How About a Domain Name Revolution?
June 27, 2005 by SMD
Have you tried looking for a decent .com domain name lately?
Overall Domain Name Registrations at 76.9M Names
Global Registrations Rise Eight Percent Over Q4 2004; Growth Driven by Strong Global Economy, Growing Base of Internet Users, and online Advertising; China, Japan and South Korea Among Leaders in Worldwide Domain Registrations. [You can read all the stats on wwwcoder.com]
It’s getting pretty slim picking, let me tell you. You have to be lucky to come up with a three word domain name that has one or two keywords that match your target. I’ve seen people doing things like:Â widget-sale-.com or widget–sale.com. Silly. But it’s either that or something like widgetsale.xqz.co, and who’s going to remember that.
What I’m proposing is a gentle revolution. A mechanism whereby if you can prove to an independent party that you’re going to put the domain name to a better use than the current owner, then by paying that owner the value of the name, you get it. I mean it must be 50% of all decent domain names are spam sites and link farms. Let’s recycle those into useful cyberspace. Internet gentrification?
Okay so yes, I know I’m being silly, what I’m proposing ain’t democratic and all. Here’s a little treat for those of you still reading: while searching for others who feel similar to me [real journalists call it...uh...research...I...think] I discovered the whois.net expired domain list. Enter your keywords and get the list back…I actually discovered a couple that matched what I was searching for. Good—luck-to–you–too.
Update: There may be a 12 - 14 month banned from Google for previously registered domains so please do your own do diligence.
Gentrification…. had to look that one up. Webster says: “the process of renewal and rebuilding accompanying the influx of middle-class or affluent people into deteriorating areas that often displaces earlier usually poorer residents.” Hmmm… it fits like a glove. Outstanding wordsmithing on this site. Keep up the good work.