.Nxt conference is .gone

Fresh top level domain name conference scheduled for next week is cancelled.

A conference can survive one cancellation if there are extenuating circumstances.

That may have been the case with the .Nxt conference previously scheduled for June in London. ICANN had postponed the release of the list of fresh top level domain name applications, which was a big milestone scheduled for ahead of the conference.

But a conference will not survive a second cancellation, especially the week ahead of the event.

Unfortunately, that’s what just happened with the largest independent conference regarding fresh top level domain names, .Nxt.

Conference organizer Kieren McCarthy cites low attendance and sponsorship for the cancellation. He blames this on ongoing uncertainty regarding the fresh top level domain process. Fewer than 100 people had registered for the event.

There are a couple other reasons I can think of for this low support. Location (London instead of San Francisco) may have been an issue. I also suspect that there was less value for previous event sponsors. Fresh TLD consultants and registry service providers by now have their clients; sponsoring this event wouldn’t be as fruitful.