New GTLD .NYC News Prime Real Estate! I Love NY!
New York, perhaps the United States most infamous city, larger than Hollywood, bigger than Texas, the state that has seen it all! From mobsters to moguls, criminals to congress, entertainers to investors, and all things finance, the “Concrete Jungle” brings forth a way to increase state funds, without a tax hike or impacting taxpayers at all.
Everyone knows how costly prime real estate is in New York City, the cost of living double that of other cities in the US. Now, New Yorkers have the option to obtain their own piece of the New York pie, at an overly affordable rate. We’re not talking a luxury penthouse in the clouds, or even a mansion in Manhattan, not even a whisper of and available flat on Wall Street, no we’re talking about internet real estate!
Until this past Wednesday, the highly anticipated .NYC gTLD was only available to a select group of non-profit organizations and business owners, but Wednesday’s IPO of the .NYC top-level domain changed all that, opening the floor to bidders everywhere…. In New York City that is! Yes, there are some restrictions, just like any other real estate deal, and you may find yourself in a bidding war, but the biggest obstacle to overcome for many will simply be providing proof of a physical address in New York City. That’s right, the only way to qualify is to be a resident of the Big Apple!
Once you’ve proven your worthiness, in the form of residential proof, the floor (or internet) is yours for the taking. Buyers are free to purchase as many domains as they would like to, all applications will be processed on a first come, first served basis, however if multiple offers are received on a single domain, an auction will be held for that domain. Otherwise the domain you request is yours for the taking.
Buyers are sure to love the simplistic means of ownership, with the city earnestly trying to keep everything using the .NYC extension directly tied to the city. This alone sets them apart from other geographical top level domains like .vegas and .london, who have opened their IPOs to more than “local only” buyers. Now for large corporations with multiple national offices around the country, this is a great way to differentiate your home offices from your headquarters, and I personally don’t see how “outsiders” can benefit from the .NYC domain without having an office there. It seems that consumers would question why my Cleveland business has a .NYC domain rather than a .Cleveland domain since I have no office in that area. Yes, on one hand, it’d drive business to the overall .NYC area, as people could find a directory of other local businesses with a simple search, but it’s not guaranteed to drive business to me personally, as even I wouldn’t select a business that utilized a domain extension that has absolutely nothing to do with the geographical location being utilized.
Herein lies the most costly and frustration causing problem though, the city has not yet implemented a provisional plan to protect New York businesses and buyers from the epidemic of cyber-squatters. The result with this tends to be the philosophy of “It’s cheaper to pay the ransom and obtain the rights to the domain, than it is to foot the bill for legal costs of enforcing such rules”. Cyber-crimes are just as likely if not more likely to occur as any other form of criminal activity, all one needs is simply a motive and opportunity, with the desire to inflict inconvenience on the part of a legitimate buyer.
New York City residents are equally excited about the idea of increasing city revenue by over $3 million, this in itself is a brilliant form of an economical budget balancing act, all while not affecting the taxpayer’s pockets, which residents value and cherish.
So here’s to NYC, the hustle and bustle of everyday life, the subway system, ground zero, Madison Square Garden, and the brains to incite a balanced budget without a tax hike!