I don’t know about you but I’m getting really tired of some new gTLD registries treating domain investors as second-class citizens. So how are investors treated in this manner?

It starts with language. There will be statements from registries such as, “We want to see real usage of our extension.” This suggests that domain investors who park a domain or use it for some other purpose aren’t doing so for legitimate business reasons. This is the height of arrogance by the registries!

I want to put registries that speak in this manner on notice that domain monetisation in any form (traffic, selling domains etc.) IS a legitimate business model and to change their disparaging language. In fact, if it wasn’t for the domain investment community many of the registries would be drowning in a bath of red ink……so don’t bite the hand that’s feeding you!

I was recently speaking with a registry and they proudly espoused the fact they had such a large “actual” use of their extension compared to others. When you really think about it what they were saying was that domain investors don’t use their domains. This couldn’t be further from the truth!

Domain investors have the right use their domains in any manner they wish. Because a domain doesn’t have a fancy website doesn’t mean the domain isn’t important for the investor. It could be they are in the middle of a negotiation to sell the domain for a premium, monetising the domain traffic, using it for an email address or plan on building it into a profitable business. That’s the owners prerogative and their own business.