Morning folks!!

In September 2006 .mobi was released. I did not think much of the extension. Just another dotcom wannabe.  I laughed as most are still doing and moved on. Then about 3 weeks later another thought occurred to me and I made a quick about face. What did I see? If I tell ya, I’d have to kill ya. But at that moment I saw something that would allow only a very NARROW but hugely successful amount of .mobi’s that could change the world. Besides the obvious company names and trademarks that would be snapped up by their respective companies, I identified less than 10 generic domains that could have great value in the future. The one that led my list was Tickets.mobi. It joined flowers.mobi which was also in the list. Why? Well, let’s look at how these two industries were transformed by the internet, perhaps more than most or even all others. 20 years ago when I would call 1-800-FLOWERS, I bought stuff but would never see it. The Internet changed that. I finally had a visual to go with the dollar amount. That transformed the buying experience for millions. Same with tickets. Before, you would call an 800# and got what you got after cross examining the operator on the other end of the phone line. The Internet gave me the visual and now we can all see the exact seat we get.

So as I sat and identified the industries that could once again be transformed by .mobi, the list was short and narrow. But like other things, IDEAS come about and that short and narrow list is likely to fatten up.

For example, last Tuesday night, Jim McCann said they were working on a system that you will be able to send a “Virtual Bouquet” to someone sitting in a nightclub you might be at. So never discount how things can be transformed by a new idea. Will that happen at flowers.com? No.They have a separate site for that. Today a dotcom. Tomorrow……who knows. Especially when matched up with GPS or as a default extension. Do any of us know how this will unfold? No. But it does not stop folks from putting blinders on and actively rooting against something. Step back folks. Don’t be guilty of the same things others have done to you. Open minds seize opportunities that closed minds will never see.

Now that I got the #1 .mobi I have aimed for since day one, (Tickets.mobi) it will be interesting to see how the old guard domainers learn I am a big .mobi fan. (No surprise for some) I see it as the next best extension to dot com and really nobody needs to agree with me. The more folks disagree, the more I know I am on the right track. So save the naysaying for 5 years not 5 minutes. Then we can discuss why so many of my good friends missed such a winner. They will just say…..”Damn, Rick was right again.”

Here is the reality. In 5 years the domain may be worth between $0 and $60,000. It may also be worth between $60,000 and $60 million. I decided to place my bet on the latter. Place your bets where you may. At the end of the day, I will trust my gut more than any other set of factors. My gut says this will be a $60,000 loss or the single biggest payday of my life. Only had that feeling a few times before. Porno.com, Men.com, Candy.com, Property.com, Tickets.mobi. So then the question becomes: “Why did I buy flowers.mobi for more than tickets.mobi? The answer is pretty simple. Flowers.mobi was the only other .mobi released that was in my top 10 list and since tickets.mobi was not yet out there, I wanted a foot in this door. Porn.mobi was also on the short list as is sex.mobi and some other obvious ones. Domainers will not decide if .mobi hits or not. Businesses across the world will decide. They may see it as a way to capture another market. Another generation. They may see things we don't see. The thing that will decide the future of .mobi is not domainers. It is businesses across the world and advertising dollars spent. 

btw, the FIRST question that Jim McCann asked me was "What did I think about .mobi?" I told him it is too early to tell. The answer won't reveal itself for 3-5 years. What folks did not know when he was there is that Jim McCann was the LONGEST domainer in the room. He started in 1992!! While others are still struggling with their initial sites and online presence, here we have Mr. Cutting Edge himself and his focus comes down to one word, "Mobile"! Their focus for the future is the mobile, on the go, younger audience. Will that help .mobi? Stay tuned!

Have a GREAT Day
Rick Schwartz

Posted at 09:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (43) | TrackBack (0)

Every once in a while somebody will find an old post of mine and that happened this morning. Thank you Owen! This post as you will see was written on July 4, 1998. There was no domain industry. As you can see, I am still trying to sell the concept that the Internet was here to stay and just how important it is. So this is an interesting perspective from nearly 10 years ago. My goodness, look how the universe has changed in the past decade. What “Orbit” were you in a decade ago? Think back to that time and what was different. Look how the world has transformed itself in this decade. This is extremely timely as the new proposed law will change the life of every person that owns one or more domains if passed. We have come from total obscurity to being the #1 asset to legislate away from the current owners. Don't know what I am talking about? Read what Mike Berkens has to say after you read the following post. Now maybe folks will see the reason to support the Internet Commerce Association. 

From July 4th 1998........

Morning All!!

This is my 3rd annual July 4th post on domains.
Second on Ynot - and I believe the first was on Jonathans OLD board.

The first year they laughed me off the board
The second year they began to see what I saw
The third year I would like to show you where this "Domain train" is ultimately going.

First of all you MUST visualize a domain as a PHYSICAL piece of property, land, undeveloped land.

Second you must realize that it is a MULTIDIMENSIONAL object because of "Product branding" and WORLDWIDE address.

Third you must realize the special "Uniqueness" ALL domains inherently have.

Fourth......it is FREE to get to and hopefully EASY to remember and SPELL.

Fifth and MOST important, you must realize just how VALUABLE that real estate REALLY is.

I have said one thing numerous times since I started down this path.....and 3 years later......I believe it stronger than ever!! "The price of domains (Electronic realestate) will go up faster than ANY other land EVER known to man" I had made $0 at the point that I BELIEVED that statement to be true.

When I talk about domains I talk of PRIME domains. Not some of my silly "cams" or "gos" or "starts" or other such veins. (That is for down the road)  I am talking corner properties in Manhattan, Beverly Hills, South Beach.

1 or 2 word domains that are TARGETED to a SPECIFIC group of people.

So where do I see myself at this point.......
I see myself in Times Square and I own a few corners plus a BUNCH of land on 42nd st.
When I arrived.....it was like a ghost town....it was barren and empty and MORE than scary.

Today......I hear the sounds of a MASSIVE construction project underway. Trucks and cranes and banging and digging and everything else you can imagine.

AND IT HAS EXPANDED!!

Those sounds are being heard in other geographic regions as well. It's not only Manhattan!!

They have expanded to KANSAS if you were talking in domain terms, and with new highways opening up in the form of different extensions......things get even more interesting!

THIS is the year that the mainstream WILL figure it out. I started this journey expecting it to be 4 or 5 years down the road before it hit. That would make my ultimate predictions come true in the next 18 months.

So What will happen??

First of all how many of you would have imagined a year ago that the board would have soooo many postings in references to domains....buying, selling, trading? That IS significant.

I believe that the "Multi national" companies of the world may begin to see what I see. When that happens....AND IT WILL HAPPEN.....you will see a significant amount of buying going on and the prices will go thru the roof! I see numerous domains that will become next to priceless BECAUSE they WON'T be for sale. THAT will cause other domain prices to rise.

Location! Location! Location!

I always believed it was a lot easier for a crummy restaurant to be successful in a prime location with built in traffic than a GREAT restaurant that nobody is able to find. Doesn't mean the GREAT restaurant won't be successful.......but it DOES MEAN:

that he MUST be MUCH BETTER!
that he has to work MUCH harder!
that he has to give them a reason to go out of their way!
that he will always look down on the guy with the great location!

BUT

At some point......the GREAT restaurant may want BOTH!

The BIG money IS coming! REALLLLLLLLLLY Big!

I believe it. I believed it in 1995. And I believe it stronger on THIS July 4th than any other!

I remember last July 4th when I said to friends and such that a company's website address would appear in every commercial, every magazine ad, every billboard and at some point in time will become MORE important than even their 800 number. Guess what - yes, they laughed at me. I got more than a FEW raised eyebrows.

I would say on THIS July 4th that ANY company without a presence on the net is LOSING BUSINESS and their competition is gaining it! It indicates a company with little foresight and if you were an investor in one of these companies I would say it was time to change.

Keep your eyes on Disney, Microsoft, and some OLD GIANTS, plus a few unknowns to lead the hottest race you have EVER seen. Look at the domains Disney and Microsoft are buying up RIGHT NOW.


The BIGGEST factor!

Let's say Sears decides to build a store in Osh Kosh......It costs them $25 million, takes them 2 years to build after 5 years of planning.

VERY SLOW......VERY EXPENSIVE!

And if they get it wrong.....Ha ha!!

Now if Sears decides to build NUMEROUS websites TARGETED at different groups of people they could take that same $$$$ and do some SERIOUS damage on the net!

AND they can do it overnight!

WHY did I stop advertising my Dirty phone numbers in all those magazines I was in back in 1996?
Cuz on the net I could take it and turn my money around in days and I no longer had to wait 6-9 months to get a return!

Maybe others will come to the same conclusion......If they follow the $$$$$......then there isn't a doubt in my mind.

Sorry for the Long and Boring post......But I LOVE tradition!!

Have a happy and SAFE 4th!!
Rick Schwartz