new gtlds New gTLDs are DEAD!! Frank Schilling drops 230,000 new gTLD domains

[ksusha64]

Mike Berkens wrote a great article:

Frank Schilling’s North Sound Names Starts Deleting Its 230,000 Uniregistry Domains
http://www.thedomains.com/2016/09/1...arts-deleting-its-230000-uniregistry-domains/

Guy who's pushing new gtlds giving up on it? How many names u guys dropped? Anyone still believes in it?

 

[urlurl]

I only see them a as a shorten-er (name hacks). i have XXXXXXclub.com so i picked up XXXXXX.club. haven't bought and i dont have any reason to buy the other new extensions.

The good words sell for ridiculous premiums and the others are just a waste of money.

i dont see a successful business holding their hat exclusively on the new extension... you need the .com to go along with it too.

 

[TRY]

If .web and .blog fail to realize their aspirations then it's back to business as usual. .com, net, org, cctlds.

New g's are like lottery tickets, nothing wrong with taking a chance, just don't use money you can't afford to lose.

 

[urlurl]

Remember the great Gold rush. there were a few big strikes but the most of the money was selling shovels and equipment to the gold prospectors.

 

[Kate]

PLEASE DO NOT LET THEM DIE

We don't decide that. They will thrive or fail by their own merits. We don't shape the market. I am just demonstrating how deeply flawed the gTLD program is. I think too many strings are stillborn.
But the skeptics are not guilty for that sad state of affairs.

 

[carob]

The next big thing is whatever you choose to be your next big thing.

PLEASE DO NOT LET THEM DIE

If you want to sell something, it is actually what your customer wants to buy that is the next big thing. No customer, no sale.

 

[Wannabean]

The slow start for new g's doesn't bother me. I feel there's money to be made at some point with them. The cost of holding is a big concern however.

 

[JB Lions]

The slow start for new g's doesn't bother me. I feel there's money to be made at some point with them. The cost of holding is a big concern however.

The sheer amount of them doesn't bother you? Knowing you don't have much leverage when a buyer has more options. Also, many of you might be holding out for an amount that the buyer might as well go ahead and get a .com. I hear many turning down 3 figure offers, hoping for 4 or 5, well for that amount, you can get a .com.

 

[TheWatcher]

I do not know one person who made money off new gtlds, but tons of people lost money already

Well said.

 

[Wannabean]

But the real nail in the coffin is the total back fire that is premium pricing. End users aren't going to pay a premium for names that leak traffic. I know a .bet site that just launched with some serious movers and shakers as share holders (could have bought any premium priced domain), that went with a niche left of the dot expression at normal pricing.

If you can't sell a premium priced new g in that scenario then you can't sell one. How do they not get this? You can't cut the domainers out. It doesn't work!

 

[Wannabean]

The sheer amount of them doesn't bother you? Knowing you don't have much leverage when a buyer has more options. Also, many of you might be holding out for an amount that the buyer might as well go ahead and get a .com. I hear many turning down 3 figure offers, hoping for 4 or 5, well for that amount, you can get a .com.

Yes the quantity bothers me a lot. I'm not too fussed about slow early adoption though. I still think the best ones will command a decent price somewhere down the line. The hold is very risky though and there really aren't a lot of 'the best ones.'

Your spot on with your three figure assessment. Essentially that's the problem. The average hold with new g's is going to cost you that much at least.

 

[garptrader]

While end users do want good domains at cheap prices, many new TLDs do not offer that. They offer an inferior product at a premium price. Premium prices and/or renewals or newbie domainers registering every possible combination of what did not already have premium prices result in new TLDs often being priced too high for any reasonable end user that might have otherwise considered them. I often see domainers with .XYZ domains same keyword as some of my .Net and .TV domains - same keyword but my .Net or .TV is priced $XXX while the .XYZ is priced low $XXXX to $XX,XXX at times. I have held these .Net and .TV domains for five to seven years with no interested buyer even at low $XXX pricing. How long do you think the XYZ holder will be waiting for a buyer at ten to fifty times that?

 

[HotKey]

.xxx is like them and it failed too. .Name wasn't successful either.

For domaining, 90% of new gTLD's are a crapshoot to invest in. I think most of it is gut-feeling. There's too many choices, and the registry pricing can be very unpredictable. You really have be savvy with knowing a niche demand to find something with a quick turnaround, and land some great keyword combinations. No one said it would be easy.

If the successes of new gTLD's are always going to be based on their traditional counterparts like .com, then they will almost all be seen as failures. It won't matter how many names are bought or sites put up. In the end it comes down to demand, or whether or not the registry can afford to keep running it.

I think whatever the extension is can speak for itself on how well it will do. Why on earth would anyone have expected to see .xxx or .name supercharge the namespace arena? Most of this stuff just comes down to common sense. And not feeding into the hype that in turn causes people to make bad decisions.

Not at all. They are all TLDs that failed because they are not relevant and were not embraced by consumers. And the new TLDs are even worse.
As long as you ignore History you are bound to repeat the same mistakes. All those past TLDs failed for good reasons.

Many strings are niche TLDs, for example you can't do a lot with .horse or .hiv. The pool of keywords that make sense is limited. So we now have extensions like .whoswho with fewer than 100 regs.

With having learned from that bit of history, you can make better informed decisions today. Which you obviously are doing. It's good people be aware of what they are getting into. gTLD's do not have a rock-solid guarantee. Many of them are like building your house on sand.

But I don't think you can paint all the new TLDs with the same brush. There are some very intriguing TLDs that are enjoying relative success with both domainers and endusers; that I don't think we'll be seeing a retirement party for anytime soon.

If you want to sell something, it is actually what your customer wants to buy that is the next big thing. No customer, no sale.

Yes, this is true to an extent. I'm no salesperson, but I think many would say customers don't know what they want until you show them.

 

[ksusha64]

I disagree! I do not think new gtlds are crapshoot, I think its complete shit and rigged against domainers to the fullest.

 

[HotKey]

I disagree! I do not think new gtlds are crapshoot, I think its complete sh*t and rigged against domainers to the fullest.

As you would.

 

[HotKey]

You just gotta beat the system. Let 'em keep their ultra-top-notch names. They want to hold and sell for 50k? Good for them. The human brain is way smarter than any system. We also have luck on our sides. Pick through your list and find something that was inconceivable. Make it yours. Do it with a reputable registry. Pretend not to love it. Then they won't steal it.

Or screw it. And stay with the King.

 

[ksusha64]

yeah we should stay with king!

 

[Kate]

ccTLDs too.

Many countries have shifted from .com to their local extension as it matured. In some countries with strong ccTLDs, .com is somewhat regarded as old, established, legacy, foreign or global. It is still desired by large companies or those that trade globally, but many brick and mortar businesses are happy with the local extension. In fact their .com counterpart might even be unregistered.
In that kind of environment generic TLDs are going to struggle.

So I think that the prevailing mindset of domainers (that includes registries) is heavily US-centric.

 

[jmcc]

If Frank -one of the best and most experienced domainers - had priority access to the best domains and could get them below regfee and is still dropping them what does that mean for the average domainer?

Don't see how you can make money with this.

Frank's record on domaining speaks for itself. This is registry operation and a completely different business where domaining is only a small part of the overall business. It looks like many of these domain names were classic .com high value targets but new gTLDs are not like .com or the other generic TLDs. The other TLDs are, typically, generic. Most of the new gTLDs are specific in that the extension acts as a limiter rather than a meaningless string. Thus what may have been somewhat valuable in .com may be less so in a new gTLD because the new gTLD version is effectively a domain hack where the domain and the extension work as a single phrase rather than a domain name like namepros.com where the .com has become psychologically invisible to people due to almost everyone being aware of the TLD.

Regards...jmcc

 

[Brands.International]

ambivalent.

This is only world I would use to describe some posts here. On the one hand they say that all new gTLDs are crap, while in parallel they are endlessly contemplating about premium pricing of registries, and asking those new gTLDs to be cheaper.

So either you believe it is crap, and would not buy it at all circumstances, or you know many of them are not crap, but feel overpriced from the market. But you can not say it is crap, but you would buy it if that is cheaper, because that is clear contradiction.

In my honest opinion, some of those new gTLDs are one of the most under priced assets on this planet at the moment. Some of the are suitable even for quick flip, most of them will develop their full value in next 3-10 years.

And all those stories about how registries are "stealing" best new gTLD domains from domainers..come on, there are plenty articles on that, read it carefully, you will see there is no stealing at all.

Stories about sudden pricing hikes..there are protection mechanisms where there is 6 month notice period, and availability to secure your price for next 10 years. Also, in reality registries are changing prices now..but downwards. We do not speak now about some technical mistakes which might happen when new domains just rolled to production, we speak now about how it operates now and will operate in years to come.

Stories which are repeated again and again on this forum about how registries will fail..again, blissful ignorance of basic ICANN mechanism named Ebero. And also total ignorance about who are main applicants for new gTLDs/registries at the moment: some of them are Google, Amazon, Verisign. ICANN oversees all new gTLD program. Nothing is going to fail here, ever, just because some of naysayers have huge .com or .cc TLD portfolios and would wish so. At most, particular TLD will just change its operating company, that is all.

It is really sad how much misinterpreted information one can read in this tread.

 

[Kate]

On the one hand they say that all new gTLDs are crap, while in parallel they are endlessly contemplating about premium pricing of registries, and asking those new gTLDs to be cheaper.

I have zero interest in new extensions personally, we are just showing how they are shooting themselves in the foot.
Consumers are going to question the credibility of new extensions when they see the crazy prices for inferior products.

And all those stories about how registries are "stealing" best new gTLD domains from domainers..come on, there are plenty articles on that, read it carefully, you will see there is no stealing at all.

We can use more palatable words then, like confiscation, clerical error, or improper allocation. But if the name is taken away from you, it's the same thing.

Stories about sudden pricing hikes..there are protection mechanisms where there is 6 month notice period, and availability to secure your price for next 10 years.

You have no guarantee beyond 10 years.
It reminds me of the unfortunate businesses who built their online presence on Centralnic subdomains a long time ago, and now they learn their 'domains' are being phased out.
Imagine having to rebuild a decade of SEO and branding because your domain name is going to be wiped out.

Stories which are repeated again and again on this forum about how registries will fail..again, blissful ignorance of basic ICANN mechanism named Ebero.

I have addressed this elsewhere: Ebero is an emergency backend, it doesn't guarantee the perpetual existence of TLDs.

And also total ignorance about who are main applicants for new gTLDs/registries at the moment: some of them are Google, ..

Google: a .mobi founder.
That being said, some TLDs are more solid than others, likewise some registries are more solid than others. But I see many jokers and you only have to look at the applications or the strings that are already delegated today. What were they thinking ?

 

[dordomai]

Stories about sudden pricing hikes..there are protection mechanisms where there is 6 month notice period, and availability to secure your price for next 10 years. Also, in reality registries are changing prices now..but

there is no 6 month notice period for the registrant, they need to inform the registrar only. It's up to the registrar to tell you. ICANN does not require the registrar to tell you. Shows how much ICANN cares about registrants.

You don't own the domain, you lease it from the registry and per ICANN terms there are virtually no protections of registrants in place. That's why they have taken domains back, even after many months with some lame excuse.

And all those stories about how registries are "stealing" best new gTLD domains from domainers..come on, there are plenty articles on that, read it carefully, you will see there is no stealing at all.

How would you call this?

https://www.namepros.com/threads/ooo-registry-cancels-domains-9-months-after-registration.868596/

At most, particular TLD will just change its operating company, that is all.

What if a TLD is simply not profitable? Will it be kept alive forever?

 

[Kate]

What if a TLD is simply not profitable? Will it be kept alive forever?

With the millions that they raised, icann could be the backer of last resort

But like the good, self-serving FIFA-like organization they have become, I don't think they have a budget for fixing their mistakes

 

[jmcc]

What if a TLD is simply not profitable? Will it be kept alive forever?

If a deal can be negotiated where the debt of the original registry can be wiped out as part of the transfer deal, then it makes perfect sense to take over a failing or failed TLD. This is because each TLD may have a continually renewed group of registrations that will continue to make money for the registry until the registrant drops the domain.

Regards...jmcc

 

[Wannabean]

But like the good, self-serving FIFA-like organization they have become, I don't think they have a budget for fixing their mistakes

Isn't Fifa's budget more or less exclusively for fixing it's mistakes? In fact, I've forgotten what it's actually for.... Wait...... what is it actually for?...... Why do we even need Fifa?

Apologies for the off topic but you touched a nerve.

 

[Brands.International]

With the millions that they raised, icann could be the backer of last resort

But like the good, self-serving FIFA-like organization they have become, I don't think they have a budget for fixing their mistakes

Actually there is a well defined process how ownership of certain new gTLD will be changed, in case that current registry will not be able to sustain it any longer..everybody can read it here. Rights to operate such new gTLD would just pass from one registry to another registry.

Once again, there is absolutely no way that some new gTLDs will just stop functioning, or will be out of existence and end users who built their sites on it would be just left like that. That would endanger stability of internet as such, which would be in direct conflict with ICANN's mission. I understand it might not be an easy reading, but anybody who will read it in full, will be much more informed.