Dotster Seeking A Higher Profile

A recent affiliate promotion of $1 domains for one hour was the first step in a larger plan for Dotster.com%2Fhome%2F">Dotster to raise its visibility, according to a profile of the company in local media. An excerpt:

Already the ninth-biggest Web site registrar in the world, due in part to a recent spate of acquisitions, Dotster hopes to be a top-five company by the end of the year, said Clint Page, chief executive officer. Privately held Dotster is tight-lipped about its specific growth strategies, but in the shifting world of Web registrars, it will take more than marketing gimmicks for the company to reach its goals, according to industry watchers. ... "We've been in stealth mode, but that will start changing," said Page, who would not elaborate on plans to raise Dotster's profile.

Dotster was a domain pricing pioneer, leading the move toward lower prices when it introduced $15 domains at a time when the standard was $30 or $35 a year. In the wake of the "$1 domains for one hour" promotion, it will be interesting to see what they have up their sleeve.

Posted by RichM February 26, 2006 | Permalink | Newsletter

February 24, 2006

Grassroots.org Offers Free Domains for Non-Profits

Grassroots.org is offering free domain names and free hosting to non-profits in the U.S. and Canada. The domain name is free for the first year for users of Grassroots.org's hosting, which includes 100 megs of disk space, 5 email accounts and 2 gigs a month of data transfer. See the announcement here. Go to this page to sign up. Applicants must provide proof of 501c3 non-profit status to qualify for one of the free domain names.

How are they doing this? Grassroots.org was founded by domain industry investor Michael Mann of BuyDomains.com, who earlier this year sold a majority interest to venture capitalists Highland Capital and Summit Venture Partners. The goals of Grassroots.org are nicely summarized in a recent profile in Domain Name Journal:

Grassroots helps eliminate �Digital Divide� issues that impact many nonprofits by providing them with free website development, hosting, and tech support. They are also working to add web-based advocacy tools to allow organizations and their constituencies to distribute nonpartisan action alerts, sign petitions, register to vote, contact Congress and more. Other technology will assist nonprofits and charities with fundraising, budgeting and database management. Grassroots.org also provides free management and legal consulting to help guide nonprofits in areas including organizing a 501(c)(3) (tax-exempt non-profit group) and ongoing IRS compliance.

Not surprisingly, Mann has acquired a number of premium domain names that can help gain traffic and visibility for Grassroots.org's charitable initiatives. These include Homeless.org, Shelters.org, Diseases.org, Relief.org, PlanetEarth.org, PublicService.org, SpeakOut.org and VoterRegistration.org.

Posted by RichM February 24, 2006 | Permalink | Newsletter

February 21, 2006

A $310,000 Mistake

The expired domain Jasmin.com has been sold at auction for $310,250, an all-time record for an expiring domain, according to the Domaining Blog. That's more than $50,000 more than the previous record of $260,250. Prices have been rising in the domain name aftermarket for some time, and that has extended to sales of expired domains, which are typically auctioned at sites like SnapNames (which sells domains that drop at Network Solutions and Ragister.com) or in-house registrar auction sites like Go Daddy's Domain Name Aftermarket (TDNAM.com).

There's a reason we rarely see valuable names auctioned in the domain name aftermarket. Can you imagine if you let your domain lapse, only to realize after the fact that it was worth more than $300,000? That's the rude surprise awaiting the previous owner of jasmin.com. It's not easy for a domain to lapse, as most major registrars will send you "nag' reminder emails weeks and months in advance. Go Daddy delivers them at 90, 60, 30 and 15 days before a name expires. You have to be pretty determined to let a name expire. Jasmin.com was registered at Network Solutions, which sends notices six months prior to a renewal date (I know because NetSol is already hounding me about names that expire in August).

Posted by RichM February 21, 2006 | Permalink | Newsletter

February 10, 2006

Business Models and New TLDs

Bret Fausett of Internet Pro Radio has a dynamite podcast that examines the business models of new top-level domains ("after the dot" extensions such as .web, .pro, etc.) and the considerations that go into developing a gTLD that will make money AND whose domains will be used (as opposed to being redirected to an existing.com). Bret moderates a conversation with three veterans of both ICANN policy and the domain business, Anthony Van Couvering (Names@Work), Chris Ambler (Image Online Design) and Elliot Noss (Tucows).

It was fascinating conversation, and helped me consider the domain name business model from yet another perspective. I'm used to thinking about domains as an owner, and have become familiar with the business issues for registrars and domain investors. But what about the operator/registry of a top-level domain? How do they make money, and how do the business models of the other domain stakeholders influence their decisions? Great stuff.

Posted by RichM February 10, 2006 | Permalink | Newsletter