Has anyone experienced prices increases for registry premium domains?

[ryan87]

I'm wondering if anyone here has experienced an increase in the renewal pricing for a registry premium domain or even seen any credible references to it happening to someone else.

I'm trying to understand how section 2.10b of the registry agreement would apply to premium domains. Part of it says:

Registry Operator shall provide each ICANN accredited registrar that has executed the Registry-Registrar Agreement for the TLD advance written notice of any price increase

How does that work for a small cohort of premium domains? Assuming the registries are using re-tiering to maximize price discrimination, prices may fluctuate for a small number of keywords across multiple TLDs. If the keyword is a mix of premium and non-premium domains across those TLDs, how do they notify all accredited registrars about such a complex change?

I also wonder if those notifications are logged somewhere. Does anyone know how the registry would prove they met those obligations?

And finally, does anyone know if registrars are obligated to notify registrants about those price increases? For standard domains, a bulk email is common, but I'm not sure if it's required. What happens if the notification is for a tiny subset of premium domains?

I have logs showing renewal price fluctuations, including increases, for a domain that was reclassified as premium, but I never received any emails warning me about the increase. I asked ICANN about it in an ongoing complaint, but they didn't acknowledge the question.

It also says:

Registry Operator shall offer registrars the option to obtain domain name registration renewals at the current price (i.e., the price in place prior to any noticed increase) for periods of one (1) to ten (10) years at the discretion of the registrar, but no greater than ten (10) years.

Does anyone know why most (all?) registrars limit the renewal of premium domains to 1 year at a time. For example, my domain that got reclassified as a premium domain could only be renewed for one year per transaction at Namecheap, but I was able to do 2 transactions to get 2 years worth of renewal. What's the point?

 

[MKA]

Yes, there have been a few accounts of non-premiums becoming premiums, and premium domain prices increasing after one year of use.

Does anyone know why most (all?) registrars limit the renewal of premium domains to 1 year at a time.

Because registries don't allow for longer registrations for premiums. They want to to able to increase the price.

Registry premiums are not investment objects. Stick to the .com.