.UK Consultation meeting

[Stephen]

investors?

Maybe a lottery mechanism then? Buyers got in to deep with those short domains, end users are just not interested in them (that's my experience with my small holding).

Seems late to get the article out there when the decision has already been made, it costs about £300 a go.

Apart from a handful users who created new sites, domain protection or moved their sites to their new domain, the majority were for future projects or resale, it is just the amount spend on each extension was different.
The vast majority of buyers were investors or speculators depending on the language you want to use.

It is nonsense to put up a small site or links to others with a custom page and call it a 'proper website' rather than the parked page, it is only done to support the case of getting the .uk.

Don't get sucked in and accept anything that does not provide the domain to the .co.uk (99% of largest bids for equivalent string).

I can only remember one high profile short purchase fb.co.uk by a company called Facebook, why not check it out the site? (maybe Facebook should loose fb.uk to fb.org.uk?).

 

[foz]

If the short domains are sitting warehoused due to no interest by the public, where does that put the new .uk? Will their be the demand and uptake most are hoping for? My reckoning is that most traditional brick and mortar businesses will say to themselves, we have the .co.uk we don't need anything else.

 

[websaway]

Seems late to get the article out there when the decision has already been made, it costs about £300 a go.

Apart from a handful users who created new sites, domain protection or moved their sites to their new domain, the majority were for future projects or resale, it is just the amount spend on each extension was different.
The vast majority of buyers were investors or speculators depending on the language you want to use.

It is nonsense to put up a small site or links to others with a custom page and call it a 'proper website' rather than the parked page, it is only done to support the case of getting the .uk.

Don't get sucked in and accept anything that does not provide the domain to the .co.uk (99% of largest bids for equivalent string).

I can only remember one high profile short purchase fb.co.uk by a company called Facebook, why not check it out the site? (maybe Facebook should loose fb.uk to fb.org.uk?).

what decision has already been made ?

 

[Retired_Member38]

If the short domains are sitting warehoused due to no interest by the public, where does that put the new .uk? Will their be the demand and uptake most are hoping for? My reckoning is that most traditional brick and mortar businesses will say to themselves, we have the .co.uk we don't need anything else.

I think there is a bit of difference here in that (outside of trademarks) end users could have bidded on the short domains if they wanted to. So they sold for pretty much market value (or above, if people got carried away in the auctions).

With the .uk, if they just hand them out to 'qualifying' owners for reg fee I can see a lot of immediate action happening as people look to cash in on domains they either never wanted in the first place, or are worth too much money to be able to turn down offers on. I'm hoping that keeps things going... personally I'd quite like to see .uk win in the long run.

 

[foz]

Thing is they won't hand them out. Some action of some sort will be required and the majority won't be bothered. Just like low participant numbers in the short auctions (inside knowledge of the industry wins over).

 

[Retired_Member38]

Thing is they won't hand them out. Some action of some sort will be required and the majority won't be bothered. Just like low participant numbers in the short auctions (inside knowledge of the industry wins over).

So they will then be picked up by random people for reg fee and a lot will quickly be sold on either way for massive gains. A hugely different scenario from 2 letter domains were they current owner needs to sell for £xxxx just to break even. And someone who can invest that cash in the first place can likely afford to wait it out anyway. Someone earning not very much, who now finds themselves owning a domain worth £1k - £100k may not have that luxury

 

[Stephen]

board meeting has already happened

what decision has already been made ?

I was referring to the Nominet board meeting that has already happened and so the decision on .uk and if it goes ahead the way it will be allocated.

So trying to lobby now or change public opinion is fruitless.

 

[foz]

Random people, no. Drop catchers. Flip them quickly for massive gains?, that's speculation. The demand may take years to appear and in that time carrying the portfolio in renewal fees will cost. Do you have an insight on the inquiry level for short LL's? With what I have it's not stunning, regardless of what sort of money is on the table.

 

[websaway]

I was referring to the Nominet board meeting that has already happened and so the decision on .uk and if it goes ahead the way it will be allocated.

So trying to lobby now or change public opinion is fruitless.

I thought you knew something I didn't.

Anyway, any decision made may only be the start of the argument for some people.

 

[Stephen]

wholesale prices not end user prices

I think there is a bit of difference here in that (outside of trademarks) end users could have bidded on the short domains if they wanted to. So they sold for pretty much market value (or above, if people got carried away in the auctions)....

I don't believe end users all knew about the short domains being available, although Nominet did make an effort to get registered trademark holders, it would have been too costly an exercise to inform all potential buyers.

e.g. Abercrombie & Fitch may well have been interested in AF.co.uk if they knew it was coming up for auction?

Agree about the market rate ultimately being paid but I would say that is wholesale prices not end user prices.
Although auctions can always inflate the price paid, the lack of people who entered the auctions resulted in some being sold for less than market price, so balancing it all out.

 

[websaway]

de.uk ?

 

[Stephen]

I do not know anything more

I thought you knew something I didn't.

Anyway, any decision made may only be the start of the argument for some people.

No, I do not know anything more about .uk decision than anybody outside Nominet, I met up with some Nominet staff yesterday at the 8th Parliamentary and Internet meeting in London sponsored by Nominet, but did not get any information or even a tell from body language.

It was interesting the lunch was sponsored by ee.co.uk who under the current proposal would loose ee.uk to the owner of ee.me.uk, registered 23 6 2011 before the short auctions commenced.

Regarding the start of the argument for some, I have never agreed with that stance but those that I know are taking that position have explained that until it is a firm proposal they would be wasting time, money and effort.
Some of them will just blow off some steam if the .uk decision looks unfair in their view but a handful I have met, I believe will start to fight back with resources, if they don't like the decision.

 

[Stephen]

What does the delay mean?

"We would like to thank everyone who took the time to read the proposals and respond. We received 313 consultation responses, as well as feedback from four roundtable sessions, stakeholder meetings, emails and a webinar.

The feedback will be reviewed by our Board at their next meeting on 29th October. Once a decision has been reached on the way forward, we will publish submissions, where permission has been given to do so, and an assessment of the impact of the current proposal. We expect to publish our update in early November."

Anyone brave enough to make a prediction.

With so many days passed, I feel that;
.uk will not be scrapped
neither will .uk be introduced in the method of the last proposal.

That only leaves either changes to fix things like the short auction problem, the reserved names, pricing and maybe a total rethink to enable "automatic" rather than or "opt in" etc.

OR a larger rethink about making.uk for business again as per the first proposal and some sort of grandfathering of .co.uk domains?

 

[Retired_Member38]

I think we're going to get v2 but with some sort of change for the domains that were in the short domain auctions.

 

[Stephen]

another .uk consultation?

I think we're going to get v2 but with some sort of change for the domains that were in the short domain auctions.

I think if it was as simple as that we would have had the announcement by now.

If they go for more changes, the question would be "should Nominet hold another .uk consultation" or just do it?

I feel that Nominet believe they have added the number of meetings up in V1 & V2 and are going to present a case that they have consulted widely and had many meetings and webinars etc. and use that as justification to support whatever they have decided to do!

 

[Retired_Member38]

I think you are perhaps reading too much into it as far as delays till announcement goes.

For all we know they could have decided in advance that the announcement will be made on x date, and cleared their calendars to field media enquiries / deal with PR stuff etc. I don't think they would rush the announcement forward, because of what was in it.

 

[Edwin]

Not much of a delay, yet. It's only Tuesday morning on November 5th, before the office even opens! If you look at the calendar configuration, the earliest they would realistically have announced anything "in November" was yesterday. Also worth remembering that as last week was half term a lot of staff may have taken breaks. I would say if we've not heard anything by the end of next week, then it's getting late as it's pushing into the latter half of November.

 

[julian]

you can almost feel the tension and anticipation in the forum, everyone is primed, the only thing missing is a drum roll..

 

[Sound]

you can almost feel the tension and anticipation in the forum, everyone is primed, the only thing missing is a drum roll..

And a box of Hankies

 

[Retired_Member38]

And a box of Hankies

I had been thinking about celebrating with a nice steak and a bottle of red but I guess that works too...