Total new gTLD registrations have been on a downhill slide since late September 2020 according to nTLDstats.com and the decline is continuing. Verisign’s authorative Domain Name Industry Brief released this week reports that in the final quarter of 2020, new gTLD domain name registrations dropped 4.2 million to 26.0 million which equates to a drop of 13.8% compared to the third quarter of 2020. Over the year new gTLDs decreased by 3.3 million or 11.2%.
The XYZ Registry launched 4 beauty-related new top-level domains this week plus .quest. .Beauty, .Hair, .Skin, and .Makeup which are being aimed at independent beauty brands, influencers, big-brand cosmetic companies, salon owners, medi-spas, dermatologists, skincare specialists/aestheticians, suppliers, hair stylists, barbers, makeup artists, fashion designers and other beauty industry insiders. Plus there’s the destination-driven .Quest domain that’s being pitched at gurus, experts and enthusiasts of any field, a go-to domain for anyone seeking a specific service and/or product.
The registry fee for domain names under Iceland’s ccTLD will increase for the first time since the ccTLD was delegated over 30 years ago, the registry ISNIC announced.
The Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) launched a call Tuesday for applications for projects to improve internet access in Canada. Over C$1 million in grants will be awarded to community groups and researchers working on infrastructure, cybersecurity, digital literacy and community leadership projects – with preference given to those that benefit students, as well as northern, rural, and Indigenous communities.
On 1 January 2021 over 81,000 British-based .eu registrants found their domain names had become “suspended”, meaning their domain names would not resolve to websites and emails would not transmit. The reason was that at the end of the Brexit “transition period” on 31 December, they were ineligible to hold or register .eu domains. To comply, individuals had to prove they were a citizen of the European Union or the larger European Economic Area, an EU citizen no matter where they lived in the world or for businesses, be a legally established entity in the EU or EEA.
The .cloud new gTLD commemorates its fifth birthday this week with its first ever Premium Domain Sales Report that notes there were $320,136 in total premium revenue in 2020, $203,884 through their premium registrars who sold 155 premium domains with an average price of $1,315 per domain sold.
Verisign reported its fourth quarter and 2020 financial results Thursday and the highlight that will get most attention is the increase in the annual registry-level wholesale fee for each new and renewal .com domain name, which will increase by 7%, from $7.85 to $8.39, effective 1 September, 2021.
ShortDot is launching the Sunrise period for its fourth new gTLD on 10 March, the recently acquired .cfd, which they are promoting as being for #ClothingFashionDesign.
EURid has joined forces with the Global Cyber Alliance (GCA), signing a partnership agreement to contribute to a safer and more trustworthy internet.
Not many top-level domain registries publish surveys on how their domain names are being used, but EURid this week did with some interesting findings, like just over half (51.84%) of the 150,000 .eu domain names survey have websites with rich content, 81% of domains with MX records are active and 82.5% are connected to a web server.