Which Namespaces are Best
Scott Jones writes:
“”Evening Frank, being predominantly a developer and as such we can rank most domains whatever the extension, I am interested in the perceived resale value & marketability and the view of the domain industry as we move forward.
I am trying to reach out and ask the more public domainers and developers and get a grasp on how we internally and collectively as an industry see the top 10 current country codes/domain extensions in the future.
Please rank these in order of future importance/value from 1 to 10
.tv
.info
.org
.com
.idn
.us
.co.uk
.net
.mobi
.de
If you could take the time to do this I would really appreciate it, feel free to add any comments along the way of you see fit.
Kind regards
Scott Jones”"
***FS*** There is no easy one size fits all answer here Scott.. I like this order below.. Others can feel free to throw their favorites in the comments on this post.
1. .com
2. .net
3. org
4. de
5 .co.uk
Things get murky from there.. .us could be a good backfill to .com in America one day .. .tv has some limited resonance.. thin thin thin beyond that.. We’ve spoken about IDN names previously but there is no clear path on whether the winner will be CCtld or .com whether it will be ascii extension of idn extension.. Very uncertain. Extensions that could be biggest are those you didn’t mention like .cn ..but spaces like that are subject to censorship as Chinese authorities grapple with the fact that domain names are media tools. They represent a disruptive technology and governments like China will want to control/micromanage their namespace if US-style free speech starts to spread like wildfire. That could harm the relevance of the .cn namespace. So you can see what I mean when I say further afield, things get uncertain.
Stick with logical search-term style names in .com/.net and the CCTld of the populous country you live in and you should always be able to resell your names and make a living.
I’m really surprised you put .mobi above .de.. I personally love .de even though my investment is 99.9% .com
On another note, beware of the wrath of the .mobi fighters who will come here by the millions like flies to defend the position of the .mobi
If one thousand developers try to develop one thousand sites about credit cards, then please tell me which ones will show up first and be listed at the top of search results?
If you understand that riddle then you understand why the domainers who have had the most success stick to type-in traffic names….which would mostly be dotcom.
Dot-tv will go nowhere. The high registration cost will ensure that. Dot-us is even weaker than dot-info, if that is possible. Some dot-info’s actually make sense. Dot-us is really bad, and if you had a trillion dollars you couldn’t turn dot-us into anything near dotcom.
One man shows who say they are developing their names are really spinning their wheels (not talking about the thread starter). They are competing against billion dollar corporations who have thousands of people developing. And they are always at the mercy of the search companies.
Dot-nets seem to be losing steam. Like Oakland, there seems to be “No there…there”. Dot-orgs have their place, but everything points to dotcom. If you told 100 strangers on the street to go home and type in FreePrize.net to pick up $100 free dollars then many, and likely most would go home and type in FreePrize.com. If you told 100 people to go home and type in FreePrize.com, then it is likely that nobody would type in FreePrize.net. That’s the whole show right there.
Like Warren Buffett says…you could spend tens of billions of dollars trying to get RC Cola to compete with Coca Cola around the world….it’s not gonna happen…..ever. The gap between dotcom and the other extentions is widening every day…..that likely won’t change in any of our lifetimes. Might as well go with the extention that is synonymous with the whole internet….DOTCOM is king for a reason.
Every year you can look back at the nice five and six figure dotcom sales listed at DN Journal and other places…..they almost all look like steals for the buyer just a short time later.
The best dotcom names are potentially worth amounts that many would find obscene. The other extentions have a ceiling on their prices….that ceiling is called Dotcom.
Hi Frank,
Your top notch TLD order of com, net, org, de & .co.uk have all shown integrity, performance and proven results. Those are the leaders of today and coms will lead us into the future & the others will have their continued share of success. However, my preferences differ somewhat & are not from a PPC standpoint. Here’s my take based more on speculation & future domain development potential regarding importance & value going forward w/ the new worldwide video web, video advertising & the fast-emerging internet Tv, mobile web & mobile Tv:
1..com
2..Tv… a.)videocast/vodcast/webcast- on demand video boom! b.) internet tv’s (web over tv) future & c.)”tv” has a universal meaning in any language. Moreover, dotTV’s a great dn option to supplement .com &/or ccTLD developed sites as a dn strategy… More importantly, in 2009, digital Tv handsets will have real time mobile Tv which will greatly benefit dns all around.
3. .cn/.in (huge upside via mobile internet w/ highest populations, etc.(1-5 years)
4. .mobi (2-3 years+)… specialized niche & good for mini-sites;i.e., mobile viral marketing, mobile coupon services & viral fund raiser campaigns, etc. but mostly only to supplement a .com and/or ccTLD site by adding mobile domain strategies (on-the-go mobile internet interaction & transactions must rely on speed!)User experience will determine success.
4. .co.uk/.US (UK’s ccTLD is already solid), .us (long term play say 5 years+)as the American brand extension’s necessary as a national TLD that is country specific to the USA! (com is US but also international) … also, .us needs to step up & compete w/ other ccTLDs & .EU)dotUS is also a good option to supplement a com and/or ccTLD site via domain marketing strategies;i.e. Volvo.US at least as a re-direct and then can also be used in advertising both online and offline. Lastly, since the local internet is growing this should lead to .us expansion
6. All ccTLDs are worthy in general & especially tech savvy countries thru-out Europe & South Asian countries)… ccTLDs play a big role & they’ll keep getting stronger as the web gets more & more localized
8. .RU 5-10 year play (Moscow’s the most expensive city in the world today)
9. IDNs (must be something there w/ all the languages that are entering the dn space).
10. S. American & African countries are emerging dn markets down the road via the mobile internet expansion & mobile Tv
(.orgs/.infos had a head start but I think they’re some new contenders that will outperform these)
In sum, it is early in the dn game and it will never be too late to invest in domains. There will always be opportunities just like there’s always investment options in stocks & real estate through bull markets & bears. In ten years, people will be saying I should’ve bought dns in 2007 the same way many say they wish they had made dn investments in the ’90s. Warren Buffet, Sam Zell and so many investors have made money through volatile markets over many years. The major factor with dns is that most people know nothing about the art of domaining. They will know someday!
All the best,
Steve Smith
http://InsideDomaining.com
I vote for .tv as the sleeper.
Re:Dan Guyes comment: “The gap between dotcom and the other extentions is widening every day”.
Lots of personal bias and wishful thinking there Dan. The non-com extensions that you are trying to diminish are gaining everyday in acceptance and use. Increased registrations and active websites by real companies. Dotcoms are great, but there’s not an unlimited supply. So business is making good use of many of the newer alternatives. And that’s a fact, like it or not.
Sorry, Frank, left out a few words; here’s my complete comment:
Well, Scott…let me give you my take, short and sweet:
I’d be absolutely thrilled if you’d (and everyone else) register and build world-class operating sites on every extension that I own the .com of (most at GetRichSlowly.com)…the additional “mistake” monster type-in PPC income your doing so would generate would more than fund my retirement…over and over and over again…forever.
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