Help The Internet Avoid .COM Price Increases
We received this email from Namecheap yesterday that filled us on in on a new deal ICANN, the organization that oversees domain names, made with Verisign, operators of the .COM top-level-domain (TLD).
If this deal comes into effect, .COM wholesale domain prices can grow by more than 70% over and above current prices over the next decade, which would both affect wholesale retailers like Namecheap and startups/indie projects/makers that form a big part of this community.
ICANN made these changes in secret, without consulting or incorporating feedback from the ICANN community or Internet users, and is getting $20 million dollars over the next five years from Verisign, to basically screw us.
What can you do to help?
These changes will have significant impact on the Internet for years to come, and only ICANN and Verisign have participated in this decision. If you want to make sure your voice is heard, let ICANN know how you feel about their recent decision. The Public Comment period is open until February 14, 2020.
You can leave your comment on the .COM proposal using ICANN's form.
Raising prices is well documented on here and around the maker space as one of the best ways to increase revenue. After an 8 year price freeze since the last rate adjustment, I would venture to say it's probably well overdue as I find it hard to believe that ICANN's operating expenses are going down.
I don't agree that it will have a huge impact on everybody. Registrars will raise rates to compensate, and makers will continue to buy domains, spending few bucks more per year for a domain.
I don't see it impacting the volume of squatting that we see today, just raising the barrier of entry of being a squatter by a bit.
At present, we're talking about a $2 increase between now and 2026 (so another 5 year price freeze) and then we'll see where it goes from there. Unless the prices of a domain is going up 100x, it will barely be noticeable IMHO.
That all said, maybe there's an opportunity in here. Perhaps a sub domain leasing service or something to bring back affordable domains to folks that are displaced by the pricing increases.