What’s in a Domain Name?

–Dan Kelly, Attorney

How much would you pay for an Internet domain name?  Network Solutions just finished its “48-Hour Spring Sale” of domain names for $9.99 each.  Go Daddy is offering domains for $6.99 each.  The company 1&1 is offering .BIZ domain names for $3.99.  Domain name prices typically cover registration and perhaps some basic web hosting and e-mail features for a year.  But not all domain names are created equal.  Presently, the domain name universe is one of the most unrestricted markets in existence, and one owner’s trash may be another’s treasure.

So here’s some trivia:  how much do you think each of these domains sold for on the open market?  Click below to see the answers after the jump . . .

These are but four of the top 10 all time cash sale prices for domain names.  Note that all of them appear to be relatively generic, and none appear to be what many would consider “top brands.”  There are a number of reasons for this, most of which I will explore in my Friday posts over the next few weeks.

The basic (and perhaps obvious) point here is that much of what we know about branding, trademarking, and marketing may not give much aid when approaching decisions about selecting and managing domain names.

Next week:  the domaining phenomenon.