Go Daddy Experiences Increase in Registration of .TV Names

August 21, 2007; 01:53 AM
You can watch just about any program you want, any time you want… That’s why more than 100 million people are starting to watch their TV online, and it’s why GoDaddy.com is seeing an increase in the registration of domain names ending in .TV.

“People associate ‘TV’ with their entertainment experience from television,” said Warren Adelman, President and Chief Operating Officer of Go Daddy, the world’s leading domain name registrar. “That’s why .TV names are especially good for video and multimedia sites. ‘TV’ is one of the most recognized two-letter symbols in the world, so it’s memorable and marketable.”

About 5.3 billion video streams will be delivered to Internet users in the United States each month in 2007. A new report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project says almost one in every five adults online watch or download video on a typical day. More than half of online video viewers share links to the video they find with others. These activities helped contribute to the fact that so far this year, Go Daddy has already seen a 65 percent increase in .TV registrations over 2006.

Television stations and media companies are registering names that end in .TV because it’s logical and easy for viewers to find the sites. However, .TV names are also becoming more popular with others. Individuals who already have a .COM Web site can have a separate site where they store their favorite videos. Then, they can direct friends to the site to watch the best of the bunch. More and more small business owners are also realizing the power of .TV names. They can use a .TV site to show product demonstration videos and taped customer testimonials.

For those who create their own blogs and podcasts, a .TV Web site is an obvious choice. One of the most watched .TV venues, GeekBrief.TV, is sponsored by and registered through Go Daddy. The site features host Cali Lewis delivering technology news and has millions of downloads every month. Popular podcasts like this make money from the growing business of Internet TV ad revenue, expected to hit $10 billion worldwide by 2011.

People can create content for their own .TV sites with Go Daddy’s new Quick Blogcast tool, which allows them to combine blogs with video and audio recordings. For example, users can post video of a family trip next to stories about what happened on the trip. A series of these entries can turn a .TV site into a video diary or an online family album.

Anyone can register a .TV domain name in just seconds by going to GoDaddy.com. At the top of the page, users type in the desired name where it says, “Start a domain search.” The search will show whether the name is available or if a similar name can be registered.