Squatters Are Screwed; Nobody Cares If Your Domain Has That Hot New Suffix

A quote from the Fast Company Article: "To top it off, domain names are already something of a recession-proof business, making squatting an even more attractive prospect, according to Forbes. And when we discuss buying and selling domains, we're only talking the first tier of monetization; many squatters make their bread off of people who navigate directly to a domain expecting to find a company or service, only to be hit with a squatter's ads. The ROI on ads like these can be terrific, but with a huge influx of new domains flooding the market, returns will only be worthwhile for big organizations working on a long-tail model. That will cut out small-time squatters and lead to bigger, shadier registrars and squatters. And that will mean that the next landmark cyber squatting suit will pit a Fortune 500 company against an even bigger, richer opponent."

OF: Jason is right in his response showcased below. With few exceptions beyond CC TLD and dotNet or Org, or dotTV with quality video programming and brand equity, extensions other then dotCOM are doomed to failure.

Via Jason Kincaid TechCrunch

Quick, name three significant web sites that have domain extensions that end in .me or .tv. Having trouble? Sure, there are a few of them out there (kyte.tv and Buddy.tv come to mind, but I can’t think of any major .me’s). For all of the hype surrounding these extensions at launch, they’ve largely failed to deliver.

Earlier today Chris Dannen at FastCompany wrote a post titled “How 2009 Will Spur The Rebirth Of Cyber Squatting“. In it, Dannen writes about the beginning of a new age of domain squatting, as ICANN (the organization that handles domain name registrations) begins accepting applications for new domain name suffixes. He posits that with the emergence of new extensions like “.nyc” or “.law” these squatters will be given a new lease on life, with a nearly endless number of possible domains to plunder. Legitimate companies, likewise, will have to register as many domains as they can in the hopes of fending off sites like “Microsoft.sux”.

Fortunately, Dannen is wrong. Some overzealous companies may still go to the trouble of snatching up as many domains as they can, but it will be for naught.

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