On DomainingTips, I do everything humanly possible to present a fair and balanced perspective when it comes to gTLDs or anything else for that matter. There are definitely positive aspects associated with the new extensions, I’ve referred to them through some of my previous posts and will continue to do so. The same principle is valid when it comes to the negative ones.
Today, I’d like to refer to something that in my opinion represents the biggest mistake made with new gTLDs.
Let me start by asking you something.
What do you think about the fact that there is a Dot Accountant gTLD *and* a Dot Accountants (plural) gTLD?
What about Dot Career and Dot Careers?
Dot Coupon and Dot Coupons?
Dot Tour and Dot Tours?
… the list could go on and on.
I just don’t get it.
Up until this point, there was a low two figure number of gTLDs. Dot com, net, org, info, biz and a few more… you could almost count them using the fingers on your hands + feet.
Some people thought that adding more would be a good idea.
Sure, why not.
Lots more?
Again, sure!
But didn’t things get taken a bit too far by allowing both the singular and the plural version of a certain word to be used as a gTLD?
I’m sure it isn’t hard to imagine just how much confusion this will cause:
Best.Accountant or Best.Accountants?
Best.Career or Best.Careers?
Best.Coupon or Best.Coupons?
Best.Tour or Best.Tours?
… you get the point.
This is just an opinion but I don’t think allowing both the singular and the plural version was a good idea.
In fact, I’d say this is the biggest new gTLD mistake by far.
Another mistake (or should I say another version of the previous one) was allowing extensions that are waaaaaay too similar to coexist.
For example dot law, dot legal, dot attorney and dot lawyer.
Isn’t that a bit too much?
Wouldn’t it have been a better idea to simply pick one, for example dot law and leave it at that when it comes to the legal industry’s new gTLD?
I mean the idea of expanding the Internet gTLD-wise is interesting.
It’s definitely a historic event and it’s a privilege to be here, not just witnessing it but also writing about it in detail.
However in my opinion, the biggest mistake was taking things too far by allowing extensions which will surely end up causing confusion to coexist. The expansion of the Internet is a good thing but as a conclusion, I’d say this situation makes it clear that too much of a good thing can have negative effects 🙂
February 24th, 2014 at 6:01 pm
@Andrei,
Gee, there is no moral equivalence to the negative and positive posts you are making Re: nGTLD.
It seems to me the negatives above are heavier than lead, compared to the ‘positives’ you posted earlier on the new G’s.
I believe one of the ‘positives’ was that, New gTLDs will Have Reseller Market Potential.
If it’s a see-saw, These negatives will flip the positives across the Atlantic ocean!
Compare them.
February 24th, 2014 at 6:16 pm
@Domenclature.com: in my opinion, there’s definitely money to be made if you invest in the right domains but the process of figuring out what to buy and what to stay away from is extremely complex.
It would be great if things were so simple that a “positives vs. negatives” post would be enough to draw a 100% foolproof conclusion. Unfortunately however, that’s not the case.
I don’t know what will happen in the future.
Neither do you.
Neither does anyone else.
Through my posts, I try to present most/all of the relevant positive as well as negative arguments so that you guys are in a good position to make informed decisions. I don’t believe in “one size fits all” strategies and it’s impossible for me to determine what the best approach in your case is because:
I don’t know what your current domain portfolio looks like.
I don’t know what your budget is.
I don’t know what your financial situation is.
I don’t know what your risk tolerance is.
… the list could go on and on.
That’s why I constantly (maybe even obsessively) repeat the fact that there’s no such thing as a 100% foolproof “one size fits all” strategy.
The only thing I can do is try to present the most important positive as well as negative arguments in an objective manner. I wish I could tell you that there’s an easier way to make a decision but unfortunately, there just isn’t.
February 24th, 2014 at 6:56 pm
@Andrei,
Let’s do it this way: forget about domain TLDs, let’s use beauty pageants instead. I’ll list the positives for ladies beauty pageant, and you list the negatives, then we decide if it’s a good thing; here we go:
1. Beauty pageants affords young girls to express themselves freely.
2. Beauty pageants allow young girls to learn how to stay calm under pressure, speak clearly and command an audience.
3. Competition teaches young women how to lose gracefully.
Your turn.
February 24th, 2014 at 6:59 pm
Some folk have a vested interest in bringing down the new gtld’s, the one thing about life that is constant is ……change
February 25th, 2014 at 2:42 am
@Domenclature.com: unfortunately, such an analogy is impossible given the fact that there are considerably more variables involved when it comes to new gTLDs.
Will end users adopt them?
Will registries be profitable?
How likely are they to be liquid on the reseller market?
… I could think of enough questions to fill 10 pages easily 🙂
That’s just one dimension of the problem, questions about new gTLDs.
Add another dimension, questions about your financial situation as mentioned in my previous comment (how big your budget is, what your risk tolerance is etc.), and things become even more complicated 🙂