PALM BEACH, FL – I have been thinking about this off and on for a few years now, but I have never really posted or written about it. That is because it is an awful prediction that I hate the idea of, but I think it is going to eventually happen. Here it goes…. I predict that to operate a web server sometime in the near future, you will be required to have a license, or have passed a basic course in IT security or Cybersecurity intrusion mitigation. Not at the single site … [Read more...]
Two Letter ngTLD “My.Life” Said To Be Sold for Whopping $175k, Buyer Unconfirmed
PALM BEACH, FL – According to several reports, the 2 letter gTLD “My.Life” has been sold in a transaction valued at $175,000.00 (according to the registry), with $100,000.00 paid up front in cash, and $75,000.00 to be paid by the end of the year. The sale was confirmed by a tweet from the Donuts Twitter account and by Elliot Silver who reached out to Matt Overman, Senior VP of Sales at Donuts. The buyer of the unusually short domain asset is believed to be Meredith … [Read more...]
ICANN, PIR, Ethos Capital “Circus” Continues with Yet Another Letter from California AG
PALM BEACH, FL – The trio making a mockery of the definition of “public good” are probably hoping for another worldwide catastrophe to deflect the unwanted attention off their sour deal of transferring the .org registry from a non-profit (PIR) “Public Interest Registry” to a for-profit entity called “Ethos Capital” because the current one just isn’t enough. In a letter dated April 15, 2020, the attorney general of California, Xavier Becerra, has written yet another … [Read more...]
Domain Industry’s First Virtual Trade Show Comes to Comfort (& Safety) of Your Home
PALM BEACH, FL – I just love great ideas, even when I wasn’t the one to pull the trigger on it. That’s why I just registered for The Domain Show, a new virtual trade show for the domain industry that is being organized by Page Howe, a domain industry participant I haven’t met yet, but look forward to meeting, if not in person, at the virtual Domain Show event. The Domain Show will be held online between June 11th – 13th. This will be a trade show and conference that just … [Read more...]
How Am I Supposed to Find A Good Domain Name When They Are Already All Gone?
PALM BEACH, FL – Finding a good, short, “.com” domain name nowadays is much harder than it was in the past, but it certainly isn’t impossible. What you don’t want to do, is listen to bad advice from someone who tells you to go ahead and register an alternative, such as “.net”, “.biz”, or “.info”. Whatever you do, don’t make that mistake, because you will very likely regret it at some point in the future. Unless your business is an ‘organization” you could get a “.org” … [Read more...]
ICANN Moves Forward With 20 Million Deal While World Preoccupied with Epidemic
PALM BEACH, FL – Rahm Emanuel once said, “You never let a serious crisis go to waste.” I’d bet that’s been on the mind of ICANN, The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, these last couple weeks, as President and CEO, Göran Marby, announced the organization has decided to move forward with its controversial twenty-million-dollar deal, many feel is nothing short of a bribe, with its latest renewal of the .com Registry Agreement with Verisign. The … [Read more...]
Global Epidemic Will Lead To Unusually Good Time to Buy Domain Names
PALM BEACH, FL – If you have been sitting on the sidelines wishing you had gotten into domain names sooner, now will be a very good time to jump in. Why? Because its going to be a very good time to buy domains – even better than it’s been these last few years. Yes, many know that it has been a buyers’ market for a while now and it’s going to get even better (for new comers and buyers). Here are just a few reasons why it’s been a buyers’ market: Parking revenue … [Read more...]
Feds Take Down First Coronavirus Scam Site
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The world’s first web site taken down of a fraudulent Coronavirus scam has taken place – and in record time. On Sunday, the US Department of Justice announced it had shut down a website in connection with COVID-19, the disease caused by 2019 Novel Coronavirus. The site, CoronavirusMedicalKit.com, promised visitors a free vaccine from the World Health Organization (WHO) and shoppers needed only to pay shipping costs of $4.95 to receive their cure, … [Read more...]
Will Coronavirus Create Pandemic Volatility and Effect The Domain Name Industry?
PALM BEACH, FL - According to the CDC, the corona virus, now known as COVID-19, is expected to create a pandemic in the United States very soon. There are already cases in the Boston area which are being closely monitored with some people in quarantine. California has also seen its first case at the LAX airport. It's not so much a question of if this will happen anymore but rather more a question of exactly when this will happen and how many people in this country will … [Read more...]
Nonprofit “ICANN” Exists to Serve the Public Good, Or Does It? What Say You?
PALM BEACH, FL – An important awareness message came out of The Internet Commerce Association (ICA) today, and it should make, even the least interested shopper, question whether or not price increases to consumers are justified when an item or service is purchased from a company with specific oversight from an authoritative body. Whether it is over domain names, or anything else, the question should be, when does a company - any company, which is permitted to … [Read more...]
First Ever Crime-Fiction Story Based Entirely On An Internet Domain Name Released
PALM BEACH, FL – What do you do with a domain name you can’t sell? Well, one thing you could do is make a book or movie out of it. That is, if you believe the name can grab some attention. Such is what I did with Murder.net, a domain name I scooped up years ago for a few thousand dollars as I thought it was unique. A single generic word .net that is highly searched, but hard to monetize. The reason why selling the domain name for a profit has been unproductive. That’s … [Read more...]
NamesCon Live Auction List with 136 Domains and Auction Order Published
AUSTIN, TX - If you are interested in one or more domain names going up for auction starting today, January 30, 2020 between 4:30pm CST- 7:30pm Central Standard Time, a list has been released by Monte Cahn, President of RightOfTheDot for those names which will be included in the live event. If you are not in Austin but still want to bid on domains, RightOfTheDot’s Proxibid system will be the live bidding platform used for the event auction. The remaining names will be … [Read more...]
NamesCon Global 2020 Domain Auction to Include Two “Good Cause” Domain Sales
PALM BEACH, FL – If you will be participating in the live domain auction which will take place Thursday, January 30 at the Omni Hotel (Downtown) in Austin Texas, you’ll have the chance to not only scoop up what will likely be some great domain deals, but you’ll also be able to help contribute with two sales having a portion of their proceeds benefiting domainers directions.com and toolchest.com. When the action begins at 4:30 pm Central Standard Time, you’ll want to pay … [Read more...]
Wyden: “I Will Explore Every Avenue To Ensure Users, Nonprofits Are Protected”
PALM BEACH, FL - In the ongoing debacle which has highlighted ICANN's unusual position on the .org registry sale which resulted in the billion-dollar sale of .org to a private equity company, US Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) told The Register that the response from Ethos Capital to his and several of his colleges concerns regarding the sale .org - just isn't good enough. ....nothing in this response addresses my concerns that selling .org to a private equity firm would be a … [Read more...]
ROOTS: Frank Schilling, Uniregistry, Join ICA; Group Sees Busy Year With Slew of Issues
PALM BEACH, FL – According to an internal membership notification, this past week, Frank Schilling, known for amassing one of the world's most valuable domain name portfolios as well as building one of the most robust domain name platforms in the industry, “Uniregistry,” has returned to the Internet Commerce Association as a “Gold” member; there are currently five (5) membership levels (Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Individual). The ICA has been especially busy this … [Read more...]