What We're Looking Forward to at NamesCon 2017!

It's hard to believe that NamesCon 2017 is here! It always feels like the event rolls around quicker each year, but I think that may just be a symptom of the domain industry! We will once again have a booth (#3) at the show and we'd love to see and talk to all of you, so please stop by and say hello. In anticipation of the event we decided to write a blog about what we're looking forward to most at the event.

Another year with the new gTLDs

When do we drop the "new" parlance when referencing the new gTLDs? It has been close to three years since the first new gTLDs launched and we are already starting to see a lot of maturity amongst the round one group. There appear to be some early winners as a small group of the new gTLDs have started to break away from the pack, whilst other new gTLDs are being consolidated or sold on the open market. NamesCon in many ways provides a microcosm of the domain industry so it's always interesting to see how the industry players are pivoting in their messaging and approach. This year should be no different.

Will we start to see some prospective chatter of second round gTLDs?

A date hasn't been defined yet for the second round of gTLDs but it is highly expected to be dominated by brands. Will NamesCon 2017 prove to be a good opportunity for these potential gTLDs to introduce themselves? I'd imagine that even if they are not publicizing themselves, they will no doubt be in attendance on a recon mission.

A new NamesCon

In August 2016, it was announced that NamesCon was sold to the conference giant World Hosting Days. The consolidation didn't stop there though as GoDaddy acquired World Hosting Days parent company Host Europe Group this past December. It's unknown what impact this will have on NamesCon 2017 (Will this be the last year at the Tropicana?), but the acquisition of the conference, two times over, is just another example of the changing nature of the domain industry.

Bonus: Richard Lau - Founder and Producer of NamesCon

We tapped the man behind it all, Richard Lau, to share with us what he's looking forward to at this years event. Per Richard:

"Every year NamesCon grows in attendance, Exhibitors and content. It's a great way to start off your year building on existing business relationships and founding new ones. I'm looking forward to our streamlined agenda, expanded Exhibits and am interested to see how our new mobile app will enable more rapid communication amongst attendees."

We are looking forward to seeing all attendees this year. NamesCon is a great opportunity for our tight knit industry to get together, network and toast our accomplishments. Make sure you stop by the Dynadot booth and say hi!

Post by Barry Coughlan