Nominet announces programme for evolving the .uk domain name space

[julian]

I've said this before - better to take .UK now and put it to bed, than wait for it to rear it's head in a few years time.

Let's look at it another way - if Nominet announced they were going to shelve .UK for the moment and carry on as normal, would that really help the market?


I'll stick my neck out and say it - let's strip away the 'who gets what' scenario for the moment: the current extension .co.uk to me, is now becoming an antiquated, clunky piece of shite - .UK is cleaner, shorter, snappier - it's just better - it's the future - to deny it to the new generations would be wrong.

I know people are upset, I understand why - what is the answer...

 

[jonbyrne]

I am really interested to find out how the .sch.uk domains will fair, they could end up grabbing a whole host of geo-domains. I can also see if for example manchester.uk goes to manchester.sch.uk then the council not using it for schools but as a tourist / info site.

For me I can understand why Nominet feel it will be beneficial to launch direct.uk, yes it will not create many additional available premium domains, but when a start-up is looking for a brand-able I am sure they feel that funkybrand.uk is more appealing in the new world of GTLDs than funkybrand.co.uk, when options like funkybrand.london, funkybrand.app etc

 

[MikeJDS]

If you're talking about the poll I stuck in the other thread, then "Should it go ahead?" is a useless question. It says nothing about reality. We already know that a lot of people on here think "no it shouldn't".

What we didn't know is how people thought REALITY would play out (absent their own feelings about .uk). Now we sort of do.

Well for me it was more the other way around.
I thought most people assumed Nominet will eventually get it through (as the poll now clearly shows)

My point was the poll doesn't show if people are in favour of the new proposals. So it shouldn't be used as such..

 

[Edwin]

Well for me it was more the other way around.
I thought most people assumed Nominet will eventually get it through (as the poll now clearly shows)

My point was the poll doesn't show if people are in favour of the new proposals. So it shouldn't be used as such..

I agree. I never said the poll should be interpreted as meaning people are in favour of the proposals!

The poll assumes that individual feelings about .uk are irrelevant (to the results of the poll, I mean - they're highly relevant to the individuals concerned). It seeks to interpret what is likely to HAPPEN, not what individual people would LIKE to have happen.

 

[MikeJDS]

I agree. I never said the poll should be interpreted as meaning people are in favour of the proposals!

The poll assumes that individual feelings about .uk are irrelevant (to the results of the poll, I mean - they're highly relevant to the individuals concerned). It seeks to interpret what is likely to HAPPEN, not what individual people would LIKE to have happen.

I only brought it up because that's how I read the context of one of your previous posts in response to someone else.
(maybe I read it wrong)

Another poll at this stage would still be interesting though.

 

[Edwin]

I only brought it up because that's how I read the context of one of your previous posts in response to someone else.
(maybe I read it wrong)

I was making the point about where it might make sense to focus most of one's energy. If something is seen as 84% very or inevitably likely to go ahead, is it better to expend all that energy on opposing it, or divide that energy so that some is focused on the core Y/N issue, and the rest on the "how" of implementation...

At the end of the day, everyone will need to make their own choices about how to respond. We're all just chatting here, right?

 

[Stephen]

Domainer only poll

If you think that will stop it going ahead, I think you really need take the time to let the results of this poll sink in...
http://www.acorndomains.co.uk/uk-do...w-likely-do-you-think-we-see-uk-go-ahead.html

It may colour your approach going forward.

I seem to recall making the case for having a .uk was the pre-requisite request to Nominet, as they have never proved that was the case.

In Version 2.0 documents I have read so far, I cannot see anything that shows a case for .uk.
I can see other parallel events such as 1,000 gTLD's being mentioned and more people wanting to get online (to which there are other solutions available)
but nothing to link that .uk is the way to solve those issues
and the side effects many have pointed out to Nominet of .uk confusion and security problems have not been addressed at all.
or is just realisitc that Nominet have the power and motivation to get it done and they don't intend to make some of the mistakes they made in version 1?

I think that Nominet have changed enough to make the majority (dare I say that) of domainers on this forum, lets see "Who" else they ask as, that is not clear from what I have read so far.
What about the often heard request of .uk Version 1, that as .uk is so important, that all UK domain registrants should be told about the consultation?
Is .uk not so important this time around?

Let's see what the rest of the media makes of it, but my guess is they will say Nominet have listened and print the Press Release that nominet supply,
without asking any hard questions.

 

[Edwin]

Let's see what the rest of the media makes of it, but my guess is they will say Nominet have listened and print the Press Release that nominet supply,
without asking any hard questions.

I agree. My instinct's telling me the same.

 

[Retired_Member38]

I bet the Independent don't

 

[GreyWing]

I bet the Independent don't

I doubt anyone will contact them and tell them

Especially not using this link http://www.independent.co.uk/service/contact-us-759589.html

 

[Retired_Member38]

Which of the biggest retail brands are going to lose their domains to domainers? I've only seen GAP, who'll lose it to a charity - which is going to be far harder for the Daily Mail to twist in the direction they'd like.

 

[Stephen]

50 /50 ?

That won't happen Stephen. These proposals hand domainers (will read cyber-squatters) the premium domain of some of the UK's biggest retail brands. As I've said before, the newspapers will be able to spin the story in a way that the general public understand much more than the v1 proposals where.

This will become a PR disaster for Nominet if it goes ahead.

I fear it will be after it goes through, about 6 months after the .uk launch
when those that don't take up the rights to .uk as they didn't get what .uk means or didn't get the email?

After that is when the stories will come out, of all the new .uk registrations based on traffic, alexa rankings, etc that didn't take up the rights!

As unless there is a strong oppostion by Business, .uk will pass into being.

I intend to still put a strong case to Nominet of the shortfall's of the V2,0 proposal and request they supply information about detail missing from there posted detail so far.

Which I will post here of course when the Nominet replies are provided.

So I'm not giving up but at the moment it looks like a very big uphill battle to stop it or even change its course!

 

[Nigel]

I own Food-co-uk, I bought it to develop a food portal website, which is currently in development. I think I was a bit unlucky with this being 1 of only 2 generic names being reserved.

I did only buy the .co.uk and so this wouldn't change my plans of releasing my website this year. I'm not really losing out on much at the moment, unless the .uk extension becomes the most popular in the future, then this would cause confusion between my website and the .uk

What a stupid idea by nominet to offer the .uk to a load of government departments even when they aren't the oldest registration. You can't help thinking that the government have put pressure on nominet to snatch prime domains away from the deserving existing registrants. I think the whole thing stinks. I think compensation should be paid if nominet bend the rules to suit them and the government.

 

[TinkyWinky]

Let's see what the rest of the media makes of it, but my guess is they will say Nominet have listened and print the Press Release that nominet supply, without asking any hard questions.

If they do then an "opposing" view group need to supply a similar but more factual press release shortly afterwards...

As websaway has said and I keep saying - there's yet to be a solid and firm position from Nominet for a NEED for .uk...

In fact they have suceeded in undermining their own position by removing the security angle they tried in V1.

Julian - I've said this before - better to take .UK now and put it to bed, than wait for it to rear it's head in a few years time.

Because if it gets thrown out this time, then it will be time to throw out the bunch of tw4ts currently running Nom for wasting all our time twice with the ill-conceived V1 and V2 proposals!

It may well then be that a replacement board has a lot more sense, a lot more accountability and then actually concentrates on promoting the current and perfectly acceptable UK domain name space.

Unless of course anyone can come up with that NEED to change the status quo (excluding money, power and palace awards).

TW

 

[Skinner]

Does anyone know if the indie bought their name or hand regged or how they came.to have it ?

 

[Retired_Member38]

Okay so Gap and an un-named one, is there any more?

 

[websaway]

If you think that will stop it going ahead, I think you really need take the time to let the results of this poll sink in...
http://www.acorndomains.co.uk/uk-do...w-likely-do-you-think-we-see-uk-go-ahead.html

It may colour your approach going forward.

That is no surprise. If you don't intend to vote against something, because it is in your interests for it to go ahead, then you assume it will.

 

[Stephen]

100,000+

Okay so Gap and an un-named one, is there any more?

Do you not think of the 10,000,000 UK domains there will not be more than 1 parked .org.uk (accepted it is within the rules I have many) getting a .uk over an established .co.uk commercial brand?

I would predict that if .uk went ahead as is,
depending on the exact mechanisms Nominet intend to inform current registrants about .uk,
there will be 100,000 plus .co.uk large/medium sized established businesses
that will not claim the .uk as the oldest registrant but within 1 hour of the free for all,
all those equivalent FTR .uk will be registered to other parties. (nothing to do with .org.uk)

The .org.uk earliest registration will have some .co.uk losers (as all ditribution methods would)
but the larger number I guess will happen from the situation described above.

Then it will be the fault of those domainers/cyber squatters, not Nominet?

 

[jonbyrne]

They have not really expanded on what will happen if the oldest registrant does not apply but the second or third oldest does, at what point will they then take ownership? At then end of the 6 months or before?

 

[Retired_Member38]

I'm not looking for a debate. Getting dragged into an argument about alternatives is just playing semantics and watering down the real argument, which is are you for direct.uk or against it.

I'm against it 110%, without reservation and I'm going to do my best to make this into a PR nightmare for Nominet and the secondary market.

I'm not looking for an argument or a debate - at this point we can work in facts.

You're only going to be able to make this into a PR nightmare for Nominet by showing clear losers here. I don't think you're going to be able to do that to the level required to have any effect.

Gap losing the domain to a charity is not going to qualify... its a near certainty that Gap simply make a donation and the domain is handed over.

I'll not post the name here but two different people I've spoken to recently have mentioned an Acorn member owning a predating one of a brand... is the one you're referring to the same one? (Mar 2004 reg date on the .co.uk).

If it is, its hardly a disaster either. The .org.uk is owned by a domainer and isn't being used - clearly its for sale if the price is right. As long as the owner doesn't get too crazy with his demands, and the brand don't cut their nose off to spite their face and refuse to deal at a reasonable price.... the domain changes hands and things continue as they were.

I don't see anything so far that makes me think a newspaper are going to care.