.mobi Things we can all agree on... and in what camp do you fall?

[jeremyp]

I enjoy reading the various views on the mobi domain name extension.

There tends to be three distinct camps...

EXTREME OPTIMISM:
The extreme optimisim is often guided by those who would stand to gain tremendously by the success of the extension. Some of those with extreme optimism also tend to be quick to purchase sub-par .mobi domain names; Some have remarkable early-landrush portfolios.

EXTREME PESSIMISM:
The extreme pessimism is often driven by those who dismissed the extension early, invested little, and take the risk of missing the boat for the second time around. Some of those with extreme pessimism are already bitter that they aren't turning a quick buck on landrush purchases - and this fuels their fire.

MODERATE OPTIMISM:
Ironically, I find those who have invested the most in .mobi tend to have the most moderate views on the extension. We realize that mobile is coming in a big way and that .mobi could play a role as a very nice alternative extension to .com in the mobile web.

I fall toward the moderately optimistic side. I paid 6 figures on .mobi domain names. I've broken even with 95% of my inventory in tact... one of the best ROI in 6 months I've ever experienced. I'm going to hold tight for 5-7 years to watch the market materialize. If it materializes, even to an alterative extension status, this will be a multi-million dollar return.

WHAT WE CAN ALL AGREE ON:
There will be drastic changes in the way we currently use our mobile phone. Future generations of mobile will make current hardware look like transitional technology. Development, awareness and use of mobile applications and content are just around the corner. Use opportunities that none of us can currently foresee will launch billion dollar companies.

Will .mobi play a role as an alternative to .com? I believe that it will be a strong alternative extension. Give it 5-7 years...

Jeremy Padawer
www.jeremy.com

 

[mjnels]

count me in for whatever camp is having the marshmellow roast.

 

[jeremyp]

In reading the posts, there were a few call outs for a 4th category - moderate pessimist.

Whenever I've been moderately pessimistic on anything in life, I tend just to just be ambivalent on the issue... driven to an occasional opinion, but mostly when prompted.

The vast majority of moderate pessimists aren't likely to post... they just aren't often called to action.

 

[gemulder]

Hmmm I am in the Moderate Optimism group and also the Moderate Pessimism group (though Jeremy didn't give that one.) I have high hopes for the extension but I wouldn't be surprised to see it fail.

Hmmm,

In my opinion no opinion :td:

 

[GeoOwners]

I'd definitely say I'm of the "moderately optimistic" variety. But also M.A. ("moderately anxious") to see how this all pans out...

And regarding Jeff's "12-15 years" range, you might as well just say 12 years -- if it hasn't succeeded by then, it's not going to succeed in 15! :imho:

I'd say if there's no momentum within 5 years...it's a wrap...


.

 

[scandiman]

I am not good at predicting the future...

Please forgive the mild thread hijack but actually vcool, you are actively building the future. Your activities and those of others who are developing sites is what will make this whole thing have a future.

 

[jeremyp]

Dentalpro,

I would have agreed with this "no movement in 5 years then it's a wrap" up until a few years ago.

I'm seeing momentum in the .tv extension after 8+ years.

.TV is a perfect example of a domain name extension pre-packaged with a positioning statement that draws on marketers.

I didn't believe in .tv. I thought it was clever, but just didn't have enough of a reason for being. Now, after 8 years, I'm seeing several ads per week. I'd say they are starting to reach significant adoption.

.Mobi is positioned for mobile. If adopted, it could be enormous. It's likely to be adopted as a nice secondary extension.

Could be 5+ years.

Jeremy

I'd say if there's no momentum within 5 years...it's a wrap...


.

 

[name idol]

Please forgive the mild thread hijack but actually vcool, you are actively building the future. Your activities and those of others who are developing sites is what will make this whole thing have a future.

I second that! :great:

Back to the five year horizon someone mentioned above: in five years the global online advertising spend is predicted to be (by people who are recognized as the best in the field, and have consistently underestimated it in the past) close to US$ 100,000,000,000 per annum.

How much of that would you say has to go to .mobi sites to call the extension a success?

Please note the word 'global' above. A lot of that tremendous growth is likely to come at the expense of the US share thereof - purely in percentage terms of course.

One thing I've heard no one deny is that .mobi is a truly global extension (in fact it's likely to be under-represented in the US in the short term). I won't compare it to any other one in that respect.

 

[pcaero]

I thought and thought about which camp I belong to and still not sure. I don't know if and when .mobi will be successful( 5 year or 15years?), I am not good at predicting the future, unfortunately (othewise would have been camping in Hawaii right now).

I can just say I am a happy "camper" . I am happy that .mobi happened and I found NP and I could do some good development work, I am very satisfied. Maybe you can put some tents for some of us in "Happy camp", somewere between MO and EO camps, so we can join for the bbq/marshmallows anytime in any camp!:imho:

With the work of developers like yourself, Mike, Charlie and others...
More and more sites are going up everyday..
Whether people care or don't care about mobi, one thing they can't escape is, in 1-2 years time there will be a hell of alot of mobi sites developed..

regards

pc

 

[BocaVision]

I'm evolving from Moderate Optimism (PreLandRush) to Extreme Optimism(now). Most of my mobifolio was registered during pre LandRush.

Here are the reasons for why I'm approaching Extreme Optimism:

1.) Fortune 1000 Companies brand MOBI

StateFarm.mobi
PartyPoker.mobi
MSN.mobi
BofA.mobi
NBA.mobi
BMW.mobi
FoxNews.mobi
RollsRoyce.mobi
BusinessWeek.mobi
Intel.mobi
PayPal.mobi
AllState.mobi
CNNMoney.mobi
Ferrari.mobi
& countless others

2.) Dot Mobi Investors & Sponsors endorse MOBI
Ericsson.mobi
Google.mobi
GSMworld.mobi
Nokia.mobi
Samsungmobile.mobi
SonyEricsson.mobi
Syniverse.mobi
T-mobile.mobi
Tim.mobi
Vodafone.mobi

3.)$xxx,xxx & $xx,xxx MOBI sales transacted
$200,000 Flowers.mobi
$126,000 SportsBook.mobi
$100,000 Fun.mobi
$85,000 RealEstate.mobi
$70,000 Stocks.mobi
$52,000 Casinos.mobi
$49,000 Girls.mobi
$41,000 Singles.mobi
$40,000 Hot.mobi
$27,000 StockQuotes.mobi
$23,600 Cams.mobi
$23,000 Pics.mobi
$21,000 Pizza.mobi
$19,000 Directions.mobi
$16,500 MusicVideos.mobi
$13,000 Party.mobi
$11,000 Airfare.mobi
$10,500 Cam.mobi

4.) The mTLD will issue Premium MOBIs to EndUsers

News.mobi, Weather.mobi, Ringtones.mobi, Sports.mobi & hundreds more MOBIs will be allocated via RFP

The mTLD does not issue these MOBI RFP domains to speculators or MOBI fanboys. These RFP Premium MOBIs will be issued to the likes of ESPN?(i.e. Sports.mobi), YouTube(Videos.mobi), GE(Appliances.mobi), Starbucks(Coffee.mobi), Walmart(Shopping.mobi),etc, etc.

These RFP Premium MOBIs ensure that endusers will develop rich content via the Mobile Web utilizing the MOBI brand consistently across all major industries.

5.) The Secret Weapon

Edelman.

Edelman is the premier global PR powerhouse. This month Edelman launched Edelman.mobi. Clients include: Orange, UPS, xBOX, Vivendi, Johnson & Johnson, The Recording Academy, AXE, Pfizer, Dove, Motorola, Oracle and plenty more.....btw another client is mTLD

You are welcome to learn more about Edelman here
http://www.edelman.com/about_us/welcome/

Tomorrow, Monday, March 26th, 2007 will mark the 6 month anniversary of the dotMOBI launch. Rome wasn't built in a day, neither was MOBI. However, day by day, the MOBI brand will continue to be built across the globe by developers (i.e. dotmobiz.mobi) & endusers (i.e. Intel.mobi) and therefore, as the years unfold MOBI will become increasingly ubiquitous.

I wish everyone well in all their MOBI pursuits.

Michael

 

[jeremyp]

This is an outstanding summary.

Great job, BocaVision. I have to admit that I border the Extreme Optimism level myself when I review the strides .mobi has made in just 6 months.

Jeremy

I'm evolving from Moderate Optimism (PreLandRush) to Extreme Optimism(now). Most of my mobifolio was registered during pre LandRush.

Here are the reasons for why I'm approaching Extreme Optimism:

1.) Fortune 1000 Companies brand MOBI

StateFarm.mobi
PartyPoker.mobi
MSN.mobi
BofA.mobi
NBA.mobi
BMW.mobi
FoxNews.mobi
RollsRoyce.mobi
BusinessWeek.mobi
Intel.mobi
PayPal.mobi
AllState.mobi
CNNMoney.mobi
Ferrari.mobi
& countless others

2.) Dot Mobi Investors & Sponsors endorse MOBI
Ericsson.mobi
Google.mobi
GSMworld.mobi
Nokia.mobi
Samsungmobile.mobi
SonyEricsson.mobi
Syniverse.mobi
T-mobile.mobi
Tim.mobi
Vodafone.mobi

3.)$xxx,xxx & $xx,xxx MOBI sales transacted
$200,000 Flowers.mobi
$126,000 SportsBook.mobi
$100,000 Fun.mobi
$85,000 RealEstate.mobi
$70,000 Stocks.mobi
$52,000 Casinos.mobi
$49,000 Girls.mobi
$41,000 Singles.mobi
$40,000 Hot.mobi
$27,000 StockQuotes.mobi
$23,600 Cams.mobi
$23,000 Pics.mobi
$21,000 Pizza.mobi
$19,000 Directions.mobi
$16,500 MusicVideos.mobi
$13,000 Party.mobi
$11,000 Airfare.mobi
$10,500 Cam.mobi

4.) The mTLD will issue Premium MOBIs to EndUsers

News.mobi, Weather.mobi, Ringtones.mobi, Sports.mobi & hundreds more MOBIs will be allocated via RFP

The mTLD does not issue these MOBI RFP domains to speculators or MOBI fanboys. These RFP Premium MOBIs will be issued to the likes of ESPN?(i.e. Sports.mobi), YouTube(Videos.mobi), GE(Appliances.mobi), Starbucks(Coffee.mobi), Walmart(Shopping.mobi),etc, etc.

These RFP Premium MOBIs ensure that endusers will develop rich content via the Mobile Web utilizing the MOBI brand consistently across all major industries.

5.) The Secret Weapon

Edelman.

Edelman is the premier global PR powerhouse. This month Edelman launched Edelman.mobi. Clients include: Orange, UPS, xBOX, Vivendi, Johnson & Johnson, The Recording Academy, AXE, Pfizer, Dove, Motorola, Oracle and plenty more.....btw another client is mTLD

You are welcome to learn more about Edelman here
http://www.edelman.com/about_us/welcome/

Tomorrow, Monday, March 26th, 2007 will mark the 6 month anniversary of the dotMOBI launch. Rome wasn't built in a day, neither was MOBI. However, day by day, the MOBI brand will continue to be built across the globe and as the years unfold MOBI will become increasingly ubiquitous.

I wish everyone well in all their MOBI pursuits.

Michael

 

[GeoOwners]

.) The Secret Weapon

Edelman.

Edelman is the premier global PR powerhouse. This month Edelman launched Edelman.mobi. Clients include: Orange, UPS, xBOX, Vivendi, Johnson & Johnson, The Recording Academy, AXE, Pfizer, Dove, Motorola, Oracle and plenty more.....btw another client is mTLD

I hadn't seen this...nice "inside" info...

A side note...in the thread about big company .mobi regs, Samsung has a large amount of "i" prefix mobi domains...they wouldn't do that if they didn't have palns...imho



.

 

[acc]

E.o.

You have to ask this question: What MAKES a domain name worth something - and to WHOM is it worth that something?

Names have a perceived value and a hard value. UNDEVELOPED, unparked names can be compared using selling comps from similar names. The parking income generated on undeveloped, parked names is a measureable hard value. Sitting side by side, two names are judged by their keyword and extension and income - and are valued only by DOMAINERS.

Domain names with a DEVELOPED website have not only the domain-name-only perceived value, but also a hard value if they are producing measureable direct income, AND a very important "good-will" brand value. The monetary value of this developed "good-will" element can overshadow any of the other factors. End users (businesses) understand the value of branding and good-will.

Take a look at the millions of dot com names that are owned by large domainers and domain parking companies. All those sites are virtually so alike and for all practical purposes content-deserts - nice to visit once for the experience but too barren to ever want to knowingly come back to. THe vast majority of those names will remain with the aggregators in that state of non-devlopment.

Now consider the newly arrived dot mobi, that can be developed with new blood, with actual content albeit on its smaller screen pages - useful sites for the "page-consumer" when they need it and where they need it. Most of the dot mobi names are not owned by those same dot-com-parked-page aggregators so the potential of their development into useful web sites is greater than that for the dot com domains.

Company A owns and PARKS the subjectkeyword.com and enjoys their PPC/PPA income. Company B owns subjectkeyword.mobi and develops it into a useful-content-ladden website. The TOTAL value of Company B's dot mobi site eclipses that of the dot-parked site.

The availability of automatic browser detection scripts (which many cite as the reason for the potential future demise of dot mobi names) may actually turn out to have the reverse effect. Here's why: Dot mobi names start out with mobile access in mind from day one. New domains, new owners, new focus. They get developed initially for the mobile information market and are automatically a known quantity - branded as being totally accessible. Later with the addition of automatic browser detection scripts, the dot mobi sites add directories full of full size and featured content for the PC user. Whose site gets the return visitors? The Dot Mobi site of Company B. Not the dot-parked of Megalith-Company A.

I do not believe that this comparison can or should be made between one entire extension and another, but between each individual domain from one extension with that same domain in the other extension. And in this vain I think that it is possible for just about any dot-mobi name to compete and win a head-to-head value competition with dot-coms or dot-whatevers.

For the current price that a company can acquire a premium, generic, keyword dot mobi name today - it makes all the sense in the world for them to do so. When you realize that you can't help but to be optimistic.

Put me in the E.O. camp - it's the one with the running water.

-acc

 

[buckshotdots]

Moderate Optimism

MODERATE OPTIMISM here, its always exciting to be on the verge of something BIG and knowing you were there from the start. Sorta like talking on BBS's with my commodore 64 with my 300 baud modem (thought I was the sh** when I was speeding on the net with my upgraded 1200 baud) anyways I think 5 years will tell us which way this is going. And I believe when it DOES take off if will be a very quick process (going mainstream). As all it would take is a couple big/key players going .mobi -google/youtube etc.

quote from the hip "no one's interested in something you didn't do..."

interesting post,

gary-

 

[Lasher]

I'm in the "no ****ing clue" camp. My take on .MOBI is a little simpler. I have about 5k invested in .MOBI domains, about half are $75 pre-release domains and about half are from the day of landrush.

I could perhaps sell these at 300-500% profit easily, but 10k profit isn't going to change my life. Neither is the loss of money invested if these things end up worthless. If it DOES take off, then selling these names in 10-20 years could be life changing. I have pretty much the same outlook on .US but for different reasons - I believe that sooner or later a change in global politics and internet oversight will make .US more relevant locally.

On to something more important, let's hope we all live long enough to see how this story ends

 

[satsdifference.com]

The Greatest

I'm evolving from Moderate Optimism (PreLandRush) to Extreme Optimism(now). Most of my mobifolio was registered during pre LandRush.

Here are the reasons for why I'm approaching Extreme Optimism:

1.) Fortune 1000 Companies brand MOBI

StateFarm.mobi
PartyPoker.mobi
MSN.mobi
BofA.mobi
NBA.mobi
BMW.mobi
FoxNews.mobi
RollsRoyce.mobi
BusinessWeek.mobi
Intel.mobi
PayPal.mobi
AllState.mobi
CNNMoney.mobi
Ferrari.mobi
& countless others

2.) Dot Mobi Investors & Sponsors endorse MOBI
Ericsson.mobi
Google.mobi
GSMworld.mobi
Nokia.mobi
Samsungmobile.mobi
SonyEricsson.mobi
Syniverse.mobi
T-mobile.mobi
Tim.mobi
Vodafone.mobi

3.)$xxx,xxx & $xx,xxx MOBI sales transacted
$200,000 Flowers.mobi
$126,000 SportsBook.mobi
$100,000 Fun.mobi
$85,000 RealEstate.mobi
$70,000 Stocks.mobi
$52,000 Casinos.mobi
$49,000 Girls.mobi
$41,000 Singles.mobi
$40,000 Hot.mobi
$27,000 StockQuotes.mobi
$23,600 Cams.mobi
$23,000 Pics.mobi
$21,000 Pizza.mobi
$19,000 Directions.mobi
$16,500 MusicVideos.mobi
$13,000 Party.mobi
$11,000 Airfare.mobi
$10,500 Cam.mobi

4.) The mTLD will issue Premium MOBIs to EndUsers

News.mobi, Weather.mobi, Ringtones.mobi, Sports.mobi & hundreds more MOBIs will be allocated via RFP

The mTLD does not issue these MOBI RFP domains to speculators or MOBI fanboys. These RFP Premium MOBIs will be issued to the likes of ESPN?(i.e. Sports.mobi), YouTube(Videos.mobi), GE(Appliances.mobi), Starbucks(Coffee.mobi), Walmart(Shopping.mobi),etc, etc.

These RFP Premium MOBIs ensure that endusers will develop rich content via the Mobile Web utilizing the MOBI brand consistently across all major industries.

5.) The Secret Weapon

Edelman.

Edelman is the premier global PR powerhouse. This month Edelman launched Edelman.mobi. Clients include: Orange, UPS, xBOX, Vivendi, Johnson & Johnson, The Recording Academy, AXE, Pfizer, Dove, Motorola, Oracle and plenty more.....btw another client is mTLD

You are welcome to learn more about Edelman here
http://www.edelman.com/about_us/welcome/

Tomorrow, Monday, March 26th, 2007 will mark the 6 month anniversary of the dotMOBI launch. Rome wasn't built in a day, neither was MOBI. However, day by day, the MOBI brand will continue to be built across the globe by developers (i.e. dotmobiz.mobi) & endusers (i.e. Intel.mobi) and therefore, as the years unfold MOBI will become increasingly ubiquitous.

I wish everyone well in all their MOBI pursuits.

Michael

Boca and friends,

This post goes down as the greatest post at the 1/2 year anniversary of Dot Mobi in archived history.

Thanks Michael.



Kind Regards,

Yelo

 

[vcool]

Boca and friends,

This post goes down as the greatest post at the 1/2 year anniversary of Dot Mobi in archived history.

Thanks Michael.



Kind Regards,

Yelo

I second that. Great post, I am also leaning towards EO camp now after reading that post.

Thanks Michael.

regards,

Vcool

 

[BocaVision]

@Jeremy, DentalPro, WorldRadio, vCool - Thank you.

@WorldRadio & vCool - I'm flattered by & appreciate your praise.

I'd like to meet & shake everyone's hand within this special MOBI community at NamePros.

Perhaps, at some point, we all will convene in person, share & celebrate our MOBI developments & sales.

With Respect,

Michael

 

[briman1970]

Kudos for your post Boca. I didn't know that about Edelman. Excellent info!

To add to your thoughtful comments... I don't think anyone realizes how big Paypal.mobi is going to be. This is HUGE for the .mobi ext! Paypalmobile is pretty much the start of the global money exchange-via-mobile revolution. When Paypal advertises this feature on their site, eBay, the web, and (hopefully) on TV, this will create massive consumer awareness for .mobi.

 

[labrocca]

I suggest Boca's post gets him nominated for member of the month. Heck after reading it even I wanted to buy a mobi (although I didn't).

Great post Boca!

 

[vcool]

@Jeremy, DentalPro, WorldRadio, vCool - Thank you.

@WorldRadio & vCool - I'm flattered by & appreciate your praise.

I'd like to meet & shake everyone's hand within this special MOBI community at NamePros.

Perhaps, at some point, we all will convene in person, share & celebrate our MOBI developments & sales.

With Respect,

Michael

Michael,

Suddenly the future is now clear to me, thanks to you. Now I can predict the success of .mobi ( now that I am in EO camp), .mobi will be successful in much less time than what we can think right now.

The reason for this succuss will be due largely to the hard work and dadication of Mobi community here at NP. I have not seen such a dadication and desire to help anywere before. If we were a start-up company , we would have been listed in Nazdaq by now ( I think that's how a EO person talks). :imho:

Regards,

Vcool