Internet domain names to go on sale
TEXT OF STORY
JEREMY HOBSON: To San Francisco now where a three-day conference kicks off today for investors and entrepreneurs with an interest in internet domains. We’re all familiar with “dot-com” and “dot-org.” But soon you’ll be able to get “dot-consumer-electronics” or “dot-hockey.”
From our Entrepreneurship Desk at Oregon Public Broadcasting, Mitchell Hartmann reports on the race to make money from these new domains.
MITCHELL HARTMAN: The Oklahoma land rush from the movie “Far and Away” is being used to promote today’s conference, which is all about staking a claim to one of these new Internet domains.
KIEREN MCCARTHY: It’ll cost you $185,000.
Kieren McCarthy’s running the conference. He used to work for the agency that’s selling the new top-level domains.
Right now, there are 21 of these — like dot-com, dot-net. But $185,000 could buy you a new one — say, dot-sport or dot-Vegas.
MCCARTHY You would have an ending, and then people would fight over the second-level domains.
And when he says “fight” he means ‘pay’ — for addresses like golf-dot-sport or hotels-dot-Vegas.
Lauren Weinstein of People for Internet Responsibility warns the land rush will bring cybersquatters.
LAUREN WEINSTEIN: Harrah’s, for example, not only do they feel they have to sign up for dot-Vegas, but if someday there’s a dot-gambling, you have to sign up for that one.
Trademarks will be protected, so dot-GE can be purchased only by GE.
I’m Mitchell Hartman for Marketplace.
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