poll KINGS AND GODS: THE POWER OF AN EXTENSION

[QUAD DOMAINS]

We’ve all heard the “.com will always be #1” viewpoint. There are investors who consider the .com version of a domain name to be the “ultimate” upgrade. Fortune 500 companies that brand with .com domains are used as the poster-child justification for why no other extension will EVER have a chance. Anyone who challenges the mere idea that “.com is king” stands to be scorned into oblivion. Mostly by folks who’ve made a decent living leveraging, and bolstering, the .com value-construct. However, it’s only fair, and in many cases reasonable, that a reign be placed under the microscope every so often. Especially where renewals are applicable. After all, benefits don’t always age gracefully.

In a world where many people believe a king’s rule pales in comparison to a God’s power, it’s worth pondering what the metaphorical God would be in comparison to the king some investors believe is .com. If the answer can only have a centralized origin, one would have to say company-specific ICANN TLDs. (Ex: .google, .apple etc.) Considering Fortune 500 companies are used to justify .com’s royalty, it only makes sense they’d justify the royalty of their own TLDs. With two royals, which might a company favor? Probably their own. It’s difficult to make the case for why a Fortune 500 company would prioritize the .com over their own TLD. It just doesn’t seem ideal if branding is their focus.

The discussion about company-branded ICANN TLDs doesn’t receive nearly as much attention as it deserves. Especially at a time when decentralized TLDs take a lot of heat for merely existing. There are surely folks who are aware company-branded ICANN TLDs have been in the works for some time now. Companies opting to lead with the leveraging and promotion of their own TLD will ultimately help shift the paradigm of what constitutes the better domain name branding option. Sure, some investors speculate about the headache that might come with training the public to remember the TLD. However, with billions of marketing dollars, and a thirst for controlling narratives, most Fortune 500 companies will embrace the task.

Everything stated brings us to the need for an objective discussion about the past, present and future benefits of the .com extension. (Branding and otherwise.) With robust advancements in technology, blockchain names commanding attention, domain-utility being a focus and internet end-user demographics evolving, it’s fair to ask what .com brings to the table other than age, familiarity and what many would consider a cult-like following. This question isn’t about stirring the hornet’s nest though. It’s about getting a grip on whether .com maximalism is relative to a sincere belief the extension has evolved in a way that’s relevant to not only ourselves; but to generations that’ll undoubtedly see the world and web through a completely different lens.

Share your constructive thoughts in the comments.

 

[biggie]

Hi

i remember when silly ass emojis were supposed to take over and when apps were supposed to take over and when facebook was supposed to take over, and when .mobi and .pw and handshakey, etc, etc., etc.

and yet .com is still #1

i just wonder about those who didn't see that or those who don't see it now.

sure, you can brand on another extension, but .com is already branded!

imo....

 

[Future Sensors]

@QUAD DOMAINS

It would be helpful if you could substantiate your claims with some sources and facts about actual use at the moment, without too much wishful thinking. Incidentally, I am someone who has invested heavily in new gtlds in the past and have now returned to mainly .com domains.

 

[biggie]

Hi

constructively speaking and from experience over the years....


those i know, who hold quality to premium - top tier .com domain names don't question the extensions reign now or in the future.

they may speculate in other areas, but they are not giving away or giving up, on .com

in the brick and mortar world, it's like concrete to build the foundation.

imo...

 

[MKA]

I view .com as the simple default, thats really it. It was the only choice for two decades and that is what people are simply familiar with. I dont believe that is something that will last forever.

Saying that it will last forever is a bit of a stretch, but it's certainly will last for the foreseeable future.

The big fish are all using it. Are you using a Samsung or an Apple iPhone? Well, both of those companies use the .com. What about your computer? Are you running Microsoft Windows on your PC? That's a .com. Are you buying stuff off Amazon or eBay? Those are .com too.

We've been conditioned to associate "real companies" with the .com, and while the younger generations tend to be a bit more experimentative and accepting of new TLD:s they too will eventually gravitate towards the status quo.

 

[ecalc]

Q1 2023 closed with dot com = 46% of all TLD registrations. Ten years ago it was 43%. Kids do the darndest things.

stat source: Verisign Domain Name Industry Briefs (dnib.com)

 

[BaileyUK]

Hard not to learn the lessons of history. When .Biz, .info, me all came out, so many invested in these new extensions saying the strangle-hold of .com was over. lets face it even .net struggles to get real traction and that is from day one of tlds.

If .net had been launched amongst all these new tlds today. It would be riding high as far as a perceived front runner, certainly ahead of .xyz. well people do use .net but, you try selling one for decent money. It needs to be at the top of the tree word to get a single bite.

Only hold one .net myself but the extension model is not going to change. maybe if the whole internet was relaunched, then you could call it day one for every extension.

 

[bmugford]

Remember, the horse and carriage had its time......until the automobile came along. .Com had its heydey. It'll forever have relevance in the history of the internet. Just don't count on the grandkids loving it.

My analogy is based on location, aka prime real estate is always in demand. Quality .COM is prime internet real estate.

Yours is based on technology.

Obviously motorized vehicles were a major technological advancement that made people's lives better.

You might have an argument if .COM worked any different than other extensions. Centralized domains all basically work the same.

Why is a 1-800 number still in more demand than a 1-844 or 1-833 number? They work the same.

All the kids today are still going to see almost all large companies operating on .COM.

How many Fortune 500 companies don't use .COM, especially on the consumer facing websites?

I invest in other extensions as well, but there is no indication that .COM won't continue to dominate even if a handful of other options also have value.

Brad

 

[bmugford]

.Com will surely garner respect from people with an appreciation for yesterday's internet structure. The extension will definitely hold value among a certain age demographic more than anything else moving forward. This is to be expected. However, as the digital realm continues to evolve more people will leverage a variety of extensions for personal and professional endeavors.

Quality .com are like oceanfront property.

The value and demand doesn't go down because they build more options inland.

Brad

 

[branding]

Nobody in their right mind would register and use .whatever TLD and leave the .com up for grabs.

This fact alone should answer your question.

 

[bmugford]

Q1 2023 closed with dot com = 46% of all TLD registrations. Ten years ago it was 43%. Kids do the darndest things.

stat source: Verisign Domain Name Industry Briefs (dnib.com)

The first new gTLD launched almost a decade ago now.

I went back and looked at the .COM stats from 2013 compared to today.

Despite the endless new extensions, .COM has only become more popular over time.

(2013) -

The fourth quarter of 2013 closed with a base of 271 million domain name registrations across all
top-level domains (TLDs), an increase of 5 million domain names, or 1.9 percent over the third quarter
of 2013. Registrations have grown by 18.5 million, or 7.3 percent, year over year.

The .com and .net TLDs experienced aggregate growth, reaching a combined total of
approximately 127.2 million domain names in the adjusted zone in the fourth quarter of 2013. This
represents a 5 percent increase year over year. As of Dec. 31, 2013, the base of registered names
in .com equaled 112 million names, while .net equaled 15.2 million names.

.COM 41.3% of all registrations

(2023) -

The first quarter of 2023 closed with 354.0 million domain name registrations across all top-level domains (TLDs), an increase of 3.5 million domain name registrations, or 1.0%, compared to the fourth quarter of 2022.1,2 Domain name registrations also increased by 3.5 million, or 1.0%, year over year.1,2

The .com and .net TLDs had a combined total of 174.8 million domain name registrations in the domain name base3 at the end of the first quarter of 2023, an increase of 1.0 million domain name registrations, or 0.6%, compared to the fourth quarter of 2022. The .com and .net TLDs had a combined increase of 0.1 million domain name registrations, or 0.1%, year over year. As of March 31, 2023, the .com domain name base totaled 161.6 million domain name registrations, and the .net domain name base totaled 13.2 million domain name registrations.

.COM 45.6% of all registrations.

 

[bmugford]

The first new gTLD launched almost a decade ago now.

I went back and looked at the .COM stats from 2013 compared to today.

Despite the endless new extensions, .COM has only become more popular over time.

(2013) -

The fourth quarter of 2013 closed with a base of 271 million domain name registrations across all
top-level domains (TLDs), an increase of 5 million domain names, or 1.9 percent over the third quarter
of 2013. Registrations have grown by 18.5 million, or 7.3 percent, year over year.

The .com and .net TLDs experienced aggregate growth, reaching a combined total of
approximately 127.2 million domain names in the adjusted zone in the fourth quarter of 2013. This
represents a 5 percent increase year over year. As of Dec. 31, 2013, the base of registered names
in .com equaled 112 million names, while .net equaled 15.2 million names.

.COM 41.3% of all registrations

(2023) -

The first quarter of 2023 closed with 354.0 million domain name registrations across all top-level domains (TLDs), an increase of 3.5 million domain name registrations, or 1.0%, compared to the fourth quarter of 2022.1,2 Domain name registrations also increased by 3.5 million, or 1.0%, year over year.1,2

The .com and .net TLDs had a combined total of 174.8 million domain name registrations in the domain name base3 at the end of the first quarter of 2023, an increase of 1.0 million domain name registrations, or 0.6%, compared to the fourth quarter of 2022. The .com and .net TLDs had a combined increase of 0.1 million domain name registrations, or 0.1%, year over year. As of March 31, 2023, the .com domain name base totaled 161.6 million domain name registrations, and the .net domain name base totaled 13.2 million domain name registrations.

.COM 45.6% of all registrations.

Just to update this, the 2013 numbers include .TK. The 2023 numbers don't.

.TK is basically a spam/scam extension with tens of millions of free registrations.

So, in fairness I have removed the .TK numbers from 2013.

(2013)

246 million TLD registrations. 112 million .COM.
45.5% of all registrations.

(2023)

354 million TLD registrations. 161.6 million .COM.
45.6% of all registrations.

I guess the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Brad

 

[Grego85]

I look forward to seeing more and more extensions slowly becoming mixed in the general pot of domains. Company brand extensions are another very interesting aspect of how this will continue to happen.

I view .com as the simple default, thats really it. It was the only choice for two decades and that is what people are simply familiar with. I dont believe that is something that will last forever. With Boomers and older folks, they will always be .com people. Other extensions are creeping their way in slowly but surely. Every year I notice a few more extensions gaining use in up and coming niches. Just got to break that over dependence on familiarity and default status for a general public that slowly gets smarter and realizes they don't need to be mindless when it comes to choosing a brand.

 

[Musta.ng]

I personally think that in the future, with the rise of a new generation of young people, the new suffix will become more and more powerful at the application level, gain more support from young people, and more new top companies will be born to use the new domain name.
Gradually found that .com is already a collectible.
While .com will represent the old company, the new domain will represent the new company and the future.
But .com will never die, and a good enough .com will become more valuable over time.

 

[HotKey]

No matter where we go, end up, always remember our roots. Dot-com will always command respect far into the future imo, similar to generation wealth, old money. Read:

https://www.namepros.com/threads/will-dot-com-be-old-money.1264607/

 

[HotKey]

The moment a non-.com TLD is synonymous with something people need, and want, is the moment .com loses its momentum. This is actually happening as we speak with wallet domains.

If and when that happens, it won't be a "moment". It'll be a process.

 

[Future Sensors]

Sorry, but that's not what I asked for.

 

[redplanetpk]

Yes I think so they are very powerful extension ....

 

[MKA]

Both Google and Amazon have their own registries and anyone can register domains with their extensions. But they're not really promoting them to the extent it could rival .com, I'd guess because it too costly and there are no real prospects of profit competing with .com. Not to mention these extensions also rely on ICANN.

Keep in mind that not only is the .com the most popular and recognizable TLD, their prices are low and heavily regulated.

 

[zaimk]

the king com

 

[HostGeeks.com]

Nice gpt

 

[biggie]

ouTube is a good place to start. YouTu.be points to the official YouTube website as we speak. This is something many folks don't talk about here in the forum. Some would argue it's a "defense registration"; but this doesn't require them (YouTube) to do anything more than have the name in their custody. Actually pointing the domain implies that it receives some sort of traffic.

Hi

you're talking about a typo using a country code extension

i used to have plenty of them years ago

yoube.,youtou.,youtude.,yuotube.,utupe. etc.

they got traffic/rev then, but not now

imo....

 

[branding]

This surely wouldn't apply to most people under 35. We're entering an era of digital creativity; so we can expect younger folks will get creative with their approach to domains.

On a side note, how about the recent "tele.com" sale? Does this name get love from anyone here in the thread? It's short and .com. Is the hack aspect a turnoff for you?

Mel
QUAD Domains

I'm just a bit ( ) over 35 so not that much of a difference . You can get creative whatever you want. Millenials aren't going to make your business thrive (bar web3, other loony stuff).

Target those where the money is at. They know, trust and grew up with .com. So do the kids these days.

Ask a random kid aged 10... he/she'll know .com... he/she'll know the cctld (EU, where the ctld matters) but he/she will most certainly never have heard of .XYZ of whatever other obscure extension (bar some outliers).

Even if your generation embraces them... The next one will pass up on them.

As for Tele... Not sure who bough it but I doubt it was because of the hack. Tele is a great keyword. The hack makes it extra cool imo. What did it go for?

 

[tnames]

Just to update this, the 2013 numbers include .TK. The 2023 numbers don't.

.TK is basically a spam/scam extension with tens of millions of free registrations.

So, in fairness I have removed the .TK numbers from 2013.

(2013)

246 million TLD registrations. 112 million .COM.
45.5% of all registrations.

(2023)

354 million TLD registrations. 161.6 million .COM.
45.6% of all registrations.

I guess the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Brad

354 million TLD registrations. 161.6 million .COM.
45.6% of all registrations.

for sure before and after.
I only trade .com is the king and facts make .com mainly forever king.

 

[QUAD DOMAINS]

I look forward to seeing more and more extensions slowly becoming mixed in the general pot of domains. Company brand extensions are another very interesting aspect of how this will continue to happen.

I view .com as the simple default, thats really it. It was the only choice for two decades and that is what people are simply familiar with. I dont believe that is something that will last forever. With Boomers and older folks, they will always be .com people. Other extensions are creeping their way in slowly but surely. Every year I notice a few more extensions gaining use in up and coming niches. Just got to break that over dependence on familiarity and default status for a general public that slowly gets smarter and realizes they don't need to be mindless when it comes to choosing a brand.

Well stated.

 

[QUAD DOMAINS]

Nice gpt

No....GPT....whatsoever....was....used.