Fresh Top Level Domain Demand Still Elusive

Hard to prove demand for fresh top level domain names

One of the key questions facing ICANN and the internet community is if there is any demand for fresh top level domain names ought to they be released. So far no one has released convincing evidence of demand. And if past TLD launches are any indication, demand will be minimal.

One firm, Quintaris, has taken a stab at proving demand by allowing people to ‘backorder’ fresh domains at Pool. These backorders are non-binding and don’t cost anything. They don’t give any precedence or privilege to those that backorder the domains. The motivation for backordering is unclear. So I was surprised when Quintaris disclosed the prior week that it was receiving 10,000 backorder requests a day. Why would people spend their time submitting pointless backorders?

I suppose it’s a little like voting for American Idol. One person can vote 1,000 times for the same person, and they receive no intrinsic value for doing so.

I contacted Quintaris today to understand how many people were behind the 10,000 backorders a day. The firm declined to release this figure, but did say it will consider disclosing it in the future. To me the number of people placing backorders, if anything, is the notable number.

It’s worth noting that Quintaris has a vested interest in fresh TLDs launching since it is a consulting firm for entities wishing to launch TLDs. Part of the reason the firm launched the backorder system is since it thought the fresh TLD plans may be scrapped since people claim there’s little demand.

The only hard data we have on the demand for fresh TLDs is looking back at previous launches. Based on both registrations and usage, I can’t think of any TLDs that have been a hit, especially when you factor in how little competition these TLDs had.

If anything, I can see some justification and demand for IDN TLDs. Unfortunately, Quintaris system doesn’t track that.