Don't .tel on me
I struggled with a witty headline for this post about the new .tel domain name that goes on sale today, but as you can tell from this post title, I failed. Miserably.
Today is the first day you can purchase one of the new .tel domain names. The domain extension is intended to be used as directory type service – so yourname.tel would have all your contact information on it.
I’ve already been asked by our CIO if this is something our college should look into. I don’t have a good answer right now to the question. I think it makes sense as a directory service, but pretty much every college is already offering search and directory services and do we need a specialized domain name for that service?
If you are interested in a .tel domain name, there are three distinct periods for purchasing them.
From December 3, 2008 to February 2, 2009, only rightful owners or licensees of trademarks will be allowed to register their names. This is known as the sunrise period. Expect to pay a pretty penny during this period, with costs at various registrars ranging from $200 – $399 per year, with a 3 year commitment.
The landrush period from February 3, 2009 to March 23, 2009 opens the pool for everyone on a first-come, first-served basis. Expect to still pay premium prices during this time, with costs ranging from $180 to $375 per year, with a 3 year commitment.
Starting at 15:00 GMT on March 24, 2009, the domain name opens up for anyone else. The costs come down but there’s no telling what the inventory will be like at that point. Expect costs to come way down as well – I’m seeing prices in the $16 to $19 range with a commitment of only 1 year.
Time will tell if this catches on, especially in higher education. Does your institution have plans to purchase one of these domains?
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This is the first I’ve heard of this. Very interesting. But I don’t think I’m going to jump on board quite yet until I read or hear more about its added value. There are so many other ways to find our info – another way couldn’t hurt, but I don’t think it’s worth that kind of money in our extremely tight budget climate.
Perhaps it is the graphic you chose, is this domain more directed to mobile browsers to allow for traveling reps find contact information for their clients directly from their phones?
This is a racket. $300 for registering a domain? The average user will always look to the big three to find contact information: .com, .net, and .org. Everything else like this .tel domain are simply a novelty.
@James – I think they want to show that its good for not only regular web directory-type service, but can be a mobile solution as well. Which is kind of silly – all you’re buying is a domain name, not necessarily a service.