Domain-Guides

Much has been written about domain names in the past and their importance when starting a website. If you have a business then it is always best to choose the domain name the same as your business or your product. The name of my product is “The Times”. That would mean that I would have to try and register www.thetimes.com or if you are in a specific area wanting to advertise and appeal to people in the area such as South Africa you could also register the name www.thetimes.co.za. The TLD (top-level domain) co.za automatically tells people and more importantly Google that it is most likely a South African website. You could also try and register it with a hyphen between the words such as the-times. That is more a branding issue than search engine optimisation as very few.......

Jerry Seinfeld isn’t the master of his own domain name, after being targeted by alleged cybersquatters.The comic has launched action to try to win control of the internet address JerrySeinfeld.com – which currently hosts a website that contains little but ads. The page initially looks like a fan site and contains the disclaimer: ‘This is an unofficial fan site. This site is not endorsed or authorized by Jerry Seinfeld or by any party other than the owner of this site.’ However, visitors who click on any link are greeted by nothing but a page of adverts. Now, Seinfeld’s representatives have demanded that they be given control f the web address, and have taken the case to official arbitrators..................

The me-domain is an Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) that has been assigned to Montenegro. This follows Montenegro's June 3, 2006 declaration of independence from Serbia and Montenegro, which used the code YU. The .me registry is operated by the University of Montenegro on behalf of the government. A two-year transition period is to be provided for existing .yu names to be transferred to .me. In addition to declaring .me to be independent of .yu, a new .rs domain is to be deployed for Serbian use.

The me-domain is expected to be utilized as both a personalized Web address and as a catchy business marketing tool around the world, initially in English followed by localized and standards compliant International Domain Names in, for example, Spanish, Italian, and Montenegrin. Me-domains, with their universal appeal, are expected to be in high demand. So some “premium” names - including verb-oriented domains, such as “Contact.ME,” “Drive.ME” or “Fly.ME,” - will be held back for auction after Open Registration. We will have more information available on premium auctions in the months to come. Who is eligible to apply for a domain during the General Sunrise period? Owners of any current registered trademark or service mark applied for prior to June 28, 2006 are eligible to apply for a second-level domain name during the Sunrise period. Applicants from around the world (including Montenegrin entities) may apply in this period. What are the Sunrise requirements and restrictions?.........

The real estate market may be languishing, but Web properties -- domain names -- are booming.In the first quarter of 2008, $38,029,543 in domain sales were reported, a 78% increase over the $21,253,105 in domain sales reported for the first quarter of 2007, said Ron Jackson, editor and publisher of DN Journal, in an e-mail. "In the first quarter of 2008, 3,764 sales were reported to DN Journal, making the average sale reported $10,103," said Jackson. "In the first quarter of 2007, 3,086 sales were reported to us, but the average price was only $6,886. For all of 2007, 13,888 sales were reported to us, and the average sale for the year was $8,698. So 1Q-2008 showed a significant rise in both average sales price and total dollar volume reported." This isn't just a reflection of the $10 million sale of Fund.com during the first quarter of the year, said Jackson. "Even if you pretended the Fund.com sale did not happen and just threw it out of the data, total sales in 1Q-2008 would still have been 32% higher..........