to 5 and 6 letter domains you are expecting your customers to be more literate too not to misspell the domain and land somewhere else.

I do agree though that some are just pure junk to the untrained eye, my theory is that we should all own some junk to keep the game going, but it's easier said than done.

 

[BrandingGo]

LLLL com is a great investment but otherwise according my research Chinese investors are moved to new gtld english one-words lol.

 

[scrsteven]

Bad letter LLLL.com (like QZJX.com) are net losers if you hold them for passive resale: renewal expenses exceed end user sale income on average. Verisign and ICANN are the only winners.

 

[Akhilesh.Kumar]

gxnx.com.zmmr.com,kvlp.com,llyu.com,mbxy.com,wzwi.com,vhvk.com and now I getting high prices offers...

Most of those names have a pattern or possible abbreviations.
The most meaningless combination af 4 letters us alive for 15-20 years eating up tons of renewal cost getting sold for less then total of their renewal expenses. That's the point.

I guess it's all about luck as well as the fact that owning a 4 letter .com will have value in the next 5 years simply because it is limited in quantity

Bingo. That's the reason whatever is available is glittery. Cos rhe quantity is too low.

LLLL com is a great investment but otherwise according my research Chinese investors are moved to new gtld english one-words lol.

Don't know anything about chinese taste dear. If they are/were making 4Ls expensive, I may need to read further and develop understanding.

Bad letter LLLL.com (like QZJX.com) are net losers if you hold them for passive resale: renewal expenses exceed end user sale income on average. Verisign and ICANN are the only winners.

You forgot Registrars. They make renewal profits, transfer fee, privacy protection bla bla bla.. The world is selfish.

 

[DuDD]

4L
It's still very valuable

 

[Akhilesh.Kumar]

4L
It's still very valuable

In context to China?
If so why 15 yrs old 4L getting sold for 100 USD,

 

[santis]

I have 3 domains 4L .com (zezd, tugv, ynvo) and holding for 4 years but no inquiries, I think I will liquidate them.

 

[Akhilesh.Kumar]

I have 3 domains 4L .com (zezd, tugv, ynvo) and holding for 4 years but no inquiries, I think I will liquidate them.

Good luck.