On .AFRICA Legal Representations & Costs

I thought the .AFRICA case was over but it seems not. This is an extract of how much it cost the opponent to complain...for fraud?

Extracted from complainant's latest publication entitled "Battle Continues, as Fraud Claims Can't be Buried!":

The cost of the legal fees for the past decade including the IRP and trail court efforts plus other legal consulting fees amount to nearly USD 2million. The most recent appeal cost by Dechert was an agreed fixed fee of USD 170,000.00 which was exponential compared to other similar firms. Even so, Dechert still wanted to renegotiate a fee hike for USD500,000, just before the oral argument, which DCA thought was unethical and did not pay. The trial cost with two bench trials was USD 1,000,000.00 plus. Everyone got paid for what they asked for, except DCA. This is without even considering the over USD 600,000.00 spent on project investment. So, there was no justice in DCA walking away with no relief.

More here. 

Some idea about .MUSIC

We're all now waiting for the .MUSIC new gTLD to launch and many predict it will be a success. If I was in the music business, I'd definitely consider changing my domain name to one of these. Of course I'd keep my old domain name but changing to a ".music" one would be my move.

Constantine Roussos

New gTLDs are ten years old now and they are here to stay; the "music" sign is universal, it is not French, but it is know from all ;-) so chances are high that such a domain name extension meets with adoption.

I don't follow many people on Twitter, but I follow .MUSIC founder Constantine Roussos. I once met him in the UK and the guy had a strong fight in front of him with seven more applicants who wanted to create this same registry and I was pretty sure that he wouldn't win that war: the guy had Amazon and Google in front of him...

...but he won: the official .MUSIC website says: "Supporting organizations with members representing over 99% of music consumed globally". What a success.

The idea

Since this .MUSIC enters in the history of Internet and Constantine Roussos is probably working hard with multiple partners to guarantee its success, I'd be interested in pushing this idea to his Registry: as a potential consumer of a ".music" domain name (I play the triangle*), I'd be interested in knowing what is the number of the domain name I just created.

Some luxury items enter the history because they are numbered and I would very much like to know if triangle.music (for example) was the number 3 or number 10 domain name created in the history of internet. Domain names are created at the registry in a certain order, I am sure this number must not be a difficult one to extract.  

I hope he reads me.

* please don't register triangle.music, I want to be first to register that one.

New gTLDs : fast News

I noticed a few news recently:

• The .CSC dotBrand new gTLD was terminated.
• Two Trademark Claims Period were changed on two Amazon IDN new gTLDs.
• The .BOT new gTLD changes date for its Trademark Claims Period.
•   The .大众汽车 new gTLD was revoked.
• Verisign on .WEB: "VeriSign believes Afilias' application is without merit".
• A Public Accelerator-Incubator announced that it acquired a TLD.
• Google does not factor in TLDs directly when ranking websites. So, your coffee shop will not be penalized for choosing “.coffee”.
• New gTLD updates "for the French": Jovenet.fr

Check all these updates on the new gTLD group I moderate on LikedIn (2,900 subscribers).

90 more dotBrand domains created in October 2021

New .BRAND domain name creations have increased since January 2021:

1. January 2021: 16,075
2. February 2021: 16,864 (+789)
3. March 2021: 17,111 (+247)
4. April 2021: 17,245 (+134)
5. May 2021: 17,404 (+159)
6. June 2021: 17,544 (+140)
7. July 2021: 17,614 (+70)
8. August 2021: 17,699 (+85)
9. September 2021: 17,854 (+155)
10. October 2021: 17,944 (+90)

All reports are updated at the end of each month in the "new gTLD reports" section of Jovenet Consulting.

Sunrise Period start for .TVS

A new Sunrise Period starts:

• Sunrise Period: 26 October 2021 to 25 November 2021;
• Trademark Claims Period: 29 November 2021 to 27 February 2022.

I thought the .TVS new gTLD was a dotBrand but that is not how it is listed on the ICANN website: "always trust ICANN" ;-)

The .ABUDHABI new gTLD is here

The .ABUDHABI new gTLD seems to be launching.#newgtlds #abudhabi https://t.co/wr8Gfzb84I

— Jean Guillon (@jeanguillon) September 1, 2021

List of new gTLD Providers for "Round 2"

The next Round of the ICANN new gTLD program is coming and - just like it was the case in the previous Round - it will probably be very difficult to know what to do for any new comer to the program: where to start from? Who to talk to? What level of service? What price? Etc...

A list of Service Provider

There are not so many service providers worldwide but those I know - and some I have already worked with - can be very good at what they do. This list of providers will probably help many to learn more from the ICANN new gTLD program and help for consultations.

Small Reminder: do not tell the string you plan to apply for unless you have chosen your provider. Signing a NDA does not mean that you have to tell your string with the people you plan to talk to about your project.

I will promote and update that list on social networks and LinkedIn.

Is 2025 the year for new gTLDs ?

The ICA Business Intelligence Briefing on the Second Round of New gTLDs is a webinar with questions and estimates from ICANN insiders. You will hear about:

• The possible number of applications;
• Date when your budget should be organized for the next round;
• The famous "when" question;
• Pre-launch questions;
• Questions on the difference between the first AGB (remember that word, it stands for "Applicant GuideBook") and the next one;
• Should you discuss your project around ? ;-)
• A .CRYPTO new gTLD?
• The application fees;
• Global budget to consider;
• The end of private Auctions?
• A peace of advice for future applicants.

Listen to this Podcast

If you have the time to listen this long video, you will learn many questions that one should have prior to submitting an application. Some answers from ICANN insiders I agree with, some I think are complete dreamers, and some I understand that no one has ANY idea about the answer but the questions are very good ones.
You will also hear about things you absolutely can't understand because the vocabulary used is for people from the new gTLD industry. 

This is the typical exchange from service providers who definitely WANT the next round to happen tomorrow but who are now much more cautious with their answers because we all remember what happened in the first round with a launch date that came very late.

Frankly speaking, this one hour video is a compete summary of all the boring ICANN working group meetings that very few can attend and follow up with. I recommend.

A good video to watch.

  

70 more "dotBrand" domains created in July 2021

New .BRAND domain name creations have increased since January 2021:

1. January 2021: 16,075
2. February 2021: 16,864 (+789)
3. March 2021: 17,111 (+247)
4. April 2021: 17,245 (+134)
5. May 2021: 17,404 (+159)
6. June 2021: 17,544 (+140)
7. July 2021: 17,614 (+70)
8. August 2021: coming.

All reports are updated at the end of each month in the "new gTLD reports" section of Jovenet Consulting.

140 more "dotBrand" domains created in June 2021

New .BRAND domain name creations have increased since January 2021:

1. January 2021: 16,075
2. February 2021: 16,864 (+789)
3. March 2021: 17,111 (+247)
4. April 2021: 17,245 (+134)
5. May 2021: 17,404 (+159)
6. June 2021: 17,544 (+140)
7. July 2021: coming

All reports are updated at the end of each month in the "new gTLD reports" section of Jovenet Consulting.

Keep an eye on GoDaddy Registry for the next Round of the ICANN new gTLD program. Here is why.

The next round of the ICANN new gTLD program is coming and applicants will need to select a backend registry provider. This publication is not a paid one and I am not pointing to one specific provider. This is just "what I would do" if I needed to select a service provider in the two cases below:

1. A backend Registry for a .BRAND new gTLD application;
2. A backend Registry for a new gTLD project dedicated to selling domain names, whatever type of application: community, generic or geographic.

Which .BRAND new gTLD Backend registry provider?

I often wonder why Trademarks have to pay more for the exact same service as other standard users. In this example, I am referring to registries who sell domain names. My explanation here is that the second type of applicants usually has a team in place with knowledge and it is not necessary to pay for a certain number os services a .BRAND applicant would pay for. This is why the first type of applicant should pay more: the new gTLD procedure - whatever type of application - is one that requires knowledge in the long run. When the knowledge is not there...someone should pay for it. I guess it is why .BRAND applicant types should pay...more.

When it comes to the price, technically speaking, it is the exact same at the backend registry level. If you have one paid created domain name or 1 million, the process is the same so the price should be to me per domain name: it is the type of pricing I would look for as an applicant. Price can actually be below $1 per domain name created.

I would personally hunt for the cheapest offer at any provider with references. I am familiar with providers' blabla and as long as mine can help me reach out to the interface where I can press the button and create my personalized domain names, OK with me. I would also be careful with things such as ICANN reporting, compliance, monitoring, and escrow: my provider should be able to deal with these questions (note that some have a cost). Also, most backends can help you connect directly at your existing registrar so the technique should not be a problem.

Which new gTLD Backend Registry provider to sell domain names?

What I am going to write should probably not please everyone but this would be my way of thinking if I had to select a backend registry. There is one thing that I noticed about the first round of the ICANN new program: none of the applicants projections were there in terms of sales volumes. A new gTLD applicant who wants to "sell" domain names should select a backend registry that has the capacity to help him sell; and selling is very hard to achieve when creating a new registry. No, you will not sell one million domain names per year in the next round.

There are already many known names in the industry: many ccTLD providers offer such service, Core, Centralnic...but there is one that I am really following closely for this one very specific reason: selling should be the number one objective.

In the first round of new gTLDs and even today, all registries wanted to have their domain names on the number one selling platform worldwide: a Registrar. A Registrar is where domain names are sold to final end users (Registrants).

Yes, there is one major Registrar and it is the number one in terms of volumes. When a registry sells domain names, his domains need lots of visibility and the best visibility to receive is to be present on that number one selling platform worldwide. The problem here is that there are lots of registries, some with niche extensions of no interest, and ALL want to exist at THIS Registrar and at the same time. This Registrar is GoDaddy, it has a small frontpage but it serves the world: it is there where you want to be to sell your domain names fast.

Good news, following the acquisition of another provider, this Registrar is now a Backend Registry too and this is recent.

If a Registry (which includes the choice of a backend registry provider) is not allowed to differentiate Registrars in terms of pricing or whatever other service, it does not mean that it cannot instantly allow his client to appear at his Registrar and it is precisely this that I would negotiate with GoDaddy Registry if I were to become their client: "sign me in but have me at your Registrar in the long run, and on front page for at least a few months".

Remember that not all domain names extensions are available at GoDaddy and there is a reason for this:

• There are too many extensions with low volumes (which also means that they are not profitable enough for GoDaddy),
• Be on front page of GoDaddy is probably not a free service so why would GoDaddy bother about an extension...which is hosted at another backend registry provider? Wouldn't you focus on your client's success instead of those of another provider? Of course you would.
• Also and that is very important, GoDaddy can generate an income thank to its famous Registrar but also now, thank to its backend registry service so again: why bother about adding an extension to its Registrar platform where it would earn on the Registrar service only (selling domain names)?
• Adding a new extension requires time and effort.

What Backend Registry offer I would consider:

1. A full offer where the backend registry also submits and follows the submission of my application at the ICANN: not a third party nor a lawyer with no ICANN knowledge.
2. Knowledge of my provider about a possible objection and how to face it.
3. A capacity to accredit my extension at the backend registry's Registrar(s) if it has any. Note that many backend registries are not public Registrars and Registrars are the mandatory network to sell domain names.
4. A provider who has passed the ICANN technical accreditation: if there are more than 1,000 applications in the next round, no one knows if all applications will be submit and validated. What about those new backend registry providers who are not yet accredited by the ICANN: wouldn't it be less risky to select one that is already accredited?

Note that this is a personal thought on how I would think to select a backend registry provider. Since it is yet too early to submit an application, most offers are not available online and even when they will be, not everything will be written so there will be space to negotiate. I also hope this publication will help backend registries to build their offers. Note that some backend registries sold their business...but there are new comers approaching.

How exciting :-)

Just terminated: the .QVC new gTLD

Extract from "Registry Agreement between ICANN and QVC, Inc." written by lawyers of QVC, Inc:

"...We write to provide 180 days’ notice that QVC, Inc. (“QVC”) will terminate the Registry Agreement between ICANN and QVC, effective July 30, 2015 (the “Agreement”), pursuant to Article 4.4(b) of the Agreement. Accordingly, the Agreement will be fully terminated on October 9, 2021. 

We note that the “.qvc” Top-Level Domain (the “TLD”) was never used, and the only domain names on the TLD are those that were required by ICANN upon the creation of the TLD – XXX.qvc and XXX.qvc – both of which are owned by QVC. No additional domain names were ever created. Thus, pursuant to Article 4.5(ii) of the Agreement, ICANN may not transition operation of the TLD to a successor registry operator. Additionally, pursuant to Article 4.5(i) of the Agreement, we note that QVC has trademark rights over the name “QVC,” which is also the name of the TLD. A list of the trademark registrations including the name “QVC” owned by QVC, through its wholly owned subsidiary ER Marks, Inc., is attached as Exhibit A".

Extract from the Preliminary Determination by ICANN to Not Transition Operations of the .QVC gTLD (dated: 4 June 2021):

"On 26 April 2021, QVC, Inc. notified ICANN org of its intent to terminate the .QVC Registry Agreement entered into on 30 July 2015.

Pursuant to Section 4.4(b) of the Registry Agreement, Registry Operator may terminate the Registry Agreement for any reason upon one hundred eighty (180) calendar day advance notice.

Pursuant to the terms of Section 4.5 of the Registry Agreement, as modified by Section 6 of the Specification 13 (.Brand TLD Provisions), ICANN org consulted with QVC, Inc. to assess whether to transition operation of the .qvc top-level domain (TLD) to a successor Registry Operator.

Subject to an ongoing evaluation, ICANN org has made a preliminary determination that operation of the .qvc TLD need not be transitioned to a successor Registry Operator. ICANN org’s review and determinations regarding transition to a successor registry are subject to Section 4.5 of the Registry Agreement (as modified for a .Brand TLD). ICANN org’s preliminary determination to not transition the TLD to a successor Registry Operator is based on the following rationale:

1. .qvc qualifies as a .Brand TLD.
2. Transitioning the TLD is not necessary to protect the public interest.

In conformance with Section 4.5 of the Registry Agreement (as modified for a .Brand TLD), ICANN org may not delegate the TLD to a successor registry operator for a period of two years without the Registry Operator's consent, which shall not be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed.

Before releasing its final determination, ICANN org will consider input provided by interested parties via email. The deadline to submit input is 04 July 2021 – 23:59 UTC".

Dot. 

Catering new gTLDs in May 2021

We are in May 2021 and some domain name extensions in the Catering and Culinary businesses show a positive progression curve: it is not the case for all of these TLDs but basically, most have their registration volumes to develop.

The .BAR is open

Registration figures have literally exploded for the .BAR new gTLD: from a 133,284 registrations in January 2021, it kept growing to 355,437 in May 2021. This is high for such a small TLD and I wonder if the COVID has something to do with this.

Expensive food TLDs

There is a strange fashion which consists in paying a fortune for TLDs with one single domain name registration. The ICANN still shows delegated extensions with one or two domain name registration. For example, the .EAT and .FOOD are just there...waiting with no use. The .FOOD new gTLD still shows a GAC early warning...which's been there forever. I wonder if anybody somewhere cares about these TLDs in limbo. Come on...someone is paying for this?

Too perfect progression curve?

I once noticed that domain name registration volumes from multiple registry Donuts had a strange - almost exact and precise - progression curve which was too perfect to be true. Of course, this is just my imagination. Good point for this huge financial operation: their .CAFE - .COFFEE - .KITCHEN - .PIZZA - .RECIPES but .RESTAURANT have progressed in volume since January 2021.

The .FAGE dotBrand new gTLD

FAGE is about yogurt and shows an interesting use of its 62 domain name creations: most are dedicated to a country. For example, https://be.fage/ is for Belgium and https://fr.fage/ for France. All domain names are secured with a SSL certificate and I found no redirections to a legacy domain name extension (such as ".com"). This is clearly what I believe a dotBrand new gTLD is made for.

Catering IDN new gTLDs: a bad match

From the 20 Top-Level Domains of the Catering and Culinary new gTLD reports, two are IDNs which respectively demonstrate that IDN new gTLDs don't have their place in the modern world - at least in the Catering and Culinary businesses: both ".food" and ".restaurant" IDNs have had less than 100 registrations since the two applications were delegated by the ICANN many years ago.

159 more "dotBrand" domains created in May 2021

New .BRAND domain name creations have increased since January 2021:

1. January 2021: 16,075
2. February 2021: 16,864 (+789)
3. March 2021: 17,111 (+247)
4. April 2021: 17,245 (+134)
5. May 2021: 17,404 (+159)
6. June 2021: coming

All reports are updated at the end of each month in the "new gTLD reports" section of Jovenet Consulting.

Join the new gTLD Group on LinkedIn

2,850 members have already joined the new gTLD Group on LinkedIn where daily content is posted about the next round of the ICANN new gTLD program, ".BRAND" fresh news and updates from the industry.  

Looking for the right partner? Your future backend registry provider or new gTLD consultant? Looking for your next client? Interested in innovative new gTLD projects or updates about upcoming Registries

This group is the place to be: just check who has already subscribed ;-)

137 more "dotBrand" domains created in April 2021

New .BRAND domain name creations have increased since January 2021:

1. January 2021: 16,075
2. February 2021: 16,864
3. March 2021: 17,111
4. April 2021: 17,245
5. May 2021: coming

All reports are updated at the end of each month in the "new gTLD reports" section of Jovenet Consulting.

Technical Services Sr. Manager (gTLD Expertise)

Genuent is Hiring a Technical Services, Sr. Manager specializing in Domain Name System. This is a Direct-Hire/FTE position with a premiere client based in Los Angeles, CA. If you're a match, please reply or contact tsanchez[at]genuent.com.

Job Summary

The Technical Services Senior Manager is part of a group of gTLD technical experts. The Manager is primarily responsible for managing technical systems related to gTLD registries and registrars, and to provide technical feedback to other departments. The Manager is someone with years of experience in the technical side of a registry and/or registrar of domain names.

Key Responsibilities & Duties

• Provide Internet systems engineering and technical support (80-90% of the time) and manage technical projects and external relationships (10% of the time), to address operational issues impacting gTLD (generic Top-Level Domain) registries and registrars.
• Provide level 3 technical support and subject matter expertise to resolve complex systems engineering and technical issues.
• Serve as a technical resource on Internet system registry and registration services, Domain Name System (DNS) security issues, and Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs).
• Design technical protocols to facilitate the interaction between the Registries, Registrars, Data Escrow Agents, Trademark Clearing House (TMCH), etc.
• Provide technical oversight and advice for the gTLD registry accreditation/application process, and the evaluation and consideration of new services through the Registry Services Evaluation Process (RSEP).
• Manage technical projects involving other internal areas, contractors, and Internet community volunteers.
• Write detailed reports to document interactions with gTLD Registries and Registrars.
• Develop and implement processes to streamline operational activities.
• Guide efforts to integrate programs and processes.
• As needed, provide support to the Contractual Compliance team to facilitate gTLD Registry compliance with the technical aspects of agreements and policy, to the Policy team for implementation of new gTLD registry policies, and to other teams to resolve issues impacting gTLD Registries and Registrars.
• Answer questions and assist in the resolution of disputes with Internet registries, registrars and community members.
• Prepare detailed technical documentation, reports, presentations, and speeches for both internal and external audiences.
• From time to time, attend and participate in regional and international Internet technical forums and community meetings.
• Other duties as assigned or requested.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

• Broad knowledge and experience in Domain Name System (DNS), DNS Security Extensions (DNSSEC), Extensible Provisioning Protocol (EPP), WHOIS/RDAP, and Data Escrow standards.
• Demonstrated ability in at least one high-level programming language (e.g., Perl, Python, Java).
• Excellent skills as a power user of Unix systems.
• Very good English-writing skills in relation to technical documents.
• Experience using XLM and JSON.
• Bachelor's or equivalent degree in Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Information Systems, or related field, plus 10 years of progressive, post-baccalaureate experience in the job, or in a technical capacity with a Top-Level Domain (TLD) registry or domain name registrar.
• Alternatively, will accept a master's or equivalent degree in Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Information Systems, or related field, plus 5 years of experience in the job, or in a technical capacity with a Top-Level Domain (TLD) registry or domain name registrar.
• Ideally, experience with Internationalized Domain Names for Applications (IDNA).

Education and Experience Requirements

• Minimum of 10 years of experience with a bachelor's degree, or 5 years of experience with a master's degree, in Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Information Systems, or related field.
• Minimum 10 years of progressive work experience in _technical capacity with a Top-Level Domain (TLD) registry or domain name registrar.
• Values diversity and gives preference to candidates with demonstrated skills in languages in addition to proficient written and spoken English.

Working Conditions & Physical Requirements

• Work is performed in a normal office environment with limited privacy and some exposure to background noise.
• Work Location is Los Angeles.
• Willingness and ability to travel domestically and internationally 5% of the time.

Apply here.

247 more .BRAND domains created in March 2021

Below are the number of .BRAND domain names created since January 2021. These new domain names are dedicated to Trademarks only who submitted an Specification 13 application to the ICANN in the first round of the ICANN new gTLD program:

1. January 2021: 16,075
2. February 2021: 16,864
3. March 2021: 17,111
4. April 2021: coming.

Globally speaking, more of these domain names are used monthly.

All reports are updated at the end of each month in the "new gTLD reports" section of Jovenet Consulting.

.BRAND domain name registration volumes

For the past four years, I have edited new gTLD reports with a focus on volumes of domain name registered according to specific categories: "legal", "catering", "the automobile industry", etc... but I did not cover dotBrand Top-Level Domains: specification 13 applications from the ICANN new gTLD program dedicated to Trademarks and brands.

The listing is already up-to-date for the month of January 2021 and offers to check the number of domain name registered by .BRAND new gTLD applicants. It is a new report that I am launching in 2021.

The following months will also be made available and allow to check if a Trademark, operating its own domain name extension, creates more domain names or...less. 

All reports are updated at the end of each month in the "new gTLD reports" section of Jovenet Consulting.

New reconsideration request from .HOTEL applicant

This is how starts the reconsideration request from one of the multiple applicants for the .HOTEL new gTLD. The below was extracted from the request:

Description of specific action you are seeking to have reconsidered:

Board and/or Staff approval of Donuts Inc. acquisition of Afilias, Inc., without any transparent or apparently meaningful review nor provision of any opportunity for comment by affected stakeholders. The acquisition was announced1 on Nov. 23 (Thanksgiving week in the US) and apparently closed2 just 36 days later, on Dec. 29 (Christmas/NYE week).

The only mention in any ICANN Board “Resolution” is on Dec. 17, 2020 (published Dec. 21, 2020):3 "No Resolutions taken."

In the Preliminary Report published by the Board on Jan. 5, 2021, 4 there is only this note: "No Resolutions were taken. The Chair stated that the Afilias change of control approval request has been discussed by the Board, and that the ICANN President and CEO, or his designee(s), has the support of the Board to move forward on the request."

Download the full request here (PDF download).

Update: the .SPA new gTLD

The ICANN TLD startup information page was updated for the .SPA new generic Top-Level Domain (for domain names ending in ".spa", instead of ".com":

• Sunrise Period: 20 April 2021 to 20 May 2021;
• Trademark Claims Period: 01 July 2021 to 30 September 2021;
• Landrush - 26 May 2021 to 24 Jun 2021.

The official website states: ".spa is a Top Level Domain (TLD) owned by Asia Spa and Wellness Promotion Council (ASWPC) and supported by various international spa associations to help local spa operators build their presence online."

To register a domain name ending in ".spa", see here: www.nic.spa

Updated: .RUGBY and .BASKETBALL new gTLDs

The ICANN TLD startup information page was updated today with two new information concerning the .RUGBY and .BASKETBALL Top-Level domains:

1. .RUGBY (341 domain names created in total):
1. Trademark Claims Period: 01 June 2021;
2. Limited Registration Period: Community Priority Period - 5 Nov 2019 to 31 May 2021.
2. .BASKETBALL (328 domain names created in total):
1. Trademark Claims Period: 01 June 2021;
2. Limited Registration Period: LRP #4 - 21 Sep 2020 to 31 May 2021.

More details available here.

.NATIONWIDE and .ONYOURSIDE are terminated

Two more dotBrand new gTLDs were just terminated. The two Top-Level Domains concerned are:

1. .NATIONWIDE dotBrand new gTLD;
2. .ONYOURSIDE dotBrand new gTLD.

Both termination notices were sent by the Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company operating the TLDs the 12/11/2020. The Preliminary Determination by ICANN to Not Transition Operation of the gTLD is dated 25 January 2021.

Read the notice of termination (PDF download).

Which service provider will earn money in the next round of new gTLDs?

With so many dotBrand new gTLD providers, I start to wonder who (and how) is anyone going to earn money: these are my recent thoughts on the subject.

Less than $1 at the backend registry provider

Some providers offer the full package of solutions: new gTLD (dotBrand) consulting, a backend registry offer (mandatory in the ICANN new gTLD process), retail registrar/corporate registrar services (sometime both). With some domains being paid less than $1 per year at some backend registries, who but the ICANN, is going to earn any money:

1. The Premium domains' strategy? Not with dotBrands and I doubt it is a strategy to follow for generic TLDs, registration figures were definitey not there in the first round of the program and I don't believe the Bla-Bla from some registries.
2. Writing Applications? Check what's next, you're going to hate it!
3. Trademarks and other Brands applying for their dotBrand TLD should pay more per domain "because they can afford it?" Come on...if applying for a dotBrand new gTLD is not just the filling of a form with a price tag (including upcoming yearly costs), it does not mean that they should pay more for a low volume of domains created. A domain created at any backend registry provider costs the exact same than one being sold through the network of accredited Registrars.

Filling your dotBrand application...to be offered?

Many providers want their peace of the cake and to bring in clients...some are already offering the filling of the application for the next round of the ICANN new gTLD program! Note that there are conditions for such offers. In the first round, such service cost up to $90,000 at some providers and that cost did not necessarily include feasibility studies. As you can imagine...one dotBrand applicant might consider twice an offer when such cost can be "avoided".

What about Corporate Registrars?

Many Corporate Registrars subcontracted their clients application to external legal service providers in the first round and note that...IP Law Firm are not necessarily the best one to write your application: they can be very expensive with few knowledge about the ICANN new gTLD culture and from what I saw in the first round, many had NO IDEA about what they were doing. Have a look at the New gTLD Applicant Guidebook dated 4 June 2012, you understand what I am talking about.

If Registrars offer that service to their clients, I don't see - but the filling of the application and an annual operation fee (governance and reporting) - where they earn money? In the next round, things are completely different when choosing the right service provider: most of these costs can be negotiated...or offered. Since the COI (check the applicant guidebook or hit "coi icann" in Google) seems to be becoming history for .BRANDs new gTLDs, the filling of the application should become far easier and most existing providers now have templates to fill in your application: dotBtrand applicants will only need to explain what they want to do with their TLD - understand what they are going to pay on a yearly basis and who to -  and most providers already know what to write much better than clients themselves on the application.

What about external consultants?

I think this is where I stand and except offering consulting services to potential applicants on the best provider to select, for what service and at what price, I doubt there is any money to earn here but I am happy to explain all this in a personalized new gTLD SWOT Analysis ;-) According to your project, I'll point you to the right provider.

And if you want to invest in the next new gTLD innovation, ask us about Project "John Wolley".

Just updated (again): the .FORUM new gTLD

The ICANN just updated its sunrise details webpage for the .FORUM Top-Level Domain:

1. Sunrise Period: 16 November 2020 to 16 December 2020;
2. Trademark Claims Period: 02 March 2021 to 31 May 2021;
3. Limited Registration Period: Sunrise 2 - 11 Jan 2021 to 28 Feb 2021.

Olé !

New gTLD yearly snapshots since 2018

Since 2016, we've collected all Registries domain name registration volumes and have decided to offer these yearly reports for a fee.

Each yearly report contains a monthly snapshot (12 lists) of all domain names created for each new gTLD.

The yearly report is delivered as an Excel sheet containing 12 sheets (one per month), each listing all available new domain name extensions and the number of domain names created (or lost) during each month.

Our offer is available here.