MrRhee
04-20-2009, 06:18 PM
Here's the chat transcript that took place April 20, 2009 during the auction for TechSupport.mobi (ended at $540)
(I hope BIDO.com doesn't mind me posting this, if they ask to remove, pleased do so...)
Be sure to visit http://bido.mobi for more info...
keep in mind, this all I have from the chat..
I truly wish that Bido had aggressively promoted the chat...
.................
[13:10] Jarred: can you tell us a little about the single and double character release of .mobi domains?
[13:11] Pinky Brand: If present trends continue we could see 6 or 7 million mobile websites by next year
[13:11] Gary Taylor: Hi everyone!
[13:11] Art: It might be wise to start looking into available .mobi domain names
[13:11] Art: helllo Gary
[13:12] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, Wow fantastic growth!
[13:12] Pinky Brand: And our new Instant Mobilizer product is helping to fuel some of that growth by offering free mobile websites to anyone with a .mobi domain or that registers a .mobi domain---assuming they go through a registrar offering same
[13:12] Art: that sounds like a very useful service
[13:13] Jarred: sounds like a great product, makes it really easy and saves a lot of time for webmasters and site/business owners
[13:13] Pinky Brand: On the single and double characters---we are NOT selling them nor auctioning them---we are not allowed to do that per our ICANN agreement.
[13:13] Jarred: so they'll be gratis?
[13:13] Pinky Brand: However ANYONE can apply for available 1 and 2 characters.
[13:14] Art: Pinky, do you own any .mobi domain names yourself?
[13:14] Jarred: are you going to build out pb.mobi? :)
[13:14] Jarred: hi Gary
[13:14] Gary Taylor: Jarred, Hi mate
[13:14] Pinky Brand: You can submit an expression of interest via our website at http://dotMobi.mobi . Submitting a letter of interest does not guarantee anything, but if we decide to issue an RFP for that name and invite you to apply there is a $500 application fee.
[13:15] Gary Taylor: Once invited does that guarantee?
[13:15] Gary Taylor: or is there still a qualification process?
[13:15] Pinky Brand: For instance, 53.mobi was recently granted to a bank
[13:16] Art: This would be for the 1 and 2 character names, correct?
[13:16] Jarred: I must be stepping out but will check the transcript later, Art from Bido will continue to moderate, thanks again Pinky for being our special guest today, ttyl
[13:16] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, ah yes the five third bank corp
[13:16] Art: bye Jarred
[13:16] Gary Taylor: bye jarred
[13:17] Art: Pinky, do you buy and sell domain names? Or focus mainly on .mobi?
[13:17] Art: .mobi expansion that is
[13:17] Jarred: Sahar and Art will moderate that is, :)
[13:18] Art: I hear Sahar knows a thing or 2 about domaining :)
[13:19] Art: Price is going up for techsupport.mobi!
[13:19] Pinky Brand: Sorry...having some connection issues. Yes I do own quite a few .mobi names among other extensions---I have been a fan of ccTLDs for many years as well.
[13:19] Art: What are some of your favorites in your portfolio?
[13:20] Pinky Brand: If you are invited it does not guarantee, but bascially it means we are interested in what you have to say.
[13:20] Sahar: stepped out for a minute, back
[13:20] Art: welcome
[13:21] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, thanks
[13:21] Sahar: I didn't really prepare to moderate but Jarred is our, so let's see what we can come up with. Also, Bido members, feel free to jump in whenever
[13:21] Art: Pinky, are you now focusing on purchasing striclty .mobi names?
[13:22] Sahar: Pinky Brand, If one wants to register a dotMobi, what are the requirements? Is domain parking acceptable usage?
[13:23] Pinky Brand: Except for a few misc "drunk registration" public names I've registered, my portfolio is entirely private and I have never sold a name in the 12 years I've been doing this.
[13:23] Art: interesting
[13:24] Art: do purchase your with a plan to develop sites on them yourself?
[13:24] Art: you domain names, that is
[13:24] Pinky Brand: I believe strongly in buying and holding investments for very long periods of time----15 years minimum---so I may start selling some names in about 3 years.
[13:24] Art: I see
[13:25] DNBA: hey pinky <- shahram
[13:25] Sahar: Pinky Brand, what skills should one needs in order to build dotmobi and mobile sites?
[13:27] Art: Did we lose Pinky?
[13:27] Jeff1: yes looks like he's having probs on his side
[13:27] Sahar: Looks like Pinky is having connection issues
[13:27] Sahar: Jeff, stop ddos him pls!
[13:27] Jeff1: heh
[13:28] Art: so what does everybody think of techsupport.mobi?
[13:28] DNBA: is there also video?
[13:28] Sahar: I think lack of attendance today shows the lack of interest in those who adopted dotmobi early on. Where are they now is the question on top of my head
[13:28] Gary Taylor: I think its great, developing it will be difficult I believe, but for someone prepared to commit the time it would be a solid investment
[13:29] DNBA: i only own 1 .mobi
[13:29] Art: I would think a mobil device carrier would be a great candidate to snap it up
[13:29] Art: seems it is a great, generic term, tech support
[13:30] Art: DNBA, what is your .mobi name?
[13:30] DNBA: 700mhz.mobi
[13:30] Pinky Brand: sorry folks---serious connection issues at the moment---i am not in the office
[13:30] Art: welcome back, Pinky!
[13:30] Sahar: I think for dotmobi to succeed they need to get a dotmobi button with the big carriers. While Pinky says it isn't as critical I belive it is, for mass adoption. If the extension generate traffic the world will follow in much bigger numbgers
[13:30] DNBA: are you at the pub?
[13:30] Pinky Brand: anyway, there is no requirement to develop a registered .mobi name
[13:30] Sahar: Welcome back Pinky
[13:31] Sahar: Pinky Brand, wasn't there in the past?
[13:31] Pinky Brand: you don't have to do anything with any .mobi name you register UNLESS the name resolves---then the site or parking page must conform to a few simple rules
[13:32] Pinky Brand: those are: XTHML profile, no frames or pop-ups (and who would want those ona a 2 inch screen anyway) and a second-level address
[13:32] Sahar: Pinky Brand, since browsers can detect mobile phones andserve mobile content to those phones on regular extensions, what is the importance of .Mobi?
[13:32] Pinky Brand: basic stuff really
[13:33] Art: Pinky Brand, what adcice would you give to people new to domaining? go heavy on .mobi domain names?
[13:33] Art: advice, sorry!
[13:33] Pinky Brand: to be clear---some PREMIUM .mobi names released by the registry itself through some past auctions at other providers (note the name here today is not a name being offered by dotMobi) did require some development requirements
[13:33] DNBA: do you know if there will be any branding on mobile devices for .mobi?
[13:34] Sahar: " to be clear---some PREMIUM .mobi names released by the registry itself through some past auctions at other providers (note the name here today is not a name being offered by dotMobi) did require some development requirements" - I find this confusing. I always assume all dotmobi require development.
[13:34] Pinky Brand: unfortunately there has been some confusion along that line
[13:35] Pinky Brand: We never have required that anyone develop a name registered in the open market. You don't have to do anything if you don't want to.
[13:36] Sahar: Got it
[13:36] Art: Does the dotmobi registry auction off names themselves?
[13:36] Sahar: Back to the question above, since browsers can detect mobile phones andserve mobile content to those phones on regular extensions, what is the importance of .Mobi?
[13:36] Sahar: Art, they have in the past
[13:36] Sahar: Not sure if they still do
[13:36] Art: I see
[13:36] Art: good question, Sahar
[13:37] Pinky Brand: on browser detection---we are all for it---in fact we sell our Device Atlas database that helps with that
[13:37] Sahar: So if my phone can detect mobile content and content can be served on my regular extension, why do I need .mobi?
[13:39] Pinky Brand: You need .mobi if you want to tell users and people searching for mobile content that you actually offer content that works on any mobile device.
[13:40] Art: So just because you can view a site on a Blackberry doesn't mean you can view it on a lesser device?
[13:40] Gary Taylor: Art, true
[13:40] Pinky Brand: In fact, we just completed a study of active mobile sites and found the main extension used in .mobi---more then m.dot, WAP, /mobile etc.
[13:41] Pinky Brand: Correct just because you see it on a blackberry does not mean it will serve up correctly on a Nokia for instance, or whatever phone among 7,000 types that exist today.
[13:41] Gary Taylor: they seem to rank better in mobile search too
[13:42] Art: Pinky, in your estimation, what percent of .mobi domain names are still out there for individuals to purchase
[13:42] Sahar: As now more and more phones render full pages on mobile devices, such as iPhones, Storm, how is that affecting dotMobi?
[13:42] Pinky Brand: The iphone helps us. It shows what is wrong with mobile and what is right.
[13:42] Sahar: In what way?
[13:43] Pinky Brand: The iphone browser is neat, but it gets really irritating when you just want to get some content very quickly.
[13:44] Pinky Brand: you end up clicking on krap you did not want to click on---site takes forever to load---in most countries outside USA you pay big time per MB to download.
[13:44] Gary Taylor: according to bango analytics only 1.12% of all mobile downloads were from the iPhone in Feb 2009, regardless of it having sold 17m units
[13:44] Art: that's interesting Gary
[13:45] Pinky Brand: The iphone and smartphones are great---but all phones are getting smarter---but they wont be that smart in most of the world where people cannot afford 200-400 phones
[13:45] Art: I wonder what % iPhones make up of all web capable devices
[13:45] Adams Consulting: That is the thing I've noticed on latest Blackberry, even if the whole page will render, JavaScript and all, I have to wait for it to download, and I have to pay the bandwidth.
[13:45] Sahar: I've been using iPhone for a while and sometimes, when I went to CNN, I was redirected to mlogic.mobi (even though I typed CNN.COM). Any idea why would they do it?
[13:45] DNBA: Pinky you mentioned that the founders were Nokia, Microsoft, Vodafone, Google... are they not big supporters anymore?
[13:45] Pinky Brand: for example---a popular auction site that I know of has a nice littel mobile site---costs only 6 cents to download
[13:46] Art: an auction site, you say?
[13:46] Pinky Brand: but other sites I checked were terrible---they were not made for mobile and thus cost user $6 or $7 dollars to load just the home page so you can see it on an ipHone
[13:46] Pinky Brand: they won't be going back once they see their bill
[13:46] Art: 14 mins left for techsupport.mobi
[13:46] Sahar: im guessing ebay? feel free to name it
[13:47] Pinky Brand: EBAY is one of them. they offer ebay.mobi --- so does facebook now with facebook.mobi
[13:47] Pinky Brand: even though it redirects user knows at least they won't get shafted with a huge bill for downloading
[13:48] Art: Very good for .mobi that sites such as these are dipping into the .mobi world
[13:48] Adams Consulting: I'd rather use an app on my smartphone, so sites with APIs are great.
[13:48] Pinky Brand: our registration sales continue to grow despite the economy---especially in other parts of the world---china being one of them
[13:48] Sahar: Isn't running a seperate extension away from the main one would add costs to business, in terms of branding? The business now has to support both the main extension and a regular one. In addition, some users may not know what .Mobi stands for which require furhter education. So running a business I would have those objections. Do you have any advice how one should proceed, what to consider, case studies, etc?
[13:49] Pinky Brand: Yes, the iphone apps are great---and why?---because they are made for a mobile experience---but the iphone and the app store are a very very small piece of the global pie for mobile content
...
Introducing Bido's PortfolioHelp: Domain Name Portfolio Brokerage and Monetization. Make more money than ever before with the same traffic.
Submit your domains to Bido, with Reserve Pricing or without: One word or two words "natural combinations" .net/.org/ccTLD's (ex: Silver.Org, rarecoins.net, bankloans.de). We're still interested in listing great .com domains as well.
Today's guest in the Bido chatroom, Pinky Brand, of the dotMOBI registry.
...
[13:50] Art: If you attempt to view a .com site using a mobile device, why not simply redirect the user to the .mobi version?
[13:50] Pinky Brand: If running different extensions is bad for branding then I wonder why so many of my corporate clients have bought so many ccTLDs and actually promote themselves in those TLDs.
[13:51] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, good comment
[13:51] Sahar: Pinky Brand, I wonder too. One identity vs. many. It reminds me another debate in the branding world, generic vs. specific naming
[13:52] Pinky Brand: I made my living selling ccTLDs for nearly 8 years and for years people thought they were worthless. Now it seems everyone wants them.
[13:53] Gary Taylor: ccTLDS have certain weighting characteristics in their country, especially from a trust factor, this is similar for .mobi an the mobile SERPs - mobile search is massively under used, who here has a domain that ranks well in www.google.com/m (MOBILE)?
[13:53] ROMM: Hi all (howdy Sahar),
[13:53] Sahar: Pinky Brand, ccTLD's I always found them to be good for coros as they allow for brand protection. Now that they gain traffic in certain markets domainers chase them as well.
[13:53] Sahar: Hi Romm
[13:53] Pinky Brand: But hey we are talking about .mobi here---the trends are clear---mobile content is exploding and we are right in there---not just selling .mobi names but providing solutions wrapped around the extension.
[13:54] Sahar: Pinky Brand, if you were looking at the domain here, TechSupport.Mobi, what would you think of doing with it?
[13:54] Sahar: if you were in the market to buy that is
[13:54] ROMM: I picked up a .mobi (streemagic.mobi) because I really like the idea of performing magic on the street with a mobile phone.
[13:54] Art: Sahar just stole my question
[13:54] Sahar: lol
[13:54] Pinky Brand: I strongly believe a ccTLD or a new gTLD or .mobi or dotWhatever must be relevant and offer a solution to a problem---otherwise I don't invest in them.
[13:54] ROMM: (sorry to interrupt current discussion)
[13:54] Sahar: Looking forward to see it develops Ryan
[13:55] Sahar: Pinky Brand, that makes sense
[13:55] tnd: Is TechSupport.mobi one of the premium names that is held by the registry?
[13:55] Sahar: tnd, no
[13:55] Sahar: privately owned
[13:55] Pinky Brand: no this name is not ourse
[13:55] Pinky Brand: ours
[13:55] Art: down to 5 minutes
[13:55] Art: get those bids in!
[13:56] Sahar: Pinky Brand, how many .mobi domains are registered? any numbers? What is the growth rate for the extension?
[13:56] Adams Consulting: I've yet to see .mobi campaigns hit the mass media. When will that change?
[13:57] Pinky Brand: yeah we've registered about 1.2 million names---new creates have been picking up since the crisis---it's a cheap way to get a small business on mobile---.mobi name for anywhere from 8 to 15 bucks plus the free Instant Mobilizer site.
[13:57] Sahar: Adams Consulting, I saw a nubmer of corporations advertising their .Mobi names strong. It's happening.
[13:57] Pinky Brand: We we are running a TV campaign in 43 US airports right now.
[13:58] Art: especially w/ the growing number of mobile devices out there
[13:58] Sahar: Pinky Brand, nice
[13:58] Pinky Brand: That's just a start on our end.
[13:58] Adams Consulting: About the domain itself, from the registry?
[13:58] Sahar: Adams Consulting, no. Was asked before
[13:58] EGS: ****
[13:58] EGS: someone outbid me
[13:58] tnd: I think it would be difficult for a domain investor to monetize .mobi domain names effectively. Why did .mobi reserve many of the top names for private domain auctions where domain investors were the primary audience rather than to seek out businesses who would develop them?
[13:58] EGS: i was going strong
[13:58] Art: wow
[13:59] Adams Consulting: i'm asking about the the US airport campaign.
[13:59] EGS: .mobi is mass media
[13:59] EGS: Fox news shows fox.mobi at the bottom right of the screen every day
[13:59] Sahar: EGS, language please.. see the welcome msg in chat room
[14:00] Adams Consulting: Please provide more details on the US airport campaign. What is being advertisted? The .mobi TLD?
[14:01] Sahar: Pinky Brand, thanks so much for joining us. We all wish you the best. If someone needs any further assistance with .Mobi? Any final words before we say goodbye?
[14:01] Pinky Brand: Yes the .mobi TLD---you can get more info on that on our blog at blog.mobi or search for dotmobi on youtube to see the ad
[14:01] Gary Taylor: .mobi rules! thanks pinky
[14:01] Adams Consulting: Thanks, Pinky.
[14:01] Bido: http://dotmobi.typepad.com/
[14:02] Pinky Brand: My pleasure to attend and sorry for the connection delays. I was trying to answer all questions as quickly as possible!
[14:02] Sahar: Thanks Pinky !
[14:02] Art: Thank you Pinky!
[14:02] Pinky Brand: I thank everyone for their questions and support and thank BIDO for inviting me to attend today.
[14:02] Art: Still time left for bidding...
[14:03] Sahar: Take care all, I'm stepping out. Thanks again Pinky for all the insight !
[14:03] Adams Consulting: Here's the youtube link to the .mobi airport ad:
[14:03] Adams Consulting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJ0lYOFJQRQ
[14:03] Art: Bye Sahar
[14:04] Art: Congrats to victornumber
[14:04] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, have dot mobi paired up with "preferred" mobile developers, who do you currently recommed, if anyone?
[14:04] Pinky Brand: Bye Sahar and others. Thanks.
[14:04] Art: thanks again, Pinky!
[14:04] Art: Thanks to everyone for chatting today
[14:05] Pinky Brand: We've got a list of certified .mobi developers at our mobiForge.com site---otherwise email me offline for specific recs
[14:06] Pinky Brand: I've got to go unfortunately---I'm in Dublin and it's a pub time! :) Actually i need to scoot to a call. Take care all and thanks.
[14:06] Gary Taylor: Email me your address to gary@3ac.co.uk would love to have a chat further
[14:06] kiwi: I like this platform. Thank you
[14:07] Art: Bye Everyone!
[14:07] Pinky Brand: my email address is public --- it is pbrand@dotMobi.mobi --- thanks!
[14:07] Gary Taylor: Great! enjoy the pub!
[14:07] Pinky Brand: Thanks Gary. Take care.
[14:08] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, and you all the best
[14:08] Chef Patrick: wow good sale
[14:11] Gary Taylor: Chef Patrick, yeah nice result $540 not too shabby
(I hope BIDO.com doesn't mind me posting this, if they ask to remove, pleased do so...)
Be sure to visit http://bido.mobi for more info...
keep in mind, this all I have from the chat..
I truly wish that Bido had aggressively promoted the chat...
.................
[13:10] Jarred: can you tell us a little about the single and double character release of .mobi domains?
[13:11] Pinky Brand: If present trends continue we could see 6 or 7 million mobile websites by next year
[13:11] Gary Taylor: Hi everyone!
[13:11] Art: It might be wise to start looking into available .mobi domain names
[13:11] Art: helllo Gary
[13:12] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, Wow fantastic growth!
[13:12] Pinky Brand: And our new Instant Mobilizer product is helping to fuel some of that growth by offering free mobile websites to anyone with a .mobi domain or that registers a .mobi domain---assuming they go through a registrar offering same
[13:12] Art: that sounds like a very useful service
[13:13] Jarred: sounds like a great product, makes it really easy and saves a lot of time for webmasters and site/business owners
[13:13] Pinky Brand: On the single and double characters---we are NOT selling them nor auctioning them---we are not allowed to do that per our ICANN agreement.
[13:13] Jarred: so they'll be gratis?
[13:13] Pinky Brand: However ANYONE can apply for available 1 and 2 characters.
[13:14] Art: Pinky, do you own any .mobi domain names yourself?
[13:14] Jarred: are you going to build out pb.mobi? :)
[13:14] Jarred: hi Gary
[13:14] Gary Taylor: Jarred, Hi mate
[13:14] Pinky Brand: You can submit an expression of interest via our website at http://dotMobi.mobi . Submitting a letter of interest does not guarantee anything, but if we decide to issue an RFP for that name and invite you to apply there is a $500 application fee.
[13:15] Gary Taylor: Once invited does that guarantee?
[13:15] Gary Taylor: or is there still a qualification process?
[13:15] Pinky Brand: For instance, 53.mobi was recently granted to a bank
[13:16] Art: This would be for the 1 and 2 character names, correct?
[13:16] Jarred: I must be stepping out but will check the transcript later, Art from Bido will continue to moderate, thanks again Pinky for being our special guest today, ttyl
[13:16] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, ah yes the five third bank corp
[13:16] Art: bye Jarred
[13:16] Gary Taylor: bye jarred
[13:17] Art: Pinky, do you buy and sell domain names? Or focus mainly on .mobi?
[13:17] Art: .mobi expansion that is
[13:17] Jarred: Sahar and Art will moderate that is, :)
[13:18] Art: I hear Sahar knows a thing or 2 about domaining :)
[13:19] Art: Price is going up for techsupport.mobi!
[13:19] Pinky Brand: Sorry...having some connection issues. Yes I do own quite a few .mobi names among other extensions---I have been a fan of ccTLDs for many years as well.
[13:19] Art: What are some of your favorites in your portfolio?
[13:20] Pinky Brand: If you are invited it does not guarantee, but bascially it means we are interested in what you have to say.
[13:20] Sahar: stepped out for a minute, back
[13:20] Art: welcome
[13:21] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, thanks
[13:21] Sahar: I didn't really prepare to moderate but Jarred is our, so let's see what we can come up with. Also, Bido members, feel free to jump in whenever
[13:21] Art: Pinky, are you now focusing on purchasing striclty .mobi names?
[13:22] Sahar: Pinky Brand, If one wants to register a dotMobi, what are the requirements? Is domain parking acceptable usage?
[13:23] Pinky Brand: Except for a few misc "drunk registration" public names I've registered, my portfolio is entirely private and I have never sold a name in the 12 years I've been doing this.
[13:23] Art: interesting
[13:24] Art: do purchase your with a plan to develop sites on them yourself?
[13:24] Art: you domain names, that is
[13:24] Pinky Brand: I believe strongly in buying and holding investments for very long periods of time----15 years minimum---so I may start selling some names in about 3 years.
[13:24] Art: I see
[13:25] DNBA: hey pinky <- shahram
[13:25] Sahar: Pinky Brand, what skills should one needs in order to build dotmobi and mobile sites?
[13:27] Art: Did we lose Pinky?
[13:27] Jeff1: yes looks like he's having probs on his side
[13:27] Sahar: Looks like Pinky is having connection issues
[13:27] Sahar: Jeff, stop ddos him pls!
[13:27] Jeff1: heh
[13:28] Art: so what does everybody think of techsupport.mobi?
[13:28] DNBA: is there also video?
[13:28] Sahar: I think lack of attendance today shows the lack of interest in those who adopted dotmobi early on. Where are they now is the question on top of my head
[13:28] Gary Taylor: I think its great, developing it will be difficult I believe, but for someone prepared to commit the time it would be a solid investment
[13:29] DNBA: i only own 1 .mobi
[13:29] Art: I would think a mobil device carrier would be a great candidate to snap it up
[13:29] Art: seems it is a great, generic term, tech support
[13:30] Art: DNBA, what is your .mobi name?
[13:30] DNBA: 700mhz.mobi
[13:30] Pinky Brand: sorry folks---serious connection issues at the moment---i am not in the office
[13:30] Art: welcome back, Pinky!
[13:30] Sahar: I think for dotmobi to succeed they need to get a dotmobi button with the big carriers. While Pinky says it isn't as critical I belive it is, for mass adoption. If the extension generate traffic the world will follow in much bigger numbgers
[13:30] DNBA: are you at the pub?
[13:30] Pinky Brand: anyway, there is no requirement to develop a registered .mobi name
[13:30] Sahar: Welcome back Pinky
[13:31] Sahar: Pinky Brand, wasn't there in the past?
[13:31] Pinky Brand: you don't have to do anything with any .mobi name you register UNLESS the name resolves---then the site or parking page must conform to a few simple rules
[13:32] Pinky Brand: those are: XTHML profile, no frames or pop-ups (and who would want those ona a 2 inch screen anyway) and a second-level address
[13:32] Sahar: Pinky Brand, since browsers can detect mobile phones andserve mobile content to those phones on regular extensions, what is the importance of .Mobi?
[13:32] Pinky Brand: basic stuff really
[13:33] Art: Pinky Brand, what adcice would you give to people new to domaining? go heavy on .mobi domain names?
[13:33] Art: advice, sorry!
[13:33] Pinky Brand: to be clear---some PREMIUM .mobi names released by the registry itself through some past auctions at other providers (note the name here today is not a name being offered by dotMobi) did require some development requirements
[13:33] DNBA: do you know if there will be any branding on mobile devices for .mobi?
[13:34] Sahar: " to be clear---some PREMIUM .mobi names released by the registry itself through some past auctions at other providers (note the name here today is not a name being offered by dotMobi) did require some development requirements" - I find this confusing. I always assume all dotmobi require development.
[13:34] Pinky Brand: unfortunately there has been some confusion along that line
[13:35] Pinky Brand: We never have required that anyone develop a name registered in the open market. You don't have to do anything if you don't want to.
[13:36] Sahar: Got it
[13:36] Art: Does the dotmobi registry auction off names themselves?
[13:36] Sahar: Back to the question above, since browsers can detect mobile phones andserve mobile content to those phones on regular extensions, what is the importance of .Mobi?
[13:36] Sahar: Art, they have in the past
[13:36] Sahar: Not sure if they still do
[13:36] Art: I see
[13:36] Art: good question, Sahar
[13:37] Pinky Brand: on browser detection---we are all for it---in fact we sell our Device Atlas database that helps with that
[13:37] Sahar: So if my phone can detect mobile content and content can be served on my regular extension, why do I need .mobi?
[13:39] Pinky Brand: You need .mobi if you want to tell users and people searching for mobile content that you actually offer content that works on any mobile device.
[13:40] Art: So just because you can view a site on a Blackberry doesn't mean you can view it on a lesser device?
[13:40] Gary Taylor: Art, true
[13:40] Pinky Brand: In fact, we just completed a study of active mobile sites and found the main extension used in .mobi---more then m.dot, WAP, /mobile etc.
[13:41] Pinky Brand: Correct just because you see it on a blackberry does not mean it will serve up correctly on a Nokia for instance, or whatever phone among 7,000 types that exist today.
[13:41] Gary Taylor: they seem to rank better in mobile search too
[13:42] Art: Pinky, in your estimation, what percent of .mobi domain names are still out there for individuals to purchase
[13:42] Sahar: As now more and more phones render full pages on mobile devices, such as iPhones, Storm, how is that affecting dotMobi?
[13:42] Pinky Brand: The iphone helps us. It shows what is wrong with mobile and what is right.
[13:42] Sahar: In what way?
[13:43] Pinky Brand: The iphone browser is neat, but it gets really irritating when you just want to get some content very quickly.
[13:44] Pinky Brand: you end up clicking on krap you did not want to click on---site takes forever to load---in most countries outside USA you pay big time per MB to download.
[13:44] Gary Taylor: according to bango analytics only 1.12% of all mobile downloads were from the iPhone in Feb 2009, regardless of it having sold 17m units
[13:44] Art: that's interesting Gary
[13:45] Pinky Brand: The iphone and smartphones are great---but all phones are getting smarter---but they wont be that smart in most of the world where people cannot afford 200-400 phones
[13:45] Art: I wonder what % iPhones make up of all web capable devices
[13:45] Adams Consulting: That is the thing I've noticed on latest Blackberry, even if the whole page will render, JavaScript and all, I have to wait for it to download, and I have to pay the bandwidth.
[13:45] Sahar: I've been using iPhone for a while and sometimes, when I went to CNN, I was redirected to mlogic.mobi (even though I typed CNN.COM). Any idea why would they do it?
[13:45] DNBA: Pinky you mentioned that the founders were Nokia, Microsoft, Vodafone, Google... are they not big supporters anymore?
[13:45] Pinky Brand: for example---a popular auction site that I know of has a nice littel mobile site---costs only 6 cents to download
[13:46] Art: an auction site, you say?
[13:46] Pinky Brand: but other sites I checked were terrible---they were not made for mobile and thus cost user $6 or $7 dollars to load just the home page so you can see it on an ipHone
[13:46] Pinky Brand: they won't be going back once they see their bill
[13:46] Art: 14 mins left for techsupport.mobi
[13:46] Sahar: im guessing ebay? feel free to name it
[13:47] Pinky Brand: EBAY is one of them. they offer ebay.mobi --- so does facebook now with facebook.mobi
[13:47] Pinky Brand: even though it redirects user knows at least they won't get shafted with a huge bill for downloading
[13:48] Art: Very good for .mobi that sites such as these are dipping into the .mobi world
[13:48] Adams Consulting: I'd rather use an app on my smartphone, so sites with APIs are great.
[13:48] Pinky Brand: our registration sales continue to grow despite the economy---especially in other parts of the world---china being one of them
[13:48] Sahar: Isn't running a seperate extension away from the main one would add costs to business, in terms of branding? The business now has to support both the main extension and a regular one. In addition, some users may not know what .Mobi stands for which require furhter education. So running a business I would have those objections. Do you have any advice how one should proceed, what to consider, case studies, etc?
[13:49] Pinky Brand: Yes, the iphone apps are great---and why?---because they are made for a mobile experience---but the iphone and the app store are a very very small piece of the global pie for mobile content
...
Introducing Bido's PortfolioHelp: Domain Name Portfolio Brokerage and Monetization. Make more money than ever before with the same traffic.
Submit your domains to Bido, with Reserve Pricing or without: One word or two words "natural combinations" .net/.org/ccTLD's (ex: Silver.Org, rarecoins.net, bankloans.de). We're still interested in listing great .com domains as well.
Today's guest in the Bido chatroom, Pinky Brand, of the dotMOBI registry.
...
[13:50] Art: If you attempt to view a .com site using a mobile device, why not simply redirect the user to the .mobi version?
[13:50] Pinky Brand: If running different extensions is bad for branding then I wonder why so many of my corporate clients have bought so many ccTLDs and actually promote themselves in those TLDs.
[13:51] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, good comment
[13:51] Sahar: Pinky Brand, I wonder too. One identity vs. many. It reminds me another debate in the branding world, generic vs. specific naming
[13:52] Pinky Brand: I made my living selling ccTLDs for nearly 8 years and for years people thought they were worthless. Now it seems everyone wants them.
[13:53] Gary Taylor: ccTLDS have certain weighting characteristics in their country, especially from a trust factor, this is similar for .mobi an the mobile SERPs - mobile search is massively under used, who here has a domain that ranks well in www.google.com/m (MOBILE)?
[13:53] ROMM: Hi all (howdy Sahar),
[13:53] Sahar: Pinky Brand, ccTLD's I always found them to be good for coros as they allow for brand protection. Now that they gain traffic in certain markets domainers chase them as well.
[13:53] Sahar: Hi Romm
[13:53] Pinky Brand: But hey we are talking about .mobi here---the trends are clear---mobile content is exploding and we are right in there---not just selling .mobi names but providing solutions wrapped around the extension.
[13:54] Sahar: Pinky Brand, if you were looking at the domain here, TechSupport.Mobi, what would you think of doing with it?
[13:54] Sahar: if you were in the market to buy that is
[13:54] ROMM: I picked up a .mobi (streemagic.mobi) because I really like the idea of performing magic on the street with a mobile phone.
[13:54] Art: Sahar just stole my question
[13:54] Sahar: lol
[13:54] Pinky Brand: I strongly believe a ccTLD or a new gTLD or .mobi or dotWhatever must be relevant and offer a solution to a problem---otherwise I don't invest in them.
[13:54] ROMM: (sorry to interrupt current discussion)
[13:54] Sahar: Looking forward to see it develops Ryan
[13:55] Sahar: Pinky Brand, that makes sense
[13:55] tnd: Is TechSupport.mobi one of the premium names that is held by the registry?
[13:55] Sahar: tnd, no
[13:55] Sahar: privately owned
[13:55] Pinky Brand: no this name is not ourse
[13:55] Pinky Brand: ours
[13:55] Art: down to 5 minutes
[13:55] Art: get those bids in!
[13:56] Sahar: Pinky Brand, how many .mobi domains are registered? any numbers? What is the growth rate for the extension?
[13:56] Adams Consulting: I've yet to see .mobi campaigns hit the mass media. When will that change?
[13:57] Pinky Brand: yeah we've registered about 1.2 million names---new creates have been picking up since the crisis---it's a cheap way to get a small business on mobile---.mobi name for anywhere from 8 to 15 bucks plus the free Instant Mobilizer site.
[13:57] Sahar: Adams Consulting, I saw a nubmer of corporations advertising their .Mobi names strong. It's happening.
[13:57] Pinky Brand: We we are running a TV campaign in 43 US airports right now.
[13:58] Art: especially w/ the growing number of mobile devices out there
[13:58] Sahar: Pinky Brand, nice
[13:58] Pinky Brand: That's just a start on our end.
[13:58] Adams Consulting: About the domain itself, from the registry?
[13:58] Sahar: Adams Consulting, no. Was asked before
[13:58] EGS: ****
[13:58] EGS: someone outbid me
[13:58] tnd: I think it would be difficult for a domain investor to monetize .mobi domain names effectively. Why did .mobi reserve many of the top names for private domain auctions where domain investors were the primary audience rather than to seek out businesses who would develop them?
[13:58] EGS: i was going strong
[13:58] Art: wow
[13:59] Adams Consulting: i'm asking about the the US airport campaign.
[13:59] EGS: .mobi is mass media
[13:59] EGS: Fox news shows fox.mobi at the bottom right of the screen every day
[13:59] Sahar: EGS, language please.. see the welcome msg in chat room
[14:00] Adams Consulting: Please provide more details on the US airport campaign. What is being advertisted? The .mobi TLD?
[14:01] Sahar: Pinky Brand, thanks so much for joining us. We all wish you the best. If someone needs any further assistance with .Mobi? Any final words before we say goodbye?
[14:01] Pinky Brand: Yes the .mobi TLD---you can get more info on that on our blog at blog.mobi or search for dotmobi on youtube to see the ad
[14:01] Gary Taylor: .mobi rules! thanks pinky
[14:01] Adams Consulting: Thanks, Pinky.
[14:01] Bido: http://dotmobi.typepad.com/
[14:02] Pinky Brand: My pleasure to attend and sorry for the connection delays. I was trying to answer all questions as quickly as possible!
[14:02] Sahar: Thanks Pinky !
[14:02] Art: Thank you Pinky!
[14:02] Pinky Brand: I thank everyone for their questions and support and thank BIDO for inviting me to attend today.
[14:02] Art: Still time left for bidding...
[14:03] Sahar: Take care all, I'm stepping out. Thanks again Pinky for all the insight !
[14:03] Adams Consulting: Here's the youtube link to the .mobi airport ad:
[14:03] Adams Consulting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJ0lYOFJQRQ
[14:03] Art: Bye Sahar
[14:04] Art: Congrats to victornumber
[14:04] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, have dot mobi paired up with "preferred" mobile developers, who do you currently recommed, if anyone?
[14:04] Pinky Brand: Bye Sahar and others. Thanks.
[14:04] Art: thanks again, Pinky!
[14:04] Art: Thanks to everyone for chatting today
[14:05] Pinky Brand: We've got a list of certified .mobi developers at our mobiForge.com site---otherwise email me offline for specific recs
[14:06] Pinky Brand: I've got to go unfortunately---I'm in Dublin and it's a pub time! :) Actually i need to scoot to a call. Take care all and thanks.
[14:06] Gary Taylor: Email me your address to gary@3ac.co.uk would love to have a chat further
[14:06] kiwi: I like this platform. Thank you
[14:07] Art: Bye Everyone!
[14:07] Pinky Brand: my email address is public --- it is pbrand@dotMobi.mobi --- thanks!
[14:07] Gary Taylor: Great! enjoy the pub!
[14:07] Pinky Brand: Thanks Gary. Take care.
[14:08] Gary Taylor: Pinky Brand, and you all the best
[14:08] Chef Patrick: wow good sale
[14:11] Gary Taylor: Chef Patrick, yeah nice result $540 not too shabby