Domain Magnate

An interesting post over at the NameBio blog about aged domains:

Recently, I came into possession of a domain name registered in 1991. This domain has been continuously renewed for 17 years. (its almost old enough to vote!). However, Ive run into a few question marks, specifically in regards to determining value. Clearly older domain names have Value, they are garbled up at the expired domain auctions quite consistently, and although most caliber domainers will say that “age is but a small factor” when it comes to a VERY old domain, it can certainly become one of the most important factors.

Why is age so desired? Primarily because all the good domains were taken first, thus in theory all of the quality domain names, should be old. I find this too be a reasonably accurate statement, with exceptions on both ends. Yes, some new domains are quite valuable (new technologies, new trends) and some old domains really have nothing to offer but a history of continuous renewal. read more »

After their previous note a month ago a new press release by Tucows reveals some interesting details including part of their domain portfolio:

TORONTO, February 20, 2008 – Tucows Inc., (AMEX:TCX, TSX:TC) a leading provider of Internet services to web hosting companies and ISPs worldwide, today announced that as of February 14, 2008 the Company had over 150,000 Internet domain names in its private domain name portfolio, including the following:

• Over 1,000 “Gems.” These domain names are considered to have the highest potential value in the portfolio. A sample of 100 of these names is included below.
• 39,000 Surnames. Tucows owns over 65 percent of North American’s surnames as domain names. These surnames form the foundation of Tucows’ Personal Names Service, a recently launched service that allows users to obtain their personal name, for example amy@smith.net for email and amy.smith.net for a web address. read more »