2009 was a relatively good year for the domain name industry compared to the rest of the economy. Domainers still re-evaluated their portfolios and trimmed their domain name collections. This was partly driven by declining PPC revenues as companies scaled back their advertising expenditures.

The USA faces a number of challenges in order to get the economy rolling again. Internet growth will somewhat coincide with the larger economy’s movement. And internet growth is the central mechanism pushing the adoption and use of domain names as business portals.

Two of the most prominent drags on economic recovery have been: 1. lack of job creation, and 2. a pervasive fear that massive commercial real estate defaults would re-ignite another financial crisis and meltdown.

On the positive side, recent news points to indications that the feared commercial real estate meltdown may actually be more manageable than was predicted. The Wall Street Journal has published an article quoting Morgan Stanley analysts who suggest that commercial real estate concerns are now …

only a moderate headwind for the economy,

Another article by Reuters further supports this contention quoting a top Federal Reserve official who says …

Community and regional banks can probably manage their exposure to souring commercial real estate loans.

These sentiments suggest that some of Wall Street’s apprehension is being replaced by a more clear view of America’s financial health. However, the last ingredient in a full recovery is the much needed expansion of America’s manufacturing base.

Jobs, jobs, jobs is indeed the cliche’ of the day. But more than that, they are the true driving force behind a robust economy. To some extent, domain name utilization and further internet assimilation will likely move forward regardless of the immediate job situation.

Many companies have survived this economic recession, and they will be preparing themselves to push their products and services out to the online global consumer. That means having a quality internet presence … which will be part of strategy 101 for 2010 and beyond.

Internet Domains advertising, domain names

Domain name sales have always driven widespread interest in the domain name industry. No one knows when the first domain sale occurred, but it foreshadowed a vibrant market that was to emerge in the years ahead.

Novices should be informed that there is not one, singular market that represents all domain transactions. Most people are aware of Sedo and Afternic sales as well as those documented in Ron Jackson’s DNJournal. However, many sales are undisclosed and never become publicly known due to privacy & non disclosure agreements.

There are reasons why domain sales privacy is fundamental to good business. A buyer does not want others in the marketplace to know what he has paid, or can pay, for future acquisitions. And a seller does not want others to know the level of proceeds received from a sale because that seller often reinvests those proceeds into more purchases.

Publicly disclosed sales information can weaken future negotiations for both buyers and sellers. So “smart money” typically operate outside the public’s radar and prefer to keep quiet their most strategic moves and acquisitions.

This phenomenon greatly impacts public perception of domain sales and creates the somewhat false impression that all aftermarket sales are known. They are not.

Many people try to extrapolate domain trends from known sales data, but they are always operating somewhat in the dark since so many total domain name sales are never made public.

Domain Sales, Internet Domains Domain Sales, nda, non disclosure

Premium domain names are gateways to the internet superhighway. All domain names are actually avenues of access to the world wide web. Prior to the year 2000, many people (and companies) could not yet visualize how important the internet would become to business and everyday life.

The tipping point was reached however. And the internet is now recognized as a landmark technological achievement with massive implications for the future of business. Not just in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, but on a global basis.

More evidence of the world’s migration to the internet is evidenced in two recent stories.

First, Ticketmaster have announced the sale of over 1 million paperless event tickets for year 2009. Consequently, no more standing in line for hours waiting to buy a ticket. What’s the price tag for that level of convenience? I purchased some of those tickets and can tell you firsthand that it’s a huge, huge plus. While the 2009 top countries for paperless ticket sales were the U.S. and Canada, the single biggest online event was the Metallica concert at the O2 arena in London, England.

Second, is the metamorphosis occurring within the television broadcast industry. Much has been written about traditional newspaper organizations losing out to the internet, but now we see that television programming distribution is being challenged as the internet continues to siphon off advertising revenue. “Free” TV, which has survived exclusively on commercial advertising, are now seeing their revenue dramatically decline as advertisers pump more and more dollars into cable TV advertising and internet advertising.

Very interesting is that traditional cable TV providers have all switched to digital distribution (no more analog). This is no different than the digitized video signal coming in over the internet connection, and thus raises the inevitable question -> Why subscribe to cable if I can obtain everything I want though a single delivery mechanism = the internet connection?

Case in point. My wife and I have been watching some of our favorite TV programs online. On the computer via the internet connection, not the cable TV connection! This signal can be run out to a high definition TV if you prefer, or simply viewed on your laptop. Ultimately, you will not need both a cable TV provider and an internet provider. A family will have access to everything they want from one point of contact, the internet connection. This is a media war in the making. Mark my words.

For domain name entrepreneurs, their quality internet properties will enjoy increased relevance as the world (particularly local consumer markets) participate in this massive migration to a single portal internet connection for everything they want and need. The big losers are traditional newspapers, traditional free TV distribution channels, and to some extent even traditional cable-only distribution channels.

The future is the single, all-encompassing internet provider who will deliver all media & communication through one digital line. Media companies around the world are diligently examining this issue at this very moment. A huge sea change is on the way. Big shifts are on the horizon and they will all revolve around the power of internet distribution. Quality domain names will be an integral piece of internet access.

Internet Domains

1. Andrew Allemann of DomainNameWire.com wrote earlier this week about GoDaddy.com, the world’s largest registrar, having topped $750 million in revenue for year 2009. GoDaddy is privately owned although they flirted with an IPO a few years ago. I suspect that remains an option for the company. This revenue level is an impressive achievement as well as an indication of just how robust the internet economy and domain name market have become. Almost recession proof when compared with other industries.

2. In an ICANN related mistake from the past (as I see it), Verisign Inc. were awarded the exclusive contract to administer the .com and .net web addresses. Verisign’s current contract allow them to raise domain name registration prices up to a maximum of 7% per year. Although most all related technologies and costs are coming down in price, Verisign just announced that they will be raising prices again. As you might guess, they have opted for a maximum price increase of 7% raising .com domain registration fees from $6.86 to $7.34. ICANN should have provided for a competitive bidding process instead of awarding one company, Verisign, a literal monopoly.

3. I have continued use of the DevHub website builder to produce a basic site for Corporate.biz. DevHub are furthering their web development tools having recently upgraded their online user interface (adding nicer features) and also rolling out a newly completed payment system.

4. Ron Jackson of DNJournal published earlier this week some info on the purchase of the premium domain name, Barns.com, by North Carolina businessman Jeremiah Johnson (read his bio here). Mr. Johnson already operated a website at WoodBarns.com, but picked up the premium domain Barns.com for $175,000 in a private sale according to DNJournal. This is a smart acquisition that will certainly build brand identity and credibility.

Internet Domains, Site Development GoDaddy, registrar

Let me first say that I am a .com advocate, enthusiast, and supporter of .com domains. Dotcom is an awesome brand unto itself.

Since the first release of non-com alternative domain name extensions (around 2002),  a contingent of .commers began disseminating false information regarding the newer, alternative domain extensions (.biz, .us, .info). I knew that these were deliberate and unsubstantiated misrepresentations.

Having been heavily involved in a variety of both .com and alternative tld’s like .biz, .us, .info, .tv, .net, .tv, and .mobi, I knew that the misrepresentations against non-com domains were false. Ron Jackson of DNJournal.com just posted a link to an extremely revealing study completed by McAfee Software called “Mapping the Mal Web – The World’s Riskiest Domains“.

If we fast forward to the conclusion, it’s that .com ranked as the second riskiest domain worldwide for malware (viruses, phishing, email spam, etc.). McAfee’s study was scientific, and used large samples which ultimately support incontestable, statistically significant results.

This study sheds light on the truth, particularly in regard to the false statements made for years about all of the excellent alternative extensions. For example, .biz has grown steadily in adoption & use for years, and is currently the 10th most registered domain extension in the world (being the global internet portal for “business”). However, .COM purists have proclaimed for years that .biz was a haven for malware and scams. These comments were false, and were made out of fear & concern that .com might be compromised by newer tld’s.

Truth/Fact: The McAfee study concluded that .BIZ had only a 3.6% weighted “Risk ratio” for malware whereas .COM had a 32.2% weighted “Risk ratio”. This totally negates and reverses the claims by .COMMERS that other tld’s are used primarily for destructive or abusive purposes. The weighted “Risk ratio” for .US was only 3.1%, and for .INFO the “Risk ratio” was 15.8% (still much lower than .com).

So again, this is not about putting down .com. But it is about having a conversation based in reality. Dotcom is a great brand and a core foundation of the internet’s functionality. However, .com offers no more safety from malware and other abuses than do .INFO, .US, .BIZ or the other leading alternative tld’s.

The McAfee study is deep and very interesting. I recommend that domainers and other industry professionals read this important study and further their understanding of tld strengths and weaknesses. We need honest & accurate information about all tld’s in the domain name industry & marketplace. What we don’t need are cybersquatters, lies and false impressions presented as facts. That’s a disservice to everyone.

Internet Domains malware, tld

For the weekend 11/26/09 through Sunday 11/29/09, PremiumDomains.US will be offering 20% off of domain names priced $499 or less, and 30% off of domain names priced from $500 to $999.

Domain name categories cover -> real estate, business, medical, legal, geodomains, hotels, and keywords. Please use the domain sales page “Contact us”  link to indicate your desire to purchase a particular domain (shown below)

Extensions covered are mostly (.info | .US | .biz ), but including some (.com | .net | .org | .TV).

The direct links to the sales lists are here:

 20% off $499 or less  |  30% off $500 – $999

Internet Domains

AdMob is a top advertising platform for the mobile internet and Google is buying them for $750 million. The acquisition will provide Google with an immediate 30-40% of mobile advertising market share as stated in this Bloomberg article on the forthcoming purchase.

Many of the proposed ads will be delivered inside of iPhone apps available to mobile users. Typically in the form of a banner located at the bottom of the app or page. Ads will also be embedded in search results for popular products searched online.

Obviously fueling Google’s move is the incredible growth in mobile internet. CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt, is quoted as saying …

Our mobile revenue is growing faster than our regular revenue

The AdMob acquisition is Google’s largest since the buyout of YouTube for $1.65 billion in 2006. Google is also hiring again in preparation for their expansion into mobile internet advertising.

For more information, read this open letter to the public by Omar Hamoui, Founder and CEO of AdMob. Interesting in Omar’s comments is his statement about how slowly mobile advertising initially proceeded. He attributes rapid growth to the introduction of the iPhone.

The official mobile web address of the internet is .mobi. For information on mobile web addresses, visit www.mtld.mobi.

.MOBI domain names for sale -> PremiumDomains.US

.MOBI Domain Names, Internet Domains .mobi, AdMob, advertising

Ancestry.com has launched an initial public offering (IPO) and raised $100 million from the sale of 7.4 million shares. The website is reported to have over one million paying subscribers, and they have few other relevant competitors operating in this area of the market.

Ancestry was founded in 1983 and employ approximately 600 people. The company has said it may use a portion of its proceeds to expand through acquisitions and investments.

The stock trades on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol, ACOM. Ancestry have grown their online business through the sale of birth certificates and marriage records. Total revenue for 2008 was $197.6 million.

It’s been quite awhile since we have heard of an online company doing an IPO. Sounds like Ancestry.com put themselves in a good position through useful products and steady growth.

Not long ago, #1 domain name registrar GoDaddy.com came close to initiating their own IPO, but they pulled back when the larger economy started to experience problems associated with the mortgage crisis and general negative investment sentiment.

Internet Domains, Site Development ancestry, IPO