Opinions

Domain Aging - Fact or Fiction? Domain age has been touted as a factor in the valuation of a domain but is this really true or is it a popular myth?

TRAFFIC New York in PRIME TIME!, September 27, 2008  -  Good Afternoon again folks!! - The vision came out to be a reality. Something good was cooking and the result was better than even I expected. Thanks everyone for making T.R.A.F.F.I.C. New York 2008 perhaps the most memorable TRAFFIC ever.

Saturday Musings - A ray of sunshine for domainland , Saturday, 04 October 2008, Over the last few weeks I've been analyzing the broader domain industry and in particular external impacts such as the financial meltdown. I've received a number of comments that suggest support my "gloom and doom" analysis of the current PPC market. Some people have even suggested that it looks like domain parking is a doomed business.

As reported at DNJournal.com , Peter Maxymych, President of Emall.ca and founder of the DOAC, said “It’s high time Canadian domain owners get their voices heard. Domain owners in Canada have often felt like they are working alone. This does not have to be the case. With this association we can work together to promote our interests in domaining.”

My “Relentless Attacks” on Unique Extensions - I was looking in my trackbacks today and saw a trackback from a blog to my post “.Mobi Meltdown” where I linked to another blogger with whom I agreed about .mobi names at the TRAFFIC auction.

I've always been a strong proponent of ccTLDs and when you look at Europe it has some of the best currently available. I define best as a return on investment as any other measure ends up being more speculation than calculation.

Don’t Litigate, Open Them Up! - Companies have adopted two diametrically opposite approaches to dealing with domain name owners infringing on their IP, namely, to either take aggressive legal action or do nothing. Unfortunately, however, both these approaches destroy shareholder value.

Brand Complementors: Implementing a Cooperative Domain-Name Use - The mere word “cybersquatting” stirs up emotions in all of us.

Survey: Domain Owners Predict Increased Values - 75% of survey respondents see domain values increasing in 2008. Despite a rough economy, domain industry professionals are bullish on domain prices.

Google and The Value of Web Supremacy - I am reading a book, A History of Venice, by John Julius Norwich, that I can recommend without reservation. As I read, I am struck by the parallel between Venice, the powerful republic that dominated Mediterranean trade for over 500 years, and Google.

Saturday musings - fear is the mindkiller! - While at Domain Round Table in San Francisco Ed Russell from NameDrive suggested in one of the sessions that I was moderating that rather being upbeat there was a feeling of fear entering the industry

Canadians Aren’t Buying Into Net Neutrality - The Tyee, an independent on-line magazine based in BC wrote a story about net neutrality more than a year ago, noting that most Canadians are sleeping through the debate.

Markey: Behavioral Ad Protections Needed For Kids - Fine tuning of marketing a little too fine for comfort - Online advertisers using behavioral targeting to find their audience attracted the attention of the Federal Trade Commission, who have called for principles of self-regulation for that type of marketing.

A Free Speech Double Whammy: Flawed Anti-Phishing Bill Would Dilute Trademark Fair Use and Anonymity Protections - Congress is contemplating a so-called “Anti-Phishing Consumer Protection Act” (APCPA) that takes an odd view of consumer protection. In the name of stopping phishing schemes, Senator Olympia Snowe has introduced S. 2661, a bill that would expand trademark law, limit consumer access to information about competitive products, and eviscerate key protections for anonymous speech. Co-sponsors are Senators Bill Nelson and Ted Stevens

.CA Geo Domains may be a Liability to hold - When the .ca registry was set up, the names of all Canadian municipalities were reserved and could not be registered.  However, enterprising domainers often registered geo domains that were two-word combinations, which included the city name.  These domains may now be open to be taken away by the municipalities, following the recent decision about the domain NiagaraRegion.ca.

Proposed Senate bill takes on phishing, irks Internet trade group - Measure defines phishing as deceptive practice; ICA calls it 'trademark legislation on steroids - March 4, 2008 (Computerworld) An antiphishing bill that was introduced in the U.S. Senate last week could end up being used by large holders of trademarks to unfairly wrest legitimate domain names away from small businesses and individuals, according to a trade group that represents domain name investors and so-called direct search companies. - More

Frank Schilling Talks Cybersquatting & Domain Monetization - What is Legitimate Domaining? We are proud to sponsor this vTalkradio interview with Frank Schilling. Frank Schilling is one of the largest private generic domain name holders in the world.  In this interview, Frank Schilling provides invaluable information about domaining, cybersquatting and generic domain registration.  Interview highlights include great instructional information about how to avoid cybersquatting problems, the tension between trademark holders and domainers, abuses by the trademark community and the next wave of domain monetization.

"Maybe this will blow the lid off all the appraisals services. They are ALL WORTHLESS. Absolutely worthless. Not a single one has a clue. Not a one and SCAM is usually the first thing that comes to mind when I read a worthless appraisal that somebody actually paid for." - Rick Schwartz

"Huge news to start the New Year, Oversee acquires Moniker! - WOW, that’s all I can really say about this news. Oversee, now integrating Moniker’s live auctions, Domain Valuation services as well as probably the most respected registrar in the domain community to its batman fan club utility belt. This is a great thing moving forward, creating better opportunities for all of us, with this acquisition. Congratulations to both Oversee and Moniker."

"How will Domain’s Fare in the Recession? Ok, I know we are not officially in a recession. A recession is defined technically as a decline in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for two or more consecutive quarters. We do not have that. Yet"

My prediction for the highest valued domains for the year 2012. For these predictions I am considering only today's most popular extensions and I am taking mostly a North American point-of-view. <Read More>

Making A Market (Part I): Elements of an Effective Market - It seems to me that, in order for markets to work effectively for everyone, certain elements must exist: Accessibility and Universal Opportunity for Participation – An effective market must be accessible - and equally accessible for everyone. Also, anyone on the planet can participate fully. <Read More>

Making A Market (Part II): Real Estate and Domains - When comparisons are made of domain names to real estate the comparisons are all about claims of limited supply and increasing demand. So far as confining the consideration to .com domains it is easy to understand that viewpoint. I am making a broader comparison in terms of existing and potential markets for each type of asset. <Read More>

I watched the progress of the Domain Roundtable Domain Name Auction of August 15 out of even greater than expected interest because, as the auction date approached, factors developed that made the auction interesting from the perspective of domain names as an investment. <Read More>

Getting Ready To Talk About Domain Name Valuations and Markets - When I bought domain names from NetworkSolutions.com in 1997 I paid $70 for a required two year registration.  And, thanks to that system, I do have a few 10 year old domains. My income couldn’t stand any more than a few. However, I am glad there was a system that made domain names available and affordable to the masses. Today I pay less than $10 a year to GoDaddy.com to maintain “ownership” of my older names. <Read More>

Is the CADNA a Sham? What is CADNA's REAL agenda?? - From my viewpoint as a relative newcomer to Domaining it seems that Mr. Rick Schwartz is regarded a successful old-timer, founder and / or guru to domaining. I have been reading his blog for several months now and have learned a lot of great background information, useful tips and more from him already. <Read More>