Will There Be Plural / Singular New gTLDs in Round 2

I think it’s pretty safe to assume that ICANN will eventually approve a second round of new gTLD applications. I don’t know when round 2 will happen, but if I was going to place a wager, I would bet there will be at least one subsequent round of applications. I was thinking about what types of new extensions might make up the applications since most of the “good” ones are probably already assigned or awaiting approval.

I had a thought that some new gTLD registries might apply for the plural or singular version of the registries they already manage. For example, perhaps Uniregistry could potentially apply for .Links or the .Club registry could apply for .Clubs. It certainly wouldn’t make sense in many cases, but I could see a few reasons for it.

Reason 1: Upselling and cross selling to current registrants could become a profit center. Customers who built a website on a singular extension might want the plural to protect their brand or increase their presence. Registries could easily target current registrants at a relatively low marketing cost.

Reason 2: Registries might have learned about registration trends that could carry over to these similar extensions.

Reason 3: Competitors probably wouldn’t want to apply knowing they would have less important information than the company that operates the other extension. In addition, if the registry doesn’t apply for the singular / plural, it likely means they didn’t think there would be value in applying.

Reason 4: The additional cost of operating another registry is lower than the cost of operating the original registry. More registrations bring down operating expenses.

I have no idea about the plans that registries may have for subsequent new gTLD rounds, but I could see this becoming a strategy. If I were to operate a website on a new gTLD, I might be disappointed that there was another extension coming, but I would probably be happy if I could reserve my matching domain name in advance.

I asked Uniregistry’s Frank Schilling for his thoughts, and he said, “I could see competing registries applying for singulars and plurals of successful namespaces if not prohibited from doing so by future ICANN regulations on the subject. It’s highly likely that incumbent registries will work toward reshaping round two rules to prohibit this.”

What are your thoughts on this?

Elliot Silver
Elliot Silver
About The Author: Elliot Silver is an Internet entrepreneur and publisher of DomainInvesting.com. Elliot is also the founder and President of Top Notch Domains, LLC, a company that has closed eight figures in deals. Please read the DomainInvesting.com Terms of Use page for additional information about the publisher, website comment policy, disclosures, and conflicts of interest. Reach out to Elliot: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn

12 COMMENTS

  1. Elliot,

    A year from now it will be a interesting statistic to learn the percentage of currently registered domain names using the new extensions that are renewed.I’ve switched off the automatic renewal option on all but a few of the ones I bought.Not to say there are lots of 1 or 2 domain names using the new extensions that make perfect sense.Plurals of the new extensions,I’ll take a pass.

    • I think you will see the percentage on the aftermarket sites, they will be flooded with these new extensions.
      With the renewal rates being what they are, a lot of domainers can’t afford to keep most of them.
      The problem is, if they can’t afford to pay for there own renewals, then they can’t buy them in the aftermarket.
      With the most of the business community not even knowing about the new extensions yet, or if they do, they don’t trust them enough to build a brand around them,your only hope of selling them at this point is to another domainer, but domainers are busy buying there own new G’s.
      IMO,the only ones that can buy these new extensions in the aftermarket and maintain them year after year are the corporate domainers.
      People will lose a lot of money in domaining with these new G’S and the small domainer will be out of business.
      Again, just my opinion, but it seems to be getting harder to sell domains, people have to many options now. If they want to have a web presents they have facebook, twitter or they come up with a long tailed .com for reg fee.
      I have seen more people listing domains for sale on Elliot’s weekly brokerage list them in the past.
      Now Elliot’s saying there maybe a round 2 .WTF

  2. It’s not only registries that will try preventing competition from getting singular/plural of the names they already operate. Registrants, notably the larger ones represented by the Business Constituency, will try preventing that as well. It’s very unlikely that regulations will allow for them again, and the only ones we will have will be the 2012 round ones.

  3. Will there be another round? Lets quantify this mathematically…

    1,500 applications times $185,000 = Two hundred Seventy Seven million dollars (a quick, back of the envelope calculation)

    My numbers say there will be lots more rounds, even if the initial round is a failure. This is a recipe for ICANN to print money. It does not matter what the world wants at this point.

  4. Sorry guys momentum is slowing we are still years out, business owners are still asking about .com, gtlds have tried to keep domainers out of their registries by racing them, the drops will be bloody… All you guys holding $249 renewals better do the forward thinking math… Next round 2016… Your gtld will diluted with a plural or singular… I’m glad all those losers who gamed the system will be sitting with big fat renewals, still no cap on renewal rates…

  5. If the first round results in the blood bath it is shaping up to be, why oh why oh why would there ever be a second round? Oh sure, I can see ICANN offering one (for the money involved), but what registry would be so stupid as to actually partake in it? I do not see it happening, Elliot.

  6. ICANN = arrogance and a license to print money. I wonder if anyone on the ICANN “non profit” “board” has anything greater than the equivalent of a high school diploma. Tell me, what does the word TOP mean? Ever hear of the food pyramid, ever hear of a concept called hierarchy? Now if 3000 different words/names are allowed to be to the right of the rightmost dot/decimal then it’s no longer “top” now is it. All this dot whatever (oops I mean dot whatevers, gotta have plural too ya’ know) IS A MESS and it is the opposite of a well-organized system. It was meant to be A STRUCTURE not a run-on linear list.

  7. Can anyone please advise me please.

    Is there a difference in SEO using ing in a domain name

    aka were I to have to choose between 3 domain names gooddriver.com gooddrivers.com gooddriving.com (these are just examples and i do not own them)

    Would the domain name with the ing search phase (Good Driving) more then likely be searched for by persons seeking information on how to be a good driver, where as the “good driver” be more likely be used by persons actually looking for a good driver.

    I understand good content is the most important, my question is directly related to domain names with ing etc as stated above,

    Am grateful for reply

    cheers

    d

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