Your Own .Babe, .Baby or .PlayBoy

How to Have your very Own .Babe, .Baby or .PlayBoy

We all know that Dot Com (.com) has dominated the internet since the beginning of internet. Very few people would prefer to have Dot Net (.net) for their domain name because for one simple reason- we are used to Dot Com. Have you ever heard of Dot Net Burst? No of course. We only heard of Dot Com Burst. There are times when we use .org, .edu, .uk, .my etc too. But those kind of domain names shall be used with right intention. Example, most universities would have .edu for their website, and if your websites intend to target your very own country only, then .uk, .my, .sg, .cn , .de etc may sounds logically.

Few days ago, while I was on the flight back from China, I came across an article on Financial Times talking about battle for online naming rights. It caught my attention and I am sure it is something worth sharing here.

Early next year, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (Icann), the body that oversees the internet’s structure, will make it possible to create hundreds of new top-level domain names to rival .com, .net and .org. Dozens of businesses and community organisations are looking to take advantage of the change, with names such as .sport, .news, .nyc, .movies and others up for grabs.

Currently, there are 21 generic top-level domain names that are tightly controlled by a handful of companies. There are also 255 country domains, such as .uk and .de, often run by a government or government-approved organisation.

However, it is expected that from early next year, any company or group with $185,000 (€150,000, £125,000) for the application fee and a credible business plan will be able to apply for a new top-level domain.

Applicants have to submit information to Icann proving they have the financial and technical capabilities to run a top-level internet domain. After initial checks, applications will be made public on Icann’s website and anyone can comment or raise objections, which will be considered before rights to the domain name will be granted. The process is likely to take several months.

In broad terms, there are three different types of applicant: existing businesses with trademarks; special interest groups; and entrepreneurs looking to build new ventures around domain names.

Businesses could, for example, create domains like .coke or .nike. Canon, the Japanese technology company, announced plans earlier this year to create .canon. The company said this would help it create more memorable internet addresses for marketing purposes. Owning their own domain could also, for example, help brand owner prevent cybersquatters using their name for bogus websites.

Having your very own domain name could also give you freedom to choose the jurisdiction under which you web activities fall. In 2008, for example, a Kentucky court ordered the forfeiture of 141 gambling websites that it said were in violation of state laws. The case has still not been fully resolved. If your business is based on .com, which is run by a US company, it can’t hold off forever against US court orders. For gambling, drinks or tobacco companies, running your own registry from the jurisdiction of your choosing might be a pretty good idea.

Regional or ethnic groups are also interested in buying domains they can use to help bolster identity and community. The king of Zululand, for example, is keen to buy .zulu. Groups are also planning to create .nyc, .berlin and .london.

In Barcelona, for example, you see all over town websites for .cat, for Catalonia. It has been a great success for regional identity.

While many of the geographic bids will be run on a not-for-profit basis, the entrepreneurs see an opportunity to create a profitable business. For example, .blog or .shop could be a domain name that thousands of businesses and individuals want to sign up to, generating substantial revenues for the owner.

To get a sense of the potential size of the market, Verisign, which currently runs the .com and .net domains, charges about $7 for each registration and had more than 90m names at the end of 2009. It made $159m from name services in the fourth quarter of 2009.

Calculations such as these enabled Top Level Domain Holdings to list on London’s Aim stock exchange. It has raised $7m-$8m from investors including London and Capital, the wealth management company, and has a market value of £20.5m ($30.4m, €24.7m) even before any domain names have been allocated.

So you still want to pay for your own domain name like http://AddyKho.com? If you want to get it for free, then check out HostMonster. You will be given a FREE domain name of your choice if you register your hosting with them. It only costs you $5.95 per month (no more $6.95) for the hosting package, less than a mean of KFC or Burger King.

Just to share with you the Cost of owning your very own domain name like .babe, .baby or .playboy:

● Application fee to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers: $185,000.
● Annual fee to Icann: $25,000. For domains with more than 50,000 registered names, there will be an additional fee of 25 cents for each name above 50,000.
● Consultancy and lawyers’ fees to help with applications process: $25,000-$50,000.
● Monthly cost of running the internet domain: $10,000-$30,000 depending on complexity.
● Applicants will also have to answer 50 questions set by Icann to prove their “good standing” and ability to run a top-level domain registry.

So for you and me, forget about all the figures and hassle above. Just head to HostMonster and grab yourself a FREE domain name for your website.

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