Domain Registry renewal pitch is back again
June 5, 2021
If you own Internet domain names, like example.com, you should know by now that they have to be renewed after your initial term expires. Some of you got your first year of domain registration for free when you signed up for web hosting. Others may have paid up front to register a domain for multiple years. After that initial term you should have received renewal notices from the domain registrar of hosting company either telling you they were auto-renewing your domain name, or asking you to update your payment information. Those notices would be sent to the email address on file with your domain registrar or web host. Failure to renew a domain will result in any websites tied to it going offline shortly after it expires.
Let's stop at this point so I can define some of the terms I used in the first paragraph. You need to understand what they mean if you own, or want to buy domain names and have online websites.
- A "Domain" in this context, refers to an digital asset that can be used to point to a website, or other online presence like a file server, database or even a social network.
- A domain "name" is an alpha-numeric name somebody chooses for use for a website or an online accessible asset. Some companies use domain names on internal networks, but that is not within the context of this article. A domain name has two parts: the prefix and extension. You choose an available prefix then add the available extension. A classic example is "example.com." There are numerous domain extensions, like .com, .net, info, .org, etc.
- A Domain "Registrar" is a company whose business includes registering domain names and entering them into a world wide database. Unless Registrars are accredited the official licensing body ICANN, they are merely acting as middlemen for someone else who is accredited. Once a domain name is registered and entered into the official registry, it cannot be registered to anybody else unless it expires and is not renewed.
- A "Website" (a.k.a.: web site), in this context, is an online presence for a domain that has publicly or privately viewable content that is reached over the Internet. For the sake of clarity, I am referring to websites like mine: wizcrafts.net.
- A "web host, or hosting company" is a business that owns huge numbers of bare metal computers known as "servers" that are housed in climate controlled warehouses. They provide the digital space for their customers to create websites and have them viewable over the Internet.
- If you are reading this you know what the "Internet" is.
Moving along, last year I wrote a blog article about the Domain Registry (of America) registration renewal scam I got in the mail. Well, I just got another letter from this company, located in Bergen, New Jersey, notifying me that one of my domain names was about to expire and that I needed to renew it quickly to maintain its online presence. The fee they are asking for is $50 for one year or $90 for two years. Those rates are through the roof too high in today's domain registration market! I can renew a .com or .net domain for between $10 and $16 US dollars per year at Domain.com, or Cloudflare.
I went to the new website shown in the letter I got from them and they have dropped the words "of America," but the logo still contains Domain Registry next to a round portion of an American flag. They have a confusing double business name: "Global Internet Ventures: and "Internet Domain Name Services Inc." Nowhere on any of their few web pages is there any mention of them being accredited by ICANN. Any legitimate Registrar will proudly display the ICANN Accredited logo. It appears that Domain Registry, et all, is just a middle man for somebody else. Their exorbitant markup of $50 for registrations and renewals belies the fact they they aren't trying to compete for your business. They are getting sales from the letters they mail out to registered domain owners trying to fool them into transferring to Domain Registry from their existing registrar (which is likely much lower priced in the first place). They are hoping you are too busy to read the fine print or look up who your registrar is and you will pay them through the nose for the privilege of being bent over by DROA.
There is a funny twist to this story. It so happens that the domain name they wanted me to pay $50 to renew before it expires is already expired! It isn't assigned to me or anybody else. It went to the bit bucket in the sky! So much for doing their homework!
Now that you know the facts, if you own a domain that is coming up for renewal and wonder if you are paying too much, check out my Registrar: Domain.com. As for web hosting, I currently use InMotion Hosting.
I may receive a commission on sales generated through my affiliate links. This isn't a bad thing! It is a way to survive in a big dog little dog world.
Here's a heads up! No matter how many years you register your domains for at a time, it is imperative that you periodically login to the place where they are registered and make sure that your contact info and email address is up to date. A lot of people lose their domain names because they failed to update their email address and didn't receive the notice that the renewal time was approaching. Credit and debit cards usually expire in 3 years. If you took a 5 or 10 year domain registration up front, your card on file may be outdated. If you don't receive the email notices you will lose your domain when the due date passes without payment. If you don't know or remember who the Registrar is you can find out by doing a "Whois" lookup on the domain name (e.g., example.com)
Finally, if you are new to all this and have a website that needs work, consider me as your Webmaster. See my Webmaster Services page for more details.
Thanks for your time.
