What will deliver more value? Selling .co.uk and .uk as a pair? Splitting them?

[Edwin]

Think of a super premium domain. Doesn't matter what, but a really really good one. (Please mentally pencil in your own favourite.)

Do you think you'd get more money out of selling the .co.uk and .uk as a pair, or separately, given how the .uk market has been evolving recently? (I've noticed a few sales have nudged 5-figures)

 

[Aaron Clifford]

From what I've seen most of the big .uk sales have been people "in the industry" so I don't really know if the market has developed at all yet. Be keen to hear about some big end user sales of .uk's on there own (which personally I feel like we are a long way off, if it happens at all) before making a guess.

 

[Murray]

Probably separately, especially if you auctioned one then the other non concurrently

Or just sold the .uk and held on to the co.uk

Personally I don't have the fortitude to auction something like unite uk, would rather hold on to it than have an sj situation

 

[stitchbob]

For a super premium generic, probably separate. For anything brandable, keep them paired.

 

[philiporchard]

what's the sj situation - sounds intriguing?

I see it sold very cheaply?

 

[Murray]

what's the sj situation - sounds intriguing?

Yeah just that it's a nice name, sold separate from the .co.uk but didn't achieve the kind of price one would probably hope

 

[ian]

Tough question, in the last few weeks, selling the .uk's separately would have been a smart move, but that ship has sailed; the hysteria and hype has died down.

As there is no moral reason to keep them together anymore, I've split mine for the sake of holding pages, but would bring them back together if asked or felt there was an opportunity to seal a deal..

 

[Admin]

Separately (@Edwin and welcome back )

 

[dog]

Together

 

[WalkinDude]

Biggest forthcoming economic factor on business marketing and marketing budgets is going to be Brexit. Given the entire premise behind it is more nationalism... well that's where my analysis ends. It's surely going to have an impact... but what? So it's difficult to know how to answer the question.

 

[TheSide]

With regards to this, I am sure that at DL, if you had both .co.uk and .uk you needed to sell as a pair.

Is that still holding true - especially if the .uk was registered pre-ROR by the .co.uk owner?

Or is DL now allowing the same owner to sell the .co.uk and .uk separately?

If the latter holds true then clearly splitting them will deliver more value.

 

[TheSide]

If the latter holds true then clearly splitting them will deliver more value.

for Domain B2B sales at least

 

[Murray]

With regards to this, I am sure that at DL, if you had both .co.uk and .uk you needed to sell as a pair.

I asked Denys recently and he said that's not the case anymore, can list just one or both separately

 

[Admin]

I asked Denys recently and he said that's not the case anymore, can list just one or both separately

It should always have been thus... IMO

 

[TheSide]

can list just one or both separately

OK, thank you

That creates a dilemma for domainers buying now - unless pre-sale agreements are in place (unlikely in auctions of course).

And returning to Edwin's question, which will be the more lucrative for the seller? the .co.uk or the .uk - and how do you sell the pair in auction?

I'm guessing there will be a lull in sales for a while until things settle. I'll be watching DL closely!

For end users, they just need to decide their preference, after all, the idea of releasing the .uk was, as I understand it, to open up the UK domain market, and not merely to give another suffix to those already with the .co.uk (or to make Nominet extra money)!

 

[Edwin]

Thanks, loving all the replies. Please keep them coming. Even though there's no overarching concensus it's good to get everyone's input.

(Oh, and just to say I'm not back regularly. If you've seen my Twitter recently you'll know I'm very busy with a certain event that shall not be named. But I will drop back in and see how this thread develops.)

 

[Murray]

(Oh, and just to say I'm not back regularly. If you've seen my Twitter recently you'll know I'm very busy with a certain event that shall not be named. But I will drop back in and see how this thread develops.)

That topic seems to have enveloped your life (at least online)

 

[martin-s]

Don't worry, it'll be over soon...

 

[dougs]

As a buyer I no longer will just buy .co.uk's unless for short term projects. Any project that we see as longer term I want ideally the pair and maybe the .uk. If buying one only I want the .uk. I simply believe the .uk will become standard and hence am not willing to pay premium for the past.

 

[Nigel]

I think we'll see .uk gaining prominence and eventually taking over as preferred option. It might take some years but I think we'll see newer websites opting for .uk. Where we own both the .co.uk and .uk we're now offering them on DAN separately.