The New GTLDs
By Gary McDowell Submitted On November 12, 2015
It's the new dawn of the internet with 600+ extensions to now choose from and invest in whether you are a consumer or a corporate but what do people think of it?
Well, at the moment the jury is still out but for every 'bang' of a new gTLD and some of them surprising like .guru there is a whimper for a .ceo and if you are a consumer or a corporate they are very different questions to pose.
One thing is for sure, the consumer is leading the way and the corporate is deciding to follow at the moment. This means that we're seeing more take-up during general availability phases (when restrictions are generally removed and trademark holders have had their exclusive period) and in fact this is quite normal. Is this really the person on the street making these purchases or the cyber-squatter/domainer?
I believe the true consumer is not really yet investing in the new extensions, why? Well because the true measure of success is what people do or do not do with their domain names and that means resolving websites to meaningful content. That in turn leads to changes in SEO rankings and breeds a cycle of success, the more meaningful your content, the more people visit it and the more people 'refer' to it, the larger the importance.
Are we truly seeing a change in the internet with all these things happening? The answer is no, not yet but I believe it's coming. We are seeing reservations, we are seeing the domainer start to take up the generic names and we are seeing the cyber-squatter but this again is all to be expected despite ICANN measures to aid with registrant verification and the trademark clearing house.
The large corporate has an excellent product to defend themselves in the Donuts and Rightside extensions with DPML (Domains Protected Marks List). This means that they can afford, to a degree, to sit back and take stock of what is happening, especially where 'popularity' is concerned.
Where there is no clear blocking option and the corporate has a defensive strategy, they have the right to reserve during the Sunrise phase with a TMCH. So a well organised corporate, with a thought through strategy is in a good place. For each well organised corporate there are 5-10 currently in not such a good place because it takes time, effort and will to want to get involved. The minimum team required as part of this process to be involved includes marketing, legal and IT.
The lack of 'popularity' is still providing most corporates with a reason to not get involved and herein lies the problem - it might be too late by the time they do get organised.
Back to the 'why' it's coming argument. We've now seen the release of .london, .nyc and .paris and for me there is undoubted appeal and undoubted need as a corporate to invest in these city codes. In the same way you might value a co.uk or an .fr they have very powerful messages when you link any industry to that location - think London or Paris fashion week, think tourism and travel, think commerce and luxury items.
Remember, inaction is not an option, Block, Buy, Monitor or ignore - extension by extension, make sure you know what your position should be and if in doubt, contact an expert who can help guide you through the minefield.
If you're looking for advice on how to create a domain name strategy around your company, brands or products, then Dotegy can help.https://dotegy.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Gary_McDowell/2208926