Here are some ads for the .London domain name spotted in London during the ICANN conference.
I spent last week in London at the ICANN meeting.
This was interesting timing because the city is gearing up for the launch of .London, which should prove to be a strong new TLD.
The open nature of the domain gives it a wider buying audience than .nyc (assuming .nyc is tough on nexus). As a geo domain, it will get a lot of local press.
I think it’s possible that this domain could approach the 100,000 registrations mark in due time. If it fires on all cylinders.
.London also faces some headwinds. Nominet is now offering second level .uk domain names. People in London are already familiar with .uk, and these shorter (and substantially cheaper) domain names will certainly compete against .London.
A lot of companies in London associate themselves more with England than just one city, too.
GoDaddy (see ad to right) is offering .London domains for $59.99. Minds + Machines, which is a backer of .London, is offering domains during the priority registration period for $50.
They should at least use WWW in the domain name until people understand that it is a web address. I am sure many people wonder what makeit.london means.
.London should have a huge pull in the UK, let alone on a wider scale as a legitimate global brand.
People want to be associated with the capital beyond a country recognition, with its strong position as the hub of comnercial / artistic activity.
London’s seen as a very seperate entity from the rest of the country, reflected in its spiralling property prices during the recent economic downturn for example.
It has a massive pull on the psyche of the population, hence I’d expect it to far outstrip .uk, moreso given the prevalence of .co.uk as the domain people affiliate with on a country level.
Enom’s list price is $ 73.99.
I guess we are spoiled by the $ 10. price range.
Scotland has a referendum very soon, and if independence is voted, this will have affect as Scotland would leave the UK. In turn Wales, albeit voiced in some demographics, might consider the same.
The result would in theory shrink the co.uk and .uk demographic
Although I believe the .uk is a soild brand it could benefit the .scot etc and .london
19.99 GBP offer and 39.99 GBP regular price at 1&1 – and this even includes the application fee during the priority period.
Ah, a bit tricky to find on their website – here’s the link: http://www.1and1.co.uk/sea-london-domain
This is fantastic news for Detroit.
Figures from names.co.uk show .london is dominating the gTLD market
http://blog.names.co.uk/2014/05/london-dominates-gtld-market/