Thies Lindenthal at MIT: Full Time Research into Domain Markets

I want to share some news from Thies Lindenthal, the creator of IDNX, “the first scientific grade price index for Internet domain names,” operated by Lindenthal with extensive sales data from  Sedo. Using IDNX, you can see how domain names have performed since 2006 and compare the performance of the domain market to that of the NASDAQ 100.

Thies recently announced that he has begun a post-doctoral studies program at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he will be researching the domain market in depth. The goal is of his research is produce empirical papers on several research questions, such as:

• How big is the demand for domains? Which fundamental factors determine the demand for domains?
• What are launch strategies of new gTLDs?
• What determines a successful new gTLD launch?

As far as I know, Lindenthal’s research will be the first and most extensive of its kind, and I am sure it will provide considerable value to those of us operating in the space. It should also provide guidance to gTLD operators and those who wish to participate in future gTLD applications.

Lindenthal offered additional insight into his post doctoral work:

The postdoc is with MIT’s Center for Real Estate. It means full time research into primary and secondary domain markets. And, obviously, the launch of new gTLDs. I will collaborate with prof. Albert Saiz and prof. David Geltner, who are leading urban economists.

I am looking forward to learning more about Lindenthal’s research in the future, and I anticipate that it’s going to be used by everyone from domain registrars, brokerages, and domain investors.