Amid the steady decline of newspaper revenues across the country, the Chicago Tribune has not been spared. Tribune Co., the larger parent, own the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, the Baltimore Sun, the Orlando Sentinel, and approximately 24 TV news stations in the United States.

Since 2005, the Chicago Tribune have periodically thinned their staff as revenues steadily sank. And Tribune Co. eventually filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2008. Currently saddled with billions in debt, Tribune Co. newspapers are just now looking at ways to remake their websites in an effort to breathe life into the company again. Discussed throughout the year has been the proposed sale of the Chicago Cubs baseball team franchise. Obviously a huge asset, but one which must be sold to reduce Tribune Co.’s massive debt load.

In a story dated 8/21/2009, the wealthy Ricketts family are reported to have signed an agreement with Tribune Co. to buy out a 95% ownership in the Chicago Cubs franchise, Wrigley Field, and a 25% stake in Comcast SportsNet (CSN) for $845 million. One must ponder how a monolith in American news publishing for over 150 years could begin to evaporate before our eyes, and forced into selling time honored assets simply to survive. What does this dramatic shift represent? And did failure to adapt lead to this eventual implosion?

The Chicago Tribune is obviously a famous brand, and as your might surmise their online website is ChicagoTribune.com. Logically enough, the Chicago Cubs’ website can be found at Cubs.com. Gerould Kern, the newly appointed editor in charge of revamping the Chicago Tribune, is quoted as saying about the newspaper …

“We’ve got to turn over every stone, do every smart thing we can do to stretch our resources. The newspaper business is in crisis. I want to do everything in my power to save it.”

As a domainer, I naturally think that “doing everything … to save it” would (and should) include purchasing the two definitive geo properties for Chicago, i.e. Chicago.com and Chicago.US. The first domain is the hands down ultra familiar .com destination, and the second domain is the one with the global footprint as the USA’s official country code. Whether Tribune Co. could afford these domains is a legitimate question. Whether they can afford not to own these domains is even more critical.

The Chicago Tribune is just now trying to figure out how they can reinvent themselves. No more resting on yesterday’s laurels. Can they someday become profitable again as the internet world moves forward at a dizzying pace? Will Tribune Co. miss the boat again by failing to recognize the power contained in a premium domain name?

I don’t know if the owners of Chicago.com and Chicago.US are even interested in selling their properties. But the Chicago Tribune, in my opinion, should find out. Unless another door to their future be closed in their face. My guess is that one day these premium domains will exchange hands. And the Chicago Tribune will either take that lead, or find themselves having lost out on their own future … failing to grab onto important future lifelines.

.US Domain Names .us, chicago, newspaper, tribune

This is not a joke, though I wish it were. The Federal government is now offering a “cash for clunkers” program for old appliances. To the tune of $300 million dollars of the taxpayers’ money. Here’s a link to the story just released on Yahoo finance news.

Perhaps we can get some government bailout money for our domain registration renewal fees (sarcasm intended). Where does the government bailout money end, and personal responsibility and good fiscal management begin? I would really like to know.

Humor

The stock market is testing itself against the resolve of motivated investors vs. the fear of more impending shoes to drop. Personally, I think further growth in the market is not justified, and will act as an artificial signal that “all is well again” when actually it is not.

Job creation, job creation, job creation. It’s not happening on the level needed to support the greater economy. My concern is that small to large businesses are going to be bearing the brunt, increasingly moreso, as the Obama administration continues to focus on health care initiatives, social security, and other entitlement programs. Please understand me when I say that these are all important and worthy programs deserving of attention. No doubt.

But America is not in the position, at this moment in time, to be commiting itself long term to major handouts and expenditures that we clearly cannot yet afford. The daily news from the White House has me feeling like they’re getting the cart before the horse. Job creation must lead. Personal initiative & independence must lead. Extending unemployment benefits is a two edge sword, and if we are not careful, can deepen our debt substantially. Handouts are a short-term fix for a long term problem.

Private corporate America, properly incentivized but carefully regulated, is the only way that we will see a lasting resurgence in the greater economy. New job creation is the result of companies having the capital to expand. Obama inherited a mess which makes his job a hard one. But I am detecting that the administration’s direction is perhaps being oversteered by the typical fundamental democratic politics.

Pockets of the economy are setting themselves for a definite positive push forward, but they will be bridled & limited if big business is not properly supported by administration policies. Premium domain names, online services, and online consumer product sales will likely remain somewhat in the forefront of whatever internet growth we experience as the economy positions itself for the next move up. PPC (pay per click) income will follow the larger economy as it is specifically tied to company advertising budgets. Don’t expect much improvement here.

Consequently, domainers who are heavily dependent upon PPC revenue will continue to see their income a modest fraction of what it was just 18 months ago. From an investment perspective, PPC based domain purchases can still be profitable, but heavy reliance on PPC earnings will lead investors toward more organically strong domains, i.e. one and two word natural generics. These are the cream that rise to the top, particularly during lean times.

Internet Domains

Developing a geodomain offers many options and requires many decisions. These choices typically revolve around website content, website structure, and the site’s identity as perceived by visitors. My overriding goal with this project was to settle on a development model and “unique personality” which could be duplicated across many cities.

In building Charlotte.US from the ground up, I reviewed both the positive and negative aspects of a number of other geo sites. I also considered the platform on which to build Charlotte.US such as “static html” files vs. Wordpress.

Content can be modified much more easily than can site structure. Structure is something which you will be married to and which cannot be easily converted. For this project, Wordpress was selected due to its many automated features, plug-ins, publishing options, and excellent universal compatibility.

Actually, I had been looking for a geo portal template for some time that would allow me to add and subtract content components. Eventually, I found a news oriented portal, built on Wordpress, that I could heavily edit. The current version, now viewable at Charlotte.US, has been dramatically modified from the original template.

The site is in what I consider a workable early form right now. There are a variety of auto-updating feeds & content such that revisiting the site numerous times per day will provide the user with new material. This concept I hope to take to an even higher level over time. I have had good success obtaining permissions where required, and I plan to develop partnerships with local businesses as time permits. Local advertising revenue will be pursued though no hurry on this at the moment.

Future upgrades will aim to customize the content sections especially in the real estate, apartments, entertainment, and online services area. Currently, these are linked to local service providers via Superpages content. The Ticketmaster section is fairly well done as is.

Interested readers may also like to follow Detroit.US which is being modeled after the Charlotte site.

.US Domain Names .us, Charlotte, geo domain, geodomain

In a comical though aggravating action, initiated by a single Wikipedia admin, my account has been suspended under the false allegation that I have posted to the Domaining page from “multiple user accounts“. One rather paranoid admin contacted another admin and accused me of posting to the Domaining page under multiple identities. LOL! In a sudden, swift action with no recourse or dialogue with me whatsoever … my account was suspended.

Can you believe this? Just like that … completely blocked.

Even more incredible are the layers of intricate mazes, links, & instructions (difficult by design I assume) required for one to challenge the anonymous goober who got the account suspended in the first place.

This is a real revelation. If you’re like me, you have used Wikipedia and had no idea what silliness goes on behind the scenes.

Previously, I liked the site and had never thought much about the people who are admins there. It’s a real study in personality disorders and the inevitable larger-than-life egos that ”admin privileges” often foster. At Wikipedia, you’ll find aspiring scholars with a C+ aptitude.

Ultimately, domaining should not be redirected to cybersquatting, and currently … it isn’t (thankfully). I would not be at all surprised if a single individual sabotages all the hard work that has gone into this effort. Wikipedia operates with pseudo journalistic integrity, and apparently is shaped by the opinion of a few literature majors who long for a ’position of authority’ and are infatuated with power.  

No offense to Lit Majors. The real culprit is anyone who cannot concede when they are wrong. I’m sure there are good people within the greater Wikipedia community. But, there are some rather serious & ingrained problems which are undermining the premise of quality one would presume exists there. “Discussing” content at Wikipedia has the back-and-forth flow of an argument between juveniles.

Thus far at Wikipedia, valid arguments on domaining are met with instant redirection to non-relevant points (known as change the subject because you’re losing the argument), or worse, people begin to pull out their opinion as “fact”, and repeat it 4 times … as if repeating it will somehow make it magically true. Believe me, this is a tiring exercise to witness. And I saw it over and over as critics tried to discredit domain name investing with transparent & empty insults. The stench of envy filled the air.

I’ve contacted the two people who decided to suspend my account. I’m really curious if they’ll have the decency to engage me in conversation to further explain their decision.

Since the suspension is built on something which I know is false, it will be interesting to see what develops. I expect cowardice, and avoidance, from the two admins who froze my account. Engaging in “healthy debate” is something they are not yet ready for.

This process is a real peeling back of the layers at Wikipedia. I am finding a rotten core, sadly.

Internet Domains domaining, wikipedia

Just off the coastline in the San Francisco Bay is Alcatraz Island. Alcatraz Prison was erected there in 1934 and was in operation for 29 years (closed in 1964). Al Capone and George “Machine Gun” Kelly were two of its most infamous prisoners.

As a tourist destination, Alcatraz receives many thousands of visitors annually who are attracted to the location’s fascinating stories and history.

Alcatraz.US is a superb website dedicated to the Alcatraz tourist experience. The website contains almost every imaginable package there is from simply buying admission tickets online for the Alcatraz prison tour to reserving a helicopter tour of the greater San Francisco area’s many attractions.

Traffic estimate tools indicate that Alcatraz.US receives over 13,000 unique internet visitors per month. The site appears to be search engine optimized successfully since a basic search of “Alcatraz” finds Alcatraz.US listed on the first page of both Google and Yahoo.

The .US web address has continued to expand steadily with a noticeable pick-up in registrations and developed sites occurring over the last 18 months.

.US Domain Names .us, alcatraz, california

As the battle continues at Wikipedia to have an informative Domaining page, biased commenters keep trying every trick in the book to undermine this goal. The latest trick is to request that Wikipedia eliminate the domaining page, and just merge it with a page entitled “Domain Name Speculation”. There is no logic or persuasive points articulated by these dissenters. They are literally cyber vandals who keep throwing eggs at our house from the street as they hide behind anonymous screen names.

I keep waiting for a Wikipedia administrator to intervene and disallow further protests. Apparently, Wikipedia allow envious (and uninformed) protesters to throw eggs indefinitely.

I have posted a response to someone who claims domaining has no real purpose or shape, and who recommends to just merge it with domain name “speculation”. Below is my lesson in truth & common sense to the uniformed there. 

Merge is not Appropriate – Domain name “speculation” is one of many monetization techniques under the much larger umbrella of Domaining. People “speculate” on real estate, stock, art, thoroughbred horses. They also invest. They also develop. They also partner. They devise business plans & take on angel investors. They hire employees to launch internet companies built around their domain investments. They go in any number of varied directions as they explore their many revenue generating alternatives. That is what domainers do on a daily basis. It is a mature, diverse business which has continually expanded year after year. It’s a fact. It cannot be contested.

The ”Domaining” page will evolve with the continued expansion & success of the domain name industry. Many components and elements can be added to the page as the industry continues maturing into new areas and attracting many thousands of enthusiasts. This is something which Wikipedia users will enjoy and find educational.

The world of domaining is extremely well-developed as evidenced by the presence of established online companies dedicated specifically to the business of domaining. A mere redirection to domain name “speculation” is the equivalent of forwarding the broad category of “law” to a page on “divorce law”. It presumes that “divorce law” somehow represents everything there is to know about all law. ”’Speculation”’, by definition, is to buy and sell with the expectation of a quick or very large profit. Wikipedia include in their definition a “low margin of safety” and “significant risk of loss of the principal investment”. There is no doubt that such an approach exists, but using this narrow definition to encompass all of investing is completely inappropriate whether the object of the investment is real estate, gold, or domain names.

Speculation is by nature considered a more risky proposition, and simply does not account for proven, thoroughly researched business models. Business models that are applied in real estate, domain names, stocks, and an endless variety of other investment vehicles. A recommendation to simply merge or forward to “speculation” reveals a very limited understanding of investing as an activity that occurs along a continuum … with speculation being a proportionally small segment narrowly located only at the extreme end of that investment continuum.

Domaining must stand as an independent page due its broad, all encompassing nature. Thank you.

Internet Domains domaining, investing, speculation, wikipedia

Ron Jackson of DNJournal.com has provided me a number of links to mainstream media stories that profile the exciting industry of domain name investing. The stories are from the likes of the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, BusinessWeek, CNN Money, Bizjournals, Boston.com, etc.

The links (view them below) were added to the current discussion page at Wikipedia on “Domaining“. A small handful of mean-spirited posters have repeatedly submitted senseless comments and personal opinion there in their aim to get the domaining page deleted.

The domaining stories Ron provided links to are irrefutably superior & fact-based, and consequently obliterate the baseless accusations regurgitated by the troublemakers. For me, the real story here is … “What is Wikipedia?”

Is it a gossip column? Is it a flame-ridden chatroom frequented by angry teens? I have lost respect for Wikipedia having seen hard work both heavily filtered and repeatedly challenged by people who hide behind a faceless screen name and who launch one baseless accusation after another. To Wikipedia’s credit, they include an interesting comment from journalist, John Seigenthaler on the Wikipedia page about “Wikipedia“.

On the Wikipedia page, Seigenthaler is quoted as having described Wikipedia as  …

a flawed and irresponsible research tool.

One has to wonder.

Domain Industry Stories

1. http://www.entrepreneur.com/startingabusiness/businessideas/article195880.html
2. http://www.forbes.com/2008/08/10/domains-flip-aftermarket-tech-ebiz-cz_cf_0811domains.html
3. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_26/b4040059.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_technology
4. http://money.cnn.com/2006/08/29/technology/nextbigforeign.biz2/
5. http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB113200310765396752-FYV6dsilRS0N1fsiVu_bLf_5nI8_20061116.html?mod=tff_main_tff_top
6. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122844055171581735.html
7. http://www.boston.com/business/globe/articles/2007/07/30/online_domain_name_game_yields_real_profits_for_virtual_brokers/
8. http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/2006/02/13/story2.html
9. http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/Domain-Name-Business-Booming-in-Post-Dot-Com-Era-129003WWAIE9.xhtml?wlc=1249613955&wlc=1249642500

Internet Domains domainers, domaining, wikipedia