The fall from grace of .Org ???

[acc]

And several billion years after the "seventh day" .... the internet was born and we were presented with:

.com = commercial
.net = networking/ISPs
.org = organization

... .org = organization ????????
Well, evidently NOT really any more ...

Once a trustmark for non-profit organizations and industry trade groups, the ".org" domain extension has been "hijacked/absconded" by domainers and turned into just another extension. So now we can all also enjoy a sea of parked pages and future spam emails emanating from this once "respected" extension.

The application of .org has been liberalized ... Is it good or bad or okay for consumers? and for domainers?

I say BAD - for consumers. IMHO -
I personally do not look trustingly on .org being used for anything but its intended use. What legitamate business would use it instead of another extension? (Other that holding it for defensive purposes, of course)

I say OKAY ... temporarily ... for domainers IMHO -
It has produced a fertile hunting ground for acquiring keywords in a familiar extension. But time will tell and as people get used to using all kinds of extensions maybe using a .org for other than its intended purpose may not hold up under scrutiny.

What do YOU think?
And do you personally buy/sell them?

(Disclaimer - I hold a handful of .org names as defensive registrations)
.

 

[cobo]

acc,
Good points here. Traditionally, it was thought to be THE place for nonprofits, foundations, charities and the like.
And as such, one could assume a "trustmark" of sorts.
Now that appears to be thrown out of the window. It has become a "free for all" just like any other TLD.
I guess "ORG" and, by extension, "organization" can mean many things to different people.
I do have a few as brand protection but am really not sure of what approach is best for them. Build out, re-directs...just not sure yet.
In the end, it can all come down to how one promotes their site.
With the right marketing approach, we know any site can rise above the fray and gain a following.

 

[Alan Glennon]

I think .org still retains its identity. People expect any and every extension to be overrun by parked pages (except for .edu and .gov). The end user sites on .org seem to follow the basic intent of the extension.

 

[Domainate.com]

Organizations can buy domains on the secondary markets just like anyone else. That OR they can accept charitable contributions for the domain value with the domain being donated so that those of us that are in the business of dealing domains would get some benefit (i.e. costs them nothing and gives us domainers something for our domain in the form of a tax write-off). I've personally done both and the orgs that have bought from me have been happy. Sure, it would have been nice for the internet to have turned out how intended, but what ever does? Even communism/socialism is good on paper.

That said, when I get to a more stable point and more boned up on development and/or have people developing for me, I myself will be developing helpful sites on a bunch of my .orgs because of my respect for the extension. I think as has been mentioned, most endusers ARE sticking with non-profit stuff on .orgs and getting more of such sites on the internet would only create a better internet experience.

 

[Domagon]

Don't blame domainers for this one ...

Network Solutions opened the floodgates back in the late 90s encouraging people to register their desired domain in .com, .net, and .org...

.org was never restricted - and furthermore, an entity characterized as an "organization" is not necessarily a non-profit.

In my view, .org is more relevant now than it was 10 years ago, especially later on when Public Interest Registry (PIR) took over from Network Solutions as the .org registry operator.

Ron

 

[bmugford]

I really like .Org where appropriate. I think they are among the most undervalued names right now.

 

[domainer50]

Check out the proxy forum link in my sig When it comes down to it, not every .net is an isp/networking company and not every .com is commercial. If organizations are feeling threatened, or they want to buy a name, they should do what everyone else does, go to that name's whois, contact the owner and inquire. And Im guessing that if the feed the needy organization wanted feedtheneedy.org the owner would have enough heart, to let them have it at reg fee. As for domainers ruining it? I know that for me, I wouldnt have a proxy forum, if I didnt buy the .org. So what was I supposed to do? Hang up my hat on the idea because groups of people feel that I am infringing on what the .org stands for?

And lastly it comes down to the fact, that so many .coms .nets .whatevers are registered every day, and PARKED, not put to good use in any way. That is the real shame. So what is a domainer or company to do? Pay the $1,000 asking price for their name, or buy the .org for 10 bucks? Its a tough spot.


Note, I might have jumbled that a bit, my thoughts were running rampant

 

[tricolorro]

And several billion years after the "seventh day" .... the internet was born and we were presented with:

.com = commercial
.net = networking/ISPs
.org = organization

... .org = organization ????????
Well, evidently NOT really any more ...

:hi:

But the same is true for .NET.

It's not just for Networks and ISPs any longer.

and

the same is true for .COM.

It's not just for commercial applications.

Individuals, organizations and non-profits often reg a .COM.

Many times it's an additional or defensive reg just as you
do: "(Disclaimer - I hold a handful of .org names as defensive registrations)".

Life changes...the Internet too!

Patrick

 

[labrocca]

CNO are recognizable extensions. I am not even sure the average person knows what each stands for.

 

[cache]

is the tax benefit a sure thing? How do they evaluate the value?

Organizations can buy domains on the secondary markets just like anyone else. That OR they can accept charitable contributions for the domain value with the domain being donated so that those of us that are in the business of dealing domains would get some benefit (i.e. costs them nothing and gives us domainers something for our domain in the form of a tax write-off). I've personally done both and the orgs that have bought from me have been happy. Sure, it would have been nice for the internet to have turned out how intended, but what ever does? Even communism/socialism is good on paper.

That said, when I get to a more stable point and more boned up on development and/or have people developing for me, I myself will be developing helpful sites on a bunch of my .orgs because of my respect for the extension. I think as has been mentioned, most endusers ARE sticking with non-profit stuff on .orgs and getting more of such sites on the internet would only create a better internet experience.