Although I rarely write about projects I’m personally working on, I’m delighted to announced that .CLUB Domains, LLC, the company formed to own and operate the new “.CLUB” generic top-level domain name (gTLD), has partnered with Internet consulting and advisement firm RightOfTheDot, LLC to help facilitate and manage the release, placement and auction of certain super premium and Founder .CLUB domain names.
Super premium names may include such “category killers” as a.club, e.club, 888.club, chess.club, poker.club, insurance.club, golf.club, country.club, wine.club and car.club, just to names a few of the natural terms on the left of the dot that go perfectly with the right of the dot.
Premium sales of .Club domain names are expected to begin in early 2014, after companies have had a chance to secure trademark names through a sunrise period.
As most of you know, the publisher and editor of TheDomains.com, Michael Berkens, is a Director, Partner and Founder of RightoftheDot.com.
New web addresses with the .CLUB extension are expected to be among the most popular new gTLDs to hit the market in early 2014, and is ranked in the top 30 of all new gTLD pre-reservations on 1and1.com which has received over 4 Million pre-reservations
The word “CLUB” is recognized in nearly every language and appeals to many different categories of people, including membership organizations, affinity groups, loyalty clubs, athletic organizations, country clubs, social clubs and many more.
“The word `club’ is a great choice for a web extension because it’s recognizable, short, memorable and meaningful, which are all vital components for websites that want to attract visitors and create communities,” said Monte Cahn, co-founder and president of Right of the Dot, LLC. “We expect tremendous interest around .CLUB from all over the world and are excited to be part of the launch.”
RightOfTheDot, LLC was founded in 2010 by two well known domain industry veterans, Monte Cahn and Michael H. Berkens, Esq. who have a combined 29 years of domain industry experience and have participated in more than $350,000,000 in domain sales.
Monte has advised and assisted in launching many of the existing 22 gTLDs, and pioneered many domain industry products and services such as: domain appraisals & escrow; live and online domain auctions; WHOIS privacy; and domain theft protection.
“No firm has more experience, network and knowledge to showcase some of our top names,” said Colin Campbell, chairman and CEO of .CLUB Domains. “When it comes to finding the right buyers and partners for super premium names, Monte and Michael were a clear choice. We’re expecting the premium name sales to be robust and exciting, as organizations understand the power of the word `club” for bringing people together around shared passions, common interests and exciting destinations. RightOfTheDot has also advised us on strategy and has made great industry introductions that will help with the success of our company long term.”
Formed in 2012 and backed by $8.2 million from private investors, .CLUB will enable clubs, membership organizations or others sharing a common interest to establish memorable “yourname.club” Web addresses.
Every day, people form communities and groups around every imaginable interest, and .CLUB makes it easier than ever for them to acquire a Web address that is convenient, holds meaning and has marketing value.
About .CLUB Domains, LLC
Led by Internet entrepreneur Colin Campbell, whose prior successes include Tucows Interactive and Hostopia.com, and GeeksforLess.com, .Club Domains, LLC was formed for the purpose of becoming the .CLUB gTLD registry. Fully understanding the inherent marketing value of a .CLUB domain for any membership organization, .CLUB is also building a comprehensive social platform for club management.
.CLUB is a one-stop shop for clubs of all sizes to secure a great domain, grow club membership, improve member engagement and reduce management costs. By combining an easy to use web services platform with a top level domain based on a globally recognized term, .CLUB is “the easiest way to find, join or start a club.” More information and pre-registration of .CLUB domains is available now at dotclub.com.
About RightOfTheDot, LLC
RightOfTheDot, LLC is an Internet consulting and advisement firm specializing in new and existing TLD strategies, contention resolution and private auction services, board advisement, premium domain and market positioning, sales and services. The new venture is the brainchild of two successful domain and Internet industry veterans, Monte Cahn and Michael H. Berkens, Esq., who posses a unique combination of vision, leadership and domain expertise.
This highly qualified consulting group gives you access to the most experienced domain sales and marketing strategists in the industry.
Both principals of RightOfTheDot are members of the prestigious Domain Hall Of Fame and combined have sold more than $350,000,000 in domain names.
Good luck, Bouncer.Club although I guess anyone can can enter !! more seriously, I hope this venture offers you greater say in the important issues regarding drafting UDRP guidelines/ decisions.
Congrats Michael, Monte.
As far as I understand, the new gTLD registries are restricted from releasing any 1 and 2 character domain names at least in the beginning.
Am I wrong on that?
As a reference:
“Two-character labels. All two-character labels shall be initially reserved. The reservation of a two-character label string may be released to the extent that Registry Operator reaches agreement with the government and country-code manager.
The Registry Operator may also propose release of these reservations based on its implementation of measures to avoid confusion with the corresponding country codes.”
In this case reserve means that the Registry Operator shall not register, delegate, use or otherwise make available such labels to any third party. You can find this by clicking on the following link and it’s on page 46;
http://archive.icann.org/en/topics/new-gtlds/agreement-specs-clean-19sep11-en.pdf
insurance.club is a premium domain? That sounds like it would be the most boring club ever.
To paraphrase Groucho Marx, or was it Sam Goldwyn? “I wouldn’t want to be a member of any .club that would accept me as a member.” Best of luck with the club venture. Potential is there.
Andrew
No two letter new gTLD domains.
Anything that matches a ccTLD will never been in existence so no tv.club
Already applied to .XXX which is why there is no BJ.xxx or 69.xxx
One letter and one character new gTLD’s are fine.
Of course all domains are subject to this collision block which will prevent use, sale or allocation for at least 120 days from delegation