Launching a new service and not owning .COM

[QualityNames.com]

In 2006 I registered a 'cloud' related .COM domain name, with the intend to build a cabin crew forum. About two years later cloud computing became know to the general public. We have seen some cloud related domain sales.

There was/is interest in the domain name, but the offers were too low. Recently I was approached by a company which wanted to buy the domain. I declined the offer and made a reasonable counter offer. The person/company lost interest.

Recently I noticed that the domain name has been registered in several other TLDs; e.g. .CO .BIZ, .ME. with the launch of the new product.

Personally, I believe that owning the .COM would certainly add value to the product. But if you don't have the budget to buy the domain, is it wisely to launch a new service?

What do you think?

 

[HC82]

Yes they are stupid for not owning the .com - but most people don't know that.

I built my first web-based business on a .net and didn't know until 3+ years later why that was a mistake.

 

[gazzip]

It's not ideal but there are no shortage of end users who will go ahead and do it.

I have queit a few domains where end users have registered/developed the same name on another extension or the hyphen version of the domain or the singular/plural version, more often than not they have'nt even bothered to make me an offer before doing so.

I think that if they get their website ranked high on google for the domains keywords then they don't care that much if someone else owns the .com

It sucks but that's how its been for me, .com is NOT king to alot of endusers (unless they live in America)



.

 

[malcarada]

You say you made a reasonable counter offer, that is your domainer point of view but the company wanting to buy your domain is an end user and not likely to understand what a domain can be worth, I would not be surprised if they thought you were trying to rip them off and just decided to give up on it other than overpay.

They obviously had an initial interest, but if the price is too high, just like everyone else, then you just go along with what you have, not the end of the World, I think it is wise to launch the service without the .com, not ideal but doable, they want it, but not at any cost, it is also not wise to overpay for a domain.

Google also decided not to buy gmail.co.uk, some other company owns it, instead they went and changed their email service name to googlemail for all UK users, while Worldwide it is known as Gmail, not ideal but if you have to, you just do.

 

[StonePillar]

Google also decided not to buy gmail.co.uk, some other company owns it, instead they went and changed their email service name to googlemail for all UK users, while Worldwide it is known as Gmail, not ideal but if you have to, you just do.

Google now owns the name after settling a major dispute with another company that owned the name for many years.

 

[enterpryzman]

I try to own most of the TLD's ( those that matter ) of the top names I own and wish to sell. That keeps others from buying down from me. Recently had a guy inquire about a name I own and actually tell me he would buy the other ext.'s if I did not sell the .com to him at a fair price<<<< not very smart, I went out and bought them all and sold the entire group to him at more than he intended to spend BUT, he is a little smarter now.

Good luck,
Enterpryzman

 

[tech4]

Some start ups do not have the full technology know how, and lack of cash to spend in areas like domain name. Its not like they are aware of Domain Name as an asset.

I read that some of the most successful companies in the early days, do not spend anything outside of operations.

But the ones that I read that was using the .net, eventually bought the .com, like the yahoo flick photo sharing entity. It could not afford the .com in the early stage (where the .com owner was asking for something like 100,000), main focus was on operations.

 

[GreenGambler]

I owned a neat made up word .com once. I then found out that a company had the same word in the .co.nz version. They actually contacted me to buy the name and I sold it to them for a nice profit. I just dont understand what they were thining reg'ing there ccTLD and not the .com, then turn around a year or two later to buy it from me for a lot more.
Good for me though..

 

[HC82]

.com is NOT king to alot of endusers (unless they live in America)

This is not true. Because somebody takes key-words.net instead of keywords.com, that doesn't mean they think hyphenated .net's are king - it means they are stingy and/or impatient.

 

[gazzip]

This is not true. Because somebody takes key-words.net instead of keywords.com, that doesn't mean they think hyphenated .net's are king - it means they are stingy and/or impatient.

That's not what I meant, I meant some countries prefer their own ccTLD and don't value the .com as if it was king.



.