Speed-dating new TLD Registry Providers: Demand Media

July 29th, 2008

Names at Work guide to new top-level domains

Note: you may want to read the Introduction and Part One of this series for a quick overview of the “speed-dating” process and some notes about the results presented here. Answers are from the registry operator, and don’t represent our independent evaluation.

[← Directi | Full list | NeuLevel →]

Contestant #6 - Demand Media

Demand Media bought Paul Stahura’s eNom, and is therefore a strong player in this space. Enom has 11 million domain names under registrar management and crunches enormous amounts of data to analyze domain names and determine their value — of which they have a keen sense. Their entry as a domain name registry operator is therefore no stretch, especially with the recent addition of Richard Tindal, long-time registry honcho at NeuStar. They also run the NameJet auction platform, which I’ll cover in the upcoming auction section.

Represented by	Paul Stahura, Richard Tindal
TLDs currently supported	Dot TV Registry Direct, Dot CC Registry Direct (update: these are partnerships with VeriSign, who operate the registries)
Provides marketing support	Yes
Hosts registry on their system	Yes
Open-source software all or in part	No
Subscription, per-unit, flat-fee pricing	Any
Invest money in TLD?	Yes
Can accommodate complicated business rules	Yes
DNS resolution services?	No Update: Yes
WhoIs services	Yes
Customer profile (registration volume)	Any
IDN support	Yes
DNSSEC support	Yes
IPv6 support	No
Help with application, lobbying	Yes
Registrar system included	Yes
Differentiating factors	11M names under management, 2 billion dns queries daily, #2 registrar, media network reach, auction platform