Free domain names – a quick thrill

1999-09-24

Two significant changes are occurring in the world of domain names. The net result is that the cost of top level domain name registration will be next to nothing. Exciting news. Strange, though, that within a few years domain names will become a thing of the past.

What are these changes? The first is that a West Coast startup known as iDirections is to offer domain names for free. The basic cost for a registration company is currently down to $18: this cost, and the cost of iDirections own infrastructure, will be covered by advertising and promotions, presumably on the website of the domain name registrant. The second development is that Network Solutions, keeper of the keys to the central register of domain names, expect to have installed software which will enable direct access to its database: this could mean that the registration cost itself will drop to zero. One way or another, the chances are that domain name registration will be free by the end of the year.

This is very good news for all those that wanted a Web site with a distinctive domain name. It will not only benefit smaller businesses (for whom even $70, the going rate for a domain name for the punter, seems a bit steep), but also individuals who will be able to establish themselves with a clear Web presence. The net effect (no pun intended) will be that all the remaining nouns in the English dictionary, plus a significant number of non-english words, will be mopped up.

There are two reasons why this might matter less than it initially appears to. These are intelligent agents and directory facilities. First, let’s talk about intelligent agents. The fact is that dot com names have never been particularly user-friendly. It is a wonder to me why the IETF or the W3C did not bring out a more natural language version of Web site naming. For example, wouldn’t it be preferable to type “amazon books” in the browser, rather than “amazon.com”? You might not think so, but my grandmother would. Domain naming is a temporary aberration, which will go away as soon as there is something better. That “better thing” will probably be the use of intelligent agents.

Have you tried Google? I can recommend that you do. If you have forgotten a URL, then you can go to Google.com (excuse the anachronism), type the name of a company and hit “I’m feeling lucky”. The chances are that Google will take you to the right site. Now, let’s think about this. What, for example, is the domain name of Hewlett Packard? www.hp.com – easy one. What about CGU Insurance? That’s www.cgugroup.com. BBC? www.bbc.co.uk. Get the picture? Things aren’t always as obvious as they might seem. Google can help, but it is the “middle man” – wouldn’t it be preferable to avoid the extra step? That’s where the most basic of intelligent agents would come in, enhancing the browser by providing an implicit search facility. Propellor heads may prefer the dot com names, and (to be sure) a number of businesses are dot com named from the word go, but it is clear that the general population would prefer to stick with the names they know. More advanced intelligent agents are expected (once the XML revolution kicks in) to be able to search on products, amongst other things (for example, delivery costs), so just having the viagra.com domain will not be enough to guarantee business.

The second reason is that of directory facilities. Having .com as your name may well be a way to guarantee business, as (it is well documented) the average web user is just as likely to guess an URL as try to look for it. Hence travel.com, drugstore.com and music.com are all benefiting. In the longer term, though (and again, this will be a product of XML), punters are just as likely to say “give me all the travel sites that sell package holidays to the south of France”. The high premium on the domain name will quickly fade, hopefully not before the site owners have made a pretty penny.