WEST PALM BEACH, FL - Nearly two decades ago, my local newspaper at the time, Newsday, ran a front-page story in its Money & Careers section titled “A Domain Name Is Born.” The article spotlighted a fascinating emerging trend: forward-thinking parents reserving web addresses for their newborns - sometimes before the child was even born. I snapped a photo of the front cover back in 2007, struck by how the digital world was starting to influence even baby names. I grabbed … [Read more...]
Increasing Corporate Confidence Equals Bull Market for Premium Domain Names
WEST PALM BEACH, FL – The domain name industry is experiencing a surge in high-value sales this year, likely driven by renewed corporate spending confidence and increased demand for premium digital assets. Industry data and market activity suggest that 2025 could be one of the most active and lucrative years ever recorded in the secondary domain market. According to DNJournal, pretty-much 'the' single leading authority on publicly reported domain name … [Read more...]
Near Identical Domain Used To Scam Over $800,000 With Wire For Real Estate Deal
AUSTRALIA - A South Australian woman narrowly avoided a complete financial disaster after falling victim to a sophisticated business email compromise (BEC) scam that led to the loss of over $800,000. Authorities have since managed to recover a significant portion of the stolen funds, shedding light on the growing threat of cyber fraud in real estate transactions. The victim, who had been in the process of purchasing a property, received what appeared to be a legitimate … [Read more...]
The End of an Era: Whois Lookup Service Fades Into History, Replaced by RDAP
WEST PALM BEACH, FL - In a significant shift for the internet's infrastructure, the decades-old Whois system is being phased out, making way for its modern successor: the Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP). This transition marks the end of an era for one of the internet's most recognizable tools and ushers in a new chapter in how domain registration data is accessed and managed. For years, Whois has been the go-to resource for querying domain name registration … [Read more...]
Identity Digital Takes Over Management, Marketing of .AI Domains for Government
BELLEVUE, WA. - Domain name registrar and registry services provider Identity Digital officially took over the management and marketing last week of the internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) .AI for the Government of Anguilla, a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean whose ccTLD has gained considerable popularity in recent years with members of the artificial intelligence community. For years the small island country has been reaping a profit from the rising … [Read more...]
Shopify Snaps Up Pair of Country Code Top Level Domains for Over $500,000
OTTAWA, CA - Shopify Inc., Canada's leading technology company, has acquired the domain names Shop.ca and Shop.us from Toronto-based EMERGE Commerce Ltd. for approximately $500,000. These domains now redirect to Shopify's Shop App website, a marketplace designed as a "digital shopping assistant" that allows users to search for products and brands, make purchases, and track shipments. The original Shop.ca launched in 2011, positioning itself as "Canada’s largest online … [Read more...]
Annual Number of Domain Name Registrations Remains Flat at End of 2024
LOS ANGELES, CA - According to end-of-the-year roundups, the number of domain name registrations that took place during the course of 2024 remained essentially flat when compared to the year prior, indicating that growth within the industry has stagnated to a degree following the increased demand brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. There were 362.3 million domain names registered at the end of the fourth quarter of 2024 according to the most recent Domain Name … [Read more...]
Namecheap Publishes Results Naming Highest TLD, Domain Registrations for 2024
PHOENIX, AZ - One of the most well-known domain registrars in the world, Namecheap, has released the results of a study outlining the highest number of domains registered through its service in the Top-Level Domain (TLD) as well as National Domain categories for the year 2024. Namecheap’s report notes that the most popular TLD registered with the company in 2024, unsurprisingly, was .COM, which took a commanding lead with 3,661,899 registrations. The number two slot ended … [Read more...]
Senator Elizabeth Warren Calls for Antitrust Investigation into Domain Registrar Verisign
WASHINGON, D.C. - Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is claiming that internet domain registrar Verisign is a “monopoly” and is subsequently demanding that an antitrust investigation be carried out against the company. Working in conjunction with Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), Warren sent a letter last week to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) that accuses the top-level domain (TLD) market of being tightly controlled by Verisign, whom she claims … [Read more...]
Reddit Community, Unstoppable Domains Partner to Launch .MOON Blockchain Domain
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - The 8.8 million users of Reddit’s r/cryptocurrency community have partnered up with internet registrar Unstoppable Domains to launch the first-ever Reddit community-based blockchain Top-Level Domain (TLD), .MOON. Built on the Polygon blockchain, .MOON will enable the crypto community members of Reddit to interact with more than 865 blockchain applications and wallets, in addition to allowing them to establish digital identities with which to do … [Read more...]
Chat.com Purchased by Artificial Intelligence Company OpenAI for Over $15 Million
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - It was revealed this week that “chat.com” was purchased by San Francisco, California-based artificial intelligence (AI) research organization OpenAI for over $15 million, marking the third time the domain has changed hands in just two years. HubSpot founder Dharmesh Shah originally purchased Chat.com last year for $15.5 million; he then flipped it for an unspecified amount reported to be “well over $15 million” – with the entrepreneur writing at the … [Read more...]
Domain Days Dubai Set To Take Place At Marriott Resort Palm Jumeirah, Nov 5-6
WEST ASIA - Domain Days Dubai 2024 is set to take place at the Marriott Resort Palm Jumeirah on November 5-6, 2024. This will be the second edition of the event, aimed at professionals in the domain, hosting, and digital asset sectors across the Middle East and Africa. The conference will feature 40 speakers, attracting around 200 attendees from over 100 companies. Key topics will include domain name management, auctions, and monetization strategies, with a special focus on … [Read more...]
These Countries Are Beniffting Big from Their Distinctive Top-Level Domains
PALM BEACH, FL -The rise in prominence of artificial intelligence in the tech industry has proven to be a significant boon for Anguilla, which has seen a huge spike – and along with it, a lucrative revenue stream – from companies and organizations seeking to register the small Caribbean island nation’s top-level domain (TLD) of “.AI.” This development has been making headlines in the press, but Anguilla isn’t the only country with a TLD that is desired across the globe for … [Read more...]
Following Initial Early Non-Public Release Period, .MUSIC TLD Now Available
LOS ANGELES, CA - Following a brief period of time last year when the new “.MUSIC” Top-Level Domain (TLD) – a domain for artists and those adjacent of the music community – was made available for a limited number of select applicants, the domain is now freely available for public registration, first come, first served. .MUSIC first launched in September 2023, initially offering a 30-day period between September 11 through November 15 when trademark holders could register … [Read more...]
GoDaddy or Namecheap: Which Registrar Should You Use to Buy an .AI Domain?
PHOENIX, AZ - With the boom of the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution the talk of the technology industry – both for good and bad – the demand for the .AI domain has skyrocketed. Originally an obscure country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for the small Caribbean island of Anguilla, it has spiked in popularity with tech companies looking to cash in on the AI craze, making it one of the most popular extensions out there currently. That being said, the US-based GoDaddy … [Read more...]