New free-of-charge TLD?

Tsunami · 26 Jun 2019, 08:27 PM

I stumbled upon this page. On this page it says the .sky domain costs 0.00 USD per year.

Is this a new free top-level domain? Or am I missing some charges here that somewhere else on the page?

I'm not saying I find the .sky extention that appealing, but for blogs or sites that I maintain without too serious intentions, the domain is good enough.

n5bb · 27 Jun 2019, 07:56 AM

At this time, the .sky TLD is not available for the public. See:
https://icannwiki.org/.sky
and:
http://www.nic.sky/assets/regPolicy3.pdf

The URL you provided is misleading. They are only offering a pre-registration of a .sky domain assuming that the current owner (SKY group companies) releases some portion of the TLD to the public in the future.

Bill

Tsunami · 27 Jun 2019, 11:24 PM

Hmmm, it would have been too good to be true. The page indeed was misleading, I was already wondering if there wasn't a catch.

Well, free domains *do* exist. The extentions aren't as "catchy" as .sky though.

TenFour · 28 Jun 2019, 06:51 AM

However, typically "free" TLDs almost immediately become sources of large amounts of spam and therefore become blacklisted by the major filters. I found that out when I purchased a bargain TLD that was quite appropriate for the content being sent, but people I was sending emails to reported they went into Spam without fail.

Tsunami · 28 Jun 2019, 08:29 PM

Out of curiosity, which are those "bargain TLDs"? Which TLDs (ccTLD or gTLD) are cheap enough you'd label them a "bargain"? I'd still be interested, even if it's an obscure one.

I would never get an obscure TLD for a project that I am serious about. But other than those serious projects, I have a few blogs and microblogs that I don't want to spend money on. For such side projects, an obscure TLD would be interesting enough for me. A couple of euro's is not too much, even if it's just for a side project. An obscure TLD is still better than a long web address with a subdomain of your blog host.

TenFour · 28 Jun 2019, 08:33 PM

For example, Namecheap charges $1 per year for .xyz right now.

Tsunami · 28 Jun 2019, 08:36 PM

PS: in a YouTube video, the uploader refered to a .sky URL. This is why I got confused about whether it was already possible to register .sky domains, and then I googled and came across that page (in my opening post of this topic) where it stated .sky costs 0 USD per year… I got a bit confused.

Maybe the uploader of that YouTube video pre-registered the domain. Although why advertise a domain you're not having activated yet and/or have no certainty it's ever going to be yours to use?!

Tsunami · 28 Jun 2019, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TenFour

For example, Namecheap charges $1 per year for .xyz right now.

Is that a promotional action or a permanent price?

I know Name also has promotions, but most TLDs I see passing by aren't really useful for the type of blogs I run.

.xyz could be an option.

I still check pricing for .tv regularly, but I gave up hope it'd ever become in the same price category as .com or .net... Pity, because for my online photo portfolio, .tv would be the ideal extention. The .photo extention is still too new to sound familiar and be remembered by people.

TenFour · 28 Jun 2019, 08:44 PM

Check out Namesilo. You can search for a domain name and they will provide a long list of available TLDs at some of the lowest regular prices available.

Tsunami · 1 Jul 2019, 03:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TenFour

Check out Namesilo. You can search for a domain name and they will provide a long list of available TLDs at some of the lowest regular prices available.

Thanks for the advise!

chickadee · 1 Jul 2019, 07:20 AM

Tsunami, you can get a "respectable" domain at NameSilo at a dirt-cheap price:

https://www.namesilo.com/register.php

Check out the registrar Porkbun, also.

Tsunami · 12 Jul 2019, 07:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chickadee

Tsunami, you can get a "respectable" domain at NameSilo at a dirt-cheap price:

https://www.namesilo.com/register.php

Check out the registrar Porkbun, also.

Nice, thanks! I also see (scrolling down to the very bottom of the page you linked to) that they're ICANN accredited. That's IMO important. Porkbun.com is ICANN accredited too I see. Nice

I liked their previous layout with the pictures of the baby pig better though

26 Jun 2019, 08:27 PM	#1
Tsunami The "e" in e-mail Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: in between the bright lights and the far unlit unknown Posts: 2,339	New free-of-charge TLD? I stumbled upon this page. On this page it says the .sky domain costs 0.00 USD per year. Is this a new free top-level domain? Or am I missing some charges here that somewhere else on the page? I'm not saying I find the .sky extention that appealing, but for blogs or sites that I maintain without too serious intentions, the domain is good enough.

27 Jun 2019, 07:56 AM	#2
n5bb Intergalactic Postmaster Join Date: May 2004 Location: Irving, Texas Posts: 8,925	At this time, the .sky TLD is not available for the public. See: https://icannwiki.org/.sky and: http://www.nic.sky/assets/regPolicy3.pdf The URL you provided is misleading. They are only offering a pre-registration of a .sky domain assuming that the current owner (SKY group companies) releases some portion of the TLD to the public in the future. Bill

27 Jun 2019, 11:24 PM	#3
Tsunami The "e" in e-mail Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: in between the bright lights and the far unlit unknown Posts: 2,339	Hmmm, it would have been too good to be true. The page indeed was misleading, I was already wondering if there wasn't a catch. Well, free domains do exist. The extentions aren't as "catchy" as .sky though.

28 Jun 2019, 06:51 AM	#4
TenFour Master of the @ Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: USA Posts: 1,721	However, typically "free" TLDs almost immediately become sources of large amounts of spam and therefore become blacklisted by the major filters. I found that out when I purchased a bargain TLD that was quite appropriate for the content being sent, but people I was sending emails to reported they went into Spam without fail.

28 Jun 2019, 08:29 PM	#5
Tsunami The "e" in e-mail Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: in between the bright lights and the far unlit unknown Posts: 2,339	Out of curiosity, which are those "bargain TLDs"? Which TLDs (ccTLD or gTLD) are cheap enough you'd label them a "bargain"? I'd still be interested, even if it's an obscure one. I would never get an obscure TLD for a project that I am serious about. But other than those serious projects, I have a few blogs and microblogs that I don't want to spend money on. For such side projects, an obscure TLD would be interesting enough for me. A couple of euro's is not too much, even if it's just for a side project. An obscure TLD is still better than a long web address with a subdomain of your blog host.

28 Jun 2019, 08:33 PM	#6
TenFour Master of the @ Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: USA Posts: 1,721	For example, Namecheap charges $1 per year for .xyz right now.

28 Jun 2019, 08:36 PM	#7
Tsunami The "e" in e-mail Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: in between the bright lights and the far unlit unknown Posts: 2,339	PS: in a YouTube video, the uploader refered to a .sky URL. This is why I got confused about whether it was already possible to register .sky domains, and then I googled and came across that page (in my opening post of this topic) where it stated .sky costs 0 USD per year… I got a bit confused. Maybe the uploader of that YouTube video pre-registered the domain. Although why advertise a domain you're not having activated yet and/or have no certainty it's ever going to be yours to use?!

28 Jun 2019, 08:44 PM	#9
TenFour Master of the @ Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: USA Posts: 1,721	Check out Namesilo. You can search for a domain name and they will provide a long list of available TLDs at some of the lowest regular prices available.

1 Jul 2019, 07:20 AM	#11
chickadee Member Join Date: Nov 2013 Posts: 81	Tsunami, you can get a "respectable" domain at NameSilo at a dirt-cheap price: https://www.namesilo.com/register.php Check out the registrar Porkbun, also.